Dunloy 1-14 St Thomas' 0-13: Ulster champions stun Galway men in All-Ireland semi-final
Dunloy stunned Galway champions St Thomas' as they earned a deserved 1-14 to 0-13 victory in the All-Ireland Club Hurling semi-final at Croke Park.
were level 0-6 to 0-6 after a scrappy first half but Dunloy moved three up and Keelan Molloy's superb goal helped them lead by six.
St Thomas' cut the margin to two with seven minutes left but Dunloy hit three straight scores to close out the match.
Conal Cunning hit seven points for the Ulster champions.
Dunloy's final opposition in five weeks will be Kilkenny side Ballyhale Shamrocks who avenged their last-gasp defeat in the All-Ireland decider last January by beating Waterford club Ballygunner 1-16 to 0-16.
Antrim side showed tremendous resolve to triumph despite Cunning having a first-half penalty saved and Nigel Elliott also missing a goal chance shortly before the interval.
With the Cuchullains racking up nine first-half wides after having had 53% of the possession, there was a suspicion that they might end up paying for their early profligacy but Gregory O'Kane's side refused to accept that narrative as they clinched a first All-Ireland Final appearance in 18 years.
Molloy's sensational goal was on 45 minutes was ultimately the crucial score as he stormed upfield from just beyond halfway after Elliott had won possession at centrefield and delivered a perfectly weighted pass to the corner-forward who was already on the charge.
Antrim star still had plenty to do but his speed brought him clear of the St Thomas' defence and he held his nerve to thump the sliotar past keeper Gerald Kelly.
Elliott fired Dunloy into the lead after only 20 seconds following a superb Molloy pass and Cunning's first point, with another fine effort from play, doubled their advantage by the fourth minute.
Points from Galway star Conor Cooney and Damien McGlynn got St Thomas' on terms and they were two up by the 16th minute helped by a couple of fine efforts from Oisin Flannery and centre half-back Mark Caulfield.
However the Burke-clann dominated St Thomas', who clinched a fifth straight Galway title last month, were unable to push on during a remainder of this first half as Dunloy's tenacity seemed to rattle them.
Cunning's penalty miss came in the 19th minute as Kelly saved the low shot to maintain Dunloy's disappointing conversion rate.
Molloy's 26th-minute score which cut the St Thomas' lead to 0-5 to 0-4 was the first score in 10 minutes, with Nigel Elliott' missed goal chance coming seconds later as he failed to connect properly with a first-time pull after the sliotar had broken in his direction.
As Cunning added two further placed balls, either side of a Cooney free, the sides went in level at the break.
However instead of St Thomas' finding a groove after their misfiring first half, Cunning hit the opening three scores following the resumption - including a 40th minute from play - as Dunloy skipper Paul Shields was introduced because of Aaron Crawford's suspected shoulder injury.
A Cooney response cut Dunloy's lead to two but then came the crucial goal as Elliott's brilliant work in midfield set up a charging Molloy.
Substitute Anton McGrath's point immediately extended the Cuchullains' lead to six before a frantic St Thomas' finally managed a period of fluency as they fired four unanswered scores to leave two in it with seven minutes of normal time remaining.
Points at either end from Seann Elliott and Evan Duggan meant Dunloy were still two up after 55 minutes and the Ulster champions then produced a huge 90 seconds as Nigel Elliott, Cunning and wing-back Eamon Smyth fired over efforts from play.
Eanna Burke's long-range point was the only response St Thomas' could muster in injury-time as a series of lobbed balls into the square came to nought.
Dunloy manager O'Kane played in their four losing All-Ireland Club Finals in the 1990s and early noughties but will now have the chance to lead his beloved club to the promised land in four weeks.