BANDON hurling is on an upward curve – but nothing would underline that progress more than reaching the Co-op Superstores Intermediate A Championship semi-final.

This Saturday (5.30pm) they face Erin’s Own’s second string in Ballinhassig, a daunting quarter-final given the Imokilly club reached last year’s final and pushed Lisgoold to a replay. Bandon boss Joe Burke knows the challenge.

‘Erin’s Own have massive numbers. We played them last year, we know how good they are. They have vast experience mixed with really good players coming through at minor last year,’ Burke told The Southern Star.

‘We’re under no illusions this is going to be an easy game – far from it. They have the likes of Pat Fitzpatrick, Kieran Murphy, Stephen Cronin. These fellas have loads of senior experience and are still training with their senior team. It’s a really difficult assignment.’

The Lilywhites arrive in good form. They’ve won 11 of their 13 league and championship matches this year, earning promotion from Division 4 of the Red FM Senior Hurling League. Their only defeats were to Inniscarra – now in a Senior A quarter-final – and Midleton’s B team in the group stage.

Topping their group, which also included Midleton, Russell Rovers and Mayfield, confirmed Bandon’s progress.

‘At the beginning of the year, if you had told us we’d top that group, we’d have taken the hand off you for it. Definitely satisfied but there is a lot more room for improvement. Ideally, we would have won the three games, but that didn’t happen,’ Burke admitted.

‘We were delighted to overcome Russell Rovers (3-18 to 0-19) who were going well at the time. That was a fierce challenge and we were thrilled. We were bitterly disappointed with the performance against Midleton (lost 1-20 to 1-15). We just felt there was more in the players. The pressure was on against Mayfield and, thankfully, we came out on top (1-25 to 1-15). Maybe the ten-point margin wasn’t a true reflection, but Mayfield are a proud club and a good team so we were happy with that win.’

Much of Bandon’s scoring burden rests on former Cork hurler Michael Cahalane, who has hit 0-25 across three games.

‘We all know about Mike. He’s a really good forward, a really good hurler. He’s the captain of the team and a good man around the place,’ Burke said.

‘Mike and the rest of the lads weren’t happy with their performance against Midleton. They wanted to right the wrongs. It wasn’t just Mike in the last game, there were three or four lads that came on and made a massive difference. It’s all about the group really.’

Youngster Jack Cullinane is another bright spark, contributing 3-8 in the championship and bringing momentum from his Hamilton High School Simcox Cup success. Conor Calnan, Darren Crowley and Charlie Long will also be key.

For Burke, Saturday is another marker in Bandon’s development.

‘We have big numbers training. It’s all about making progress and I think we are progressing. Yes, we are happy with the way things are going. The junior team is going well too. The progress is there, but there’s a lot more to be made,’ he added.