Waterford hurling has hit a purple patch since the turn of the year and their Under 21 side continued the county's rich vein of form at various grades by booking their ticket to the Erin Munster Under 21 semi-final with a merited success (2-14 to 2-10) over Limerick at the Gaelic Grounds on Wednesday evening. Waterford ……….. 2-14 Limerick ………….2-10 Waterford didn't do it the easy way either and were reduced to 14 men after just 20 minutes when wing-forward Jamie Nagle was given a straight red card for an off-the-ball incident but they dug into their reserves and a superb team display proved too much for a limited Limerick side. The Decies did begin with promise and when Marcus Gorman took advantage of a goalkeeping error by Ger Flynn to fire the sliotar into an empty net in the third minute, Waterford found themselves 1-3 to 0-3 to the good. But Limerick assumed control after that effort and points from Andrew Brennan, Eoin Ryan and Michael Fitzgerald had them back on level terms before Nagle received his marching orders. Waterford seemed to be rocked by that setback and a Fitzgerald goal saw Limerick stride confidently into a 1-8 to 1-3 advantage before Gorman offered a response and Kevin Moran tagged on a brace of points to ensure his side were only trailing 1-6 to 1-8 at half-time. Waterford came out all guns blazing in the second half and a Sean Walsh goal propelled them into a 1-9 to 1-8 lead after 40 minutes but Limerick did battle bravely and a late goal from Ryan offered some hope of a revival from the Shannonsiders. But such hopes were dashed when Padraig Kearney and Gorman split the posts in the closing stages and Waterford ran out deserved four-point winners at the final whistle. Waterford - D. Ryan; J. Kearney (0-1), J. Kindergan, T. Power; C. Ryan, J. Maher, R. Foley; J. O'Farrell (0-1), M. Fives (0-1); J. Nagle, K. Moran (0-4), S. Walsh (1-0); M. Gorman (1-7), R. O'Keeffe, P. Kearney. Subs - J. Gorman for Keaney. Limerick - G. Flynn; K. O'Rourke, T. Condon, S. Hickey; D. Sexton, D. Moloney (0-1), G. O'Mahony; W. McNamara, B. O'Sullivan; P. Cregan, O. Ryan, M. Fitzgerald (1-1); C. Mullane (0-1), A. Brennan (0-1), M. Ryan (1-6). Subs - S. Mullaly for Ryan, D. Moloney for Sexton, M. Wilkinson for Moloney. Referee - J. Ryan (Tipperary). Tweet

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