Kilkenny main hurling nursery St Kieran’s College landed their 17th All-Ireland title last Saturday in Thurles.
They had to drawn on all of their resolve to get the better of Limerick’s Ardscoil Rís. St Kieran’s entered the game as favourites, a tag born of tradition as much as form because the Limerick side were contesting their first colleges final.
The Kilkenny school prides itself sporting wise on landing college hurling titles, so the fact they have gone six years since last winning the Dr Croke Cup will have made this victory that little bit sweeter.
Weather conditions for this fixture were very much in keeping with the current climate — miserable, but it didn’t detract from the fare on offer. The boys from Limerick hit the ground running, their play what you might expect from a Munster side; strong and direct.
They hit St Kieran’s for three early points before John Power, brother of Richie and son of former inter county star Richie senior, settled the Kilkenny side’s nerves with a pointed free. As I said earlier, honest endeavour was the order of the day from both sides with tenacious tackling from both sides meaning scores were hard to come by. Ardscoil Rís dominated the first quarter, but their failure to turn possession into scores during this period was a worrying aspect for the large contingent who had travelled in hope that Limerick hurling might get a much needed boost.
Instead it was St Kieran’s who got a major lift before half time when Paul Buggy capitalised on a goalkeeping error to register his side’s first goal. The young Tullaroan man was in like a flash when David Shepherd failed to handle the greasy ball. Buggy and Padraig Walsh, brother of Tommy, were the Kilkenny side’s best avenue for scores. You could see that the Tullaroan pair were well used to each other’s movements and it was Walsh who squared up the tie just before the break with a well taken point after a good pass from Buggy.
The second half saw the game swing in both directions, the two sides giving as good as they got. But it was the Limerick side that saw the first bit of good fortune when they found the net in the 45th minute. Brendan O’Connor was quickest to react to a handling error from the St Kieran’s custodian and at that time it looked like the books had been balanced.
That score gave Ardscoil Rís renewed hope as they appeared to raise their game, hitting the Kilkenny side with another goal four minutes later, this time from lively corner forward John Fitzgibbon.
A second major score in close succession would have buried most sides, but not the current bunch in the famous black and white hoops of St Kieran’s. They showed great composure and determination to turn this tie around.
Ballyragget’s Michael Brennan pounced for a well taken goal with 10 minutes remaining, setting the wheels in motion for an epic finish. And when push came to shove the Kilkenny side showed their true mettle for the first time all afternoon. Maybe it was tradition coming into play as St Kieran’s hit 1-5 without reply and sealed a memorable victory.
There were a number of fine displays throughout the afternoon. Padraig Walsh, Paul Buggy, James Gannon, Robert Lannon, and Sean Phelan, as well as Cillian Buckley and Michael Brennan in the second half, all had their moments, but for me the man of the match was Dunnamaggin’s William Phelan. This player, who missed last year’s All-Ireland minor final due to injury, gave a solid performance in the number six shirt throughout the 60 minutes.
Kilkenny v Limerick
Kilkenny seniors travelled to the Gaelic Grounds last Sunday to take on Limerick and, as most people expected, got back on the winning trail.
Anything other than a Kilkenny victory would have been the shock of the decade. Like many Kilkenny supporters I elected to give this game a miss. I suppose Kilkenny’s involvement in this year’s league having come to an end last week, I took the day off, had the spuds, put the legs up, and watched the classic encounter between old foes Cork and Tipperary.
There was not much you could take out of the Limerick game other than the small matter of the return of a certain full back. Yes, the best full back of the noughties, Noel Hickey, was back in action and it was good to see that he lasted the entire 70 minutes.
It will probably take him a couple of games to get back on the pace but it must be noted that Kilkenny once again kept a clean sheet. Kilkenny may have lost three League games this season but the record shows that their defence has only been breached on three occasions during the campaign, an impressive record by any standard.
Offaly, Cork, and Dublin all failed to find the net against the Cats. A second string Kilkenny side played Wexford down in Wexford Park on Monday, a game which marked the return of Kilkenny’s longest serving member, Michael Kavanagh.
Like Noel Hickey he is a vital cog in the Kilkenny set-up for the year ahead and the seven times All-Ireland winning defender has already landed an All-Ireland this year with his club St Lachtain’s.
Kav will be anxious to get back into full combat again as he won’t want anyone to steal a march on his corner back position. The players may be back with their clubs this weekend but they won’t get any rest as I’m sure every club manager will have pencilled in challenge games in preparation for club action on April 24/25.
If last Sunday’s league game between Cork and Tipperary is anything to go by we are in for one hell of a good season. It was as close to championship pace as I’ve seen all spring. The referee may have made one or two wrong decisions, but in general his willingness to let the game flow made for a great game.
These two sides meet in the first round of the Munster Championship on May 30 in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Cork have come a long way this year and they are gaining momentum with every game. There seems to be a good rapport between the players and manager Denis Walsh.
They may not be the finished article just yet but they will be hard to beat later on in the season. Their body language and quiet off the field suggests they mean business this year.
Even though there is one round of league games left we already know that the final will be decided between the Rebels and Galway. Unfortunately they also meet in the last round in two weeks’ time and I’m sure there will be plenty of shadow boxing in that game ahead of the League Final.
