Reigning champs beaten, Trinity pull off first Fitzgibbon win and Limerick IT edge it

Niall McIntyre

It’s Fitzgibbon Cup time.

All of the big dogs got their 2019 Fitzgibbon Cup campaigns underway on this, the third Sunday of January and it’s a beautiful reminder that a new hurling season has dawned and is upon us now

There were six Fitzgibbon games from Belfield to Grangegorman and from Borrisoleigh to Waterford IT and with some of the best inter-county hurlers in the country on show, it was a great way to get the sliotar flying.

Here’s the round-up of a heavy day’s hurling.

UCD 3-12 NUIG 1-18

NUIG were the better team in Belfield, but backed by a boisterous home crowd, UCD hung in there when a lesser team would have faded and in the end, their grit and determination earned them a valuable home point.

They’ve come from Tipperary, from Kilkenny, from Wexford, from Offaly, from Dublin and even from Clare and Limerick up to UCD this year but as well as having the most diverse team in this great competition, Conor O’Shea has a fair few big names at his disposal too.

Tipperary’s number one Brian Hogan minds the goals while the small square in front of him is guarded by Huw Lawlor, a man tipped to make the Kilkenny number three jersey his own this year.

Then you’ve Tipp 21 Michael Purcell in the corner while the Ennis man in front of him David Fitzgerald knows what it’s like to win at this grade, having been man of the match in the final last year for UL.

Radiography student Seamus Flanagan is flanked by DJ Carey’s son Sean up front while Offaly’s Podge Guinan is another pacy attacker.

NUIG are a less diverse outfit – two Tipperary men are the only to break the Galway dominance but maybe they don’t need other counties – Galway seniors Sean Loftus, Conor Whelan and Brian Concannon their key men.

And the Galway men were on fire early on. Sean Loftus was lording it in the middle third and his industry helped them to a 1-11 to 2-6 half-time lead.

But UCD wouldn’t die and when Sean Carey, son of Kilkenny legend DJ hit the net to put them three up in the second half, they looked like winners.

NUIG fought back though, through Niland’s frees and Whelan’s guile and in the end, two Ronan Hayes frees were needed to tie it up for UCD.

IT Carlow 1-13 Limerick IT 1-14

Diarmuid Byrnes nailed a last gasp injury time free to give new LIT manager Jimmy Browne the perfect start to his time at the college.

Just moments earlier, the Treaty men looked beaten. Wexford under-21 star Seamus Casey rifled in an injury time goal to give Carlow a one point lead in injury time but Na Piarsaigh’s David Dempsey levelled it and then Byrnes did the business to win it.

LIT again look a force to be reckoned with this year with Clare seniors Jason McCarthy, David Reidy and Peter Duggan in their ranks as well as Limerick’s Casey, Dempsey and Byrnes.

DCU 0-16 WIT 0-14

DCU are one of the favourites for the competition this year and when you see their star-studded panel, it’s no wonder why.

They’ll be hoping to go one step further than last year’s final loss and they got off to a solid start here, fighting hard to beat a dogged WIT team by two in Carriganore.

Chris Crummey’s penchant for a long-range point helped them over the line, the Lucan defender scored two absolute rakers from his own half back line while Sean Morrissey and Rian McBride chipped in with tidy scores.

See the highlights here courtesy of Jerome Quinn media.

Video: See @DCUGAAAcademy beat @WITGAA today & reaction from @DubGAAOfficial's Chris Crummey who fired 2 vital long-range points. @ElectricIreland Fitzgibbon Cup action with @JeromeQuinn #firstclassrivals @GAALucan pic.twitter.com/Xv7D4foDj5

— GAA Higher Education (@HigherEdGAA) January 20, 2019

Garda 0-13 Trinity College 1-15

Trinity College have been knocking on the door for a long time and on Sunday, they beat the door down. Far away from Dublin City and in the boggy fields of Borrisoleigh in Tipperary, their students made history as they defeated the Garda College to claim their first Fitzgibbon Cup win.

Cian O’Sullivan was exceptional for them at centre back and there won’t be a Book of Kells read in Trinity this week.

I dno if we’ve ever travelled so well, savage support here in rural Tipp, honestly fairplay chas 🔴⚫️ pic.twitter.com/pyJ8QDLC3K

— Trinity College GAA (@TCDGAA) January 20, 2019

SHTICK THAT ROAST BEEF ON FOR WEDNESDAY, WE ARE LIVEEEE 🔴⚫️ pic.twitter.com/wnrY8yQreT

— Trinity College GAA (@TCDGAA) January 20, 2019

UL 0-20 UCC 0-26

The clash of the titans, the tie of the round and it ended up a bit of an upset.

The reigning champions UL were beaten by this competition’s most successful ever team in UCC on the Limerick side’s home patch on Sunday. Kerry hotshot Shane Conway’s accuracy from placed balls kept them ticking while Robbie O’Flynn’s introduction revitalised them.

UL now face must win games against NUIG and UCD, both of whom proved earlier that they’ll be no pushovers.

Their strength in depth however, with Tipperary seniors Cian Darcy and Brian McGrath on the bench, Kilkenny senior Martin Keoghan and Limerick All-Ireland winners Barry Nash and Kyle Hayes also to call on, means that they should be well able for it.