Darren Farrell stars as St Thomas beat Oranmore

St Thomas 0-23

Oranmore-Maree 0-19

By David Connors

At Gort

ST THOMAS’ served a timely reminder that any changing of the guard talk may be premature as they opened their 2026 Senior Hurling Championship campaign with an impressive victory over Oranmore-Maree in the so-called ‘Group of Death’.

Nine points from play between captain Eanna Burke and Darren Farrell, allied to Conor Cooney’s unerring accuracy from placed balls, provided the foundations for an easier-than-expected victory for Cathal Daly’s side.

There had been whispers beforehand that a talented young Oranmore-Maree outfit could underline their credentials as genuine Tom Callanan Cup contenders.

Instead, they never led and looked second best all the way through as Thomas’ kept them at arm’s length throughout, managing the contest with the composure and know-how expected of a side whose championship pedigree remains unquestionable.

Brian O’Connell’s Oranmore-Maree certainly weren’t helped by the absence of star forward Rory Burke through injury. But outside of Niall Burke for spells, their forwards largely lost their individual duels, while eight costly first half wides prevented them from building any real momentum.

The Peterswell-Kilchreest men started brighter in sun-soaked Gort and by the 11th minute had moved 0-4 to 0-1 clear. Just 22 seconds had elapsed when Darragh Burke pounced on a loose ball to split the posts.

His younger brother Eanna quickly added two of his four first half points, while a Conor Cooney free completed Thomas’ early burst. Oranmore-Maree’s sole response came from a Niall Burke free.

To their credit, Oranmore-Maree worked their way back and drew level for the first and only time by the 20th minute, with Niall Burke (free), Anthony Keady and Niall Geoghegan all finding the target.

That parity proved short-lived. Thomas’ outscored their opponents by six points to two approaching half-time to take a 0-10 to 0-6 advantage into the dressing room. Eanna Burke struck twice more, Darragh Burke added another and Cooney punished Oranmore-Maree’s indiscipline with three frees.

If Thomas’ had established control before the break, Darren Farrell threatened to put the contest beyond doubt shortly afterwards. The lively wing-forward ran amok during the third quarter, firing four points in just five minutes as Thomas’ stretched their advantage to eight by the 38th minute.

Fintan Burke, who started at wing-back, then ventured forward to land an excellent score from distance three minutes later to keep the lead at eight. Oranmore-Maree refused to let the game completely get away from them though.

Led by Niall Burke, they continued battling to get back within striking distance. But whenever the gap threatened to narrow, Thomas’ found an answer. Without scoring from play in the final quarter, they won pressure-relieving frees that allowed the ever-reliable Cooney to do the rest, ensuring Oranmore-Maree could never generate sustained momentum.

Thomas’ comfortably managed the closing stages to secure a deserved victory with minimum fuss, although losing key defender Shane Cooney late on with what appeared to be a hand injury will be a concern for management.

The result places considerable importance on Oranmore-Maree’s next assignment against Castlegar, while Thomas’ have taken a significant early step towards qualification ahead of their meeting with Sarsfields in two weeks’ time.