Ulster Club Hurling Championship: Imperious Slaughtneil reach final
- Published
Watch: Slaughtneil reach the Ulster Hurling final after defeating Portaferry
Slaughtneil will compete for their fifth Ulster Club Hurling Championship title after a crushing 2-24 to 0-11 semi-final victory over Portaferry.
The reigning champions led 0-10 to 0-5 at half-time at Corrigan Park before Brian Cassidy found the Portaferry net.
Jerome McGuigan netted a second goal as Slaughtneil turned on the style in the closing stages.
Michael McShane's side will face Dunloy in the decider on the first weekend of December.
It was the underdogs, in their first final since a victorious 2014 campaign, who raced into an early 0-3 to 0-1 lead at Corrigan Park as Tom McGrattan, Finn Turpin and Conor O'Prey all fired over.
Two long-range Cormac O'Doherty efforts brought Salughtneil back in touch, before Portaferry missed the chance to go further ahead when Caolan Taggart hit the upright from deep inside his own half.
O'Doherty swiftly levelled for the reigning champions, who then went ahead for the first time when Peter McCullagh rounded off a flowing move.
O'Prey immediately hit back before a flurry of Slaughtneil points put the Derry side in control.
Brian Cassidy's goal helped Slaughtneil to a crushing victory
O'Doherty's fourth score of the game was followed up by two points apiece from Cassidy and Shane McGuigan, while Brendan Rogers also split the posts to give Slaughtneil a six-point lead.
Ronan Blair stopped the rot right before the break, but McShane's team were good value for their lead with a 0-10 to 0-5 margin at half-time.
Cassidy and Rogers put Slaughtneil seven clear after the restart before the former netted to all but decide the match.
Shea Cassidy's low effort was brilliantly saved by Pearse Smyth, but the forward reacted quickest to slam home the rebound and put 10 between the sides.
Every time Portaferry chipped into Slaughtneil's lead, the Derry side responded, led by the clinical hurl of O'Doherty, before McGuigan fired into the top corner with seven minutes remaining to further extend the margin.
O'Doherty struck his ninth point of the game was Slaughtneil added further gloss in the closing stages and were well worth their victory to set up a decider with Dunloy.