Ratoath timing run to perfection

And then there were three. Kilmessan have taken a few people by surprise this year in just how prolific they have been in the SHC. Despite their loss last time out, they still did enough to qualify for an automatic spot in the Jubilee Cup final.

Joining them in the decider on Sunday 11th October in Trim will be the winners of a rematch of last year's decider between Ratoath and Kiltale in the semi-final on Sunday in Devenish Park at 2pm.

Before their final round win over Trim, questions were being asked of Ratoath and whether or not they were performing to the same level that they were 12 months ago. Some doubt still lingers, but a lot of it was put to bed when Ratoath sealed that important win over the ‘Reds’.

The unlikely hero in that victory was 18-year-old Eoin Flanagan who scored a hat-trick of goals off the bench for Andy Dermody’s side and the champions will grow hugely in confidence from the way they battled to secure their spot in the semi-final.

Kiltale will take confidence from the fact that they have already beaten Ratoath in championship action this year.

In round three of the group stages, John Donoghue’s side overturned a seven-point deficit with just over 20 minutes remaining and snatched victory over the side they will face off against this Sunday.

Without being overly impressive, it has been a solid campaign for Kiltale so far and they are very deserving of their spot in the semi-final.

Ratoath are a team that have three or four game-changing hurlers within their ranks.

Gavin McGowan, Daithi McGowan, Cian Rogers and Podge O’Hanrahan are among the finest hurlers in the county and if two or three of those players click in any given game, Ratoath are very hard to beat.

Kiltale aren’t short of talent either.

Everytime, Jack Regan takes to a field in club hurling you can pretty much guarantee that he will be one of, if not the best hurler on the pitch.

James Kelly has been playing some lovely hurling from a deeper role this year and the likes of Hughie O'Sullivan, Peter Durnin and Ross Ryan bolster an attack that despite the perception is far from reliant on the super talented Regan.

After that Trim victory, Ratoath are many people's favourites to seal their third SHC title in a row but Kiltale will almost certainly have something to say about on Sunday.

It is going to be a titanic battle however the machine that is Ratoath may just be peaking at the right time.

Verdict - Ratoath.