Brackens dug deep in Clonmore tonight to grab a draw against Holycross in the second round of the Mid U-19 A hurling championship. Similar to the opening round in Littleton, Brackens looked destined for defeat entering the final quarter but once again they showed great fighting spirit to haul them selves back into the contest. An awkward wind blew down the field and favoured Holycross in the opening half. Brackens defended well early on and led by 0-5 to 0-4 after 21 minutes thanks to scores from Joe Bourke (3) and Jamie Ormond (2). The Abbey boys dominated the closing stages of the half, outscoring Brackens 2-2 to 0-2 to lead by five at the break, 2-6 to 0-7. That lead had extended to seven points by the 47th minute, 2-11 to 0-10, three Jamie Ormond frees accounting for Brackens scores. There was nothing to suggest a Brackens comeback at this stage but once Joe Bourke rattled the net a minute later, they came to life. The introduction of Jack Marnell brought more urgency to the attack and when Ciaran O'Shea scrambled the ball over the line in the 50th minute the lead was down to one. Ormond and Marnell landed two smashing points from play to hit the front. Some smart hurling from Holycross nudged them ahead once more before Ormond's 8th point of the evening in the 65th minute saw the side finish all square at 2-13 apiece.

Team and Scorers: Tom Bourke, Jamie Bergin, Sean Collier, Daniel Joyce, James Ryan, Ned Delaney, Tom Corcoran, Mikey Delaney, Jamie Ormond (0-8,6f), Brian Bourke, Brian Quinn, Patrick Hickey, Ciaran O'Shea (1-1), Ned Walsh, Joe Bourke (1-3).

Subs Used: Sean Purcell for Hickey, Jack Marnell (0-1) for Quinn, Shaun Jordan for Ryan (inj), Tommy Burke for Ned Delaney (inj).

Referee: Sean Everard.