Tooreen looking to fly Mayo flag on provincial stage

IT is a case of ‘here we go again’ when Mayo champions Tooreen and Four Roads of Roscommon shape up to each other in the Connacht Intermediate hurling quarter final on Sunday at 1.30 pm in Hyde Park.

This will be the fourth year in a row that they have clashed at this stage of the series with Tooreen claiming victory on each occasion.

For the second year in a row, Tooreen can count themselves extremely fortunate to have got over the line against Ballyhaunis.

It took a last minute and highly-controversial goal to secure victory over thier highly-motivated opponents in the Mayo final three weeks ago. The 2024 Mayo Final saw Ballyhaunis take Tooreen to extra time before the champions edged a thriller on a scoreline of 1-21 to 0-22.

Tooreen are only too well aware that Four Roads are highly motivated to put an end to their losing streak against the Mayo champions.

They started superbly in last year’s game but suffered a major setback when Conor Morris got a red card after 23 minutes. They still led by six points at half-time, but Tooreen put on a superb show in the second half to emerge winners by ten points on a scoreline of 2-25 to 3-12.

The wide expanses of Hyde Park lend themselves to the pace of many of the Tooreen hurlers and manager Ray Larkin is looking forward to another big display from the Mayo champions.

“We have a full hand to play with in relation to availability and no injuries. The lads are all set for this match and we hope to bring our top game to the Roscommon venue.

“We have a lot of respect for the Four Roads lads. They are a good combination and have proven their worth by winning four in a row in Roscommon. We hope our lads will get into the game early on and bring a fresh enthusiasm to their combination play that has been at the core of the team’s success in recent years,” Larkin stated.

Shane and Fergal Boland, David and Sean Kenny, Conal Hession, Oisín Greally, Stephen Coyne, Brian Morley, Danny Huane, Eoin Delaney, Liam Lavin, Michael Morley, Bobby Douglas, Joe Boyle, Sean Regan and Kenny Feeney are all expected to see duty on Sunday.

Four Roads, who had nine points to spare over Oran in the Roscommon decider, have several distinguished hurlers among their ranks, including Conor Mulry, who captained Roscommon to the Nicky Rackard Cup win over Mayo in Croke Park some months ago, Conor Morris, Paddy Fallon, Conor Kelly, Tommy Morris, James Cunniffe and Noel Fallon.

Tooreen will be hoping to make it five wins in a row over the Roscommon men on Sunday. The winners will play St Gabriel’s of London in Ruislip two weeks later.