It was a strange sight not to see the Liam MacCarthy Cup being hoisted aloft on the stage while standing in the Market Yard on Monday evening among the masses of proud Kilkenny hurling fans waiting to welcome home our gallant heroes. Unfortunately Sunday’s game didn't pan out the way we would have hoped, and for that we must ‘tip’ our hats to the Premier men for a job well done.
Last Sunday’s defeat takes nothing away from our hurling heroes. The record of five-in-a-row may not have been achieved but to win four on the bounce is some achievement. It must be remembered that it's a lot easier to go chasing the cup than it is to hold on to it. There is no doubt but the players will hurt after this defeat, there would be something wrong if they didn't. But when they reflect on it in years to come they can take great satisfaction. The enjoyment they have brought to the county during those years will live long in the memories. The recession has hit everyone over the last couple of years but Kilkenny people always got a pick me up from our hurlers. There may be a few tweaks here and there to the team and panel to freshen it up for next year but the majority of them will be back. Someone put it nicely on Sunday night...I think it could have been John Henderson who said 'we are going nowhere, we are just taking a break'.
Hindsight is great but we probably came into the final with too much baggage. I'm not taking anything away from Tipperary's victory — they were simply the far better team on the day but the injuries to key players certainly didn't help. We knew beforehand it was a gamble to play John, Henry and to a lesser extent Tommy — however it was one that the management felt had to be taken.
Unfortunately Henry's day finished very early. His leadership qualities were sorely missed. ‘Tenno’ was great going forward but he didn't look comfortable when he had to turn and Tommy, well he just wasn't his usual self. He played well but he wasn't buzzing around like we know he can. Liam Sheedy tactically was very astute, the two wing forwards were sent so wide for their own puck-outs that they could nearly have sat in the front row of either stands. In turn this left acres of room for the remaining four forwards to gallop around. Last year Sheedy had Lar Corbett making long dashes out of the corner but this year he upset the defence by letting four of the forwards rotate at will. I was surprised that the Kilkenny rearguard didn't hold their shape. Seeing Noel Hickey 60 yards up the field was certainly a strange sight. I don't think Noel would have got caught for Tipp's first goal if he had held his position. His slight misjudgement for Lar Corbett's goal came as a result of being pulled all over the place. In a more orthodox formation I'm sure Noel would have been beside if not behind Corbett where he could either catch it or let fly in the air.
Tipp’s forwards may have given Kilkenny's backs a hard time but at the other end the Cats forwards got it even tougher. I haven't seen a set of backs so tight since Kilkenny ambushed Cork's 3-in-a-row dream in '06, excuse the pun but there wasn't room to swing a cat. They hurled with serious intensity, it was a mirror image of Kilkenny at their best. In fairness to Kilkenny they showed great resilience during the last ten minutes of the first half. Power's goal before half-time was a serious and much-needed boost because even at that stage it looked like it could be Tipp's day.
I think we all got that feeling when we saw the Premier goalie Brendan Cummins landing a monstrous free from well inside his own half. The Cats best period probably came either side of the break. Kilkenny's ‘never say die’ attitude saw them claw their way back into the game. That late burst before the interval saw Kilkenny reduce the margin to a single point. Most of the Kilkenny fans didn't want the half-time whistle to be blown. Thirty-five minutes of action had elapsed and we came anticipating a classic and by God were we getting it.
The second half set off in the same pattern, Kilkenny now wind-assisted started to dominate. JJ, Michael Fennelly and Michael Rice were leading the charge from the front but our dominance wasn't converted to scores. If those missed efforts had been scored, it just might have sown the seeds of doubt in the Tipperary mens’ heads. The fact they were missed ended up being a boost for the Premier County. The turning point of this classic encounter came in the 41st minute when young Noel McGrath belied his age by picking out Lar Corbett's well timed run. His superb hand pass released Corbett who had a free run at the goal, unfortunately for Kilkenny, a man of his pace and scoring ability was never going to miss. Two minutes later Tipp struck again, this time McGrath himself inflicted the damage when he latched onto a breaking ball before firing past PJ Ryan with his second attempt. It looked game, set and match as Tipperary suddenly found themselves six points to the good.
The Cats showed their metal once again by registering the next three points. Kilkenny captain TJ Reid fired over three great points during the second half bringing his tally to four for the afternoon, how he ended up on the bench is a mystery — what more could our captain have done? We've talked over the years about how strong our bench is but last Sunday, Tipperary more than matched us in this department. Seamus Callinan did a lot of damage when introduced. His first two touches yielded two points. At this stage Tipp were on their merry way, Lar Corbett put the icing on the cake when he completed his hat-trick deep into injury time. Eoin Kelly collected the Liam MacCarthy Cup, our 21- game winning run had come to an end. Tipp — our deadly rivals had relieved us of the crown. Over the 70 minutes there could be no arguments who were the better team. Last year they were denied goals by PJ Ryan who was outstanding on the day but this year they availed of their chances. They have to be a great team because it takes one to beat a great team. Kilkenny will be back and the shoe will be on the other foot next year as Tipp will set out to defend their crown. They have raised the bar to a new level now and with so many youngsters in their squad they have the ability to rise it even higher. It's now up to Kilkenny, Galway, Waterford and co, to go and chase. When the dust settles Kilkenny will re-group and come again. The record may not have been achieved but 'four out of five ain't bad'.
Minors dig deep to land title no 20
Kilkenny minors showed great composure to land Kilkenny's 20th title. After hammering Galway in the semis this Kilkenny minor team were made the hottest of hot favourites for last Sunday's curtain raiser. I'm sure the odds of 1/12 to Kilkenny offered by the bookies had insulted last Sunday’s opposition Clare. The Munster champions took the game to Kilkenny right from the start. It took a monumental effort from our young heroes to see off the challenge of a gallant Banner side. Clare’s work rate was far superior in the first half.
They looked to be taking a six-point lead into the break before John Power and Michael Brennan scored two very important points in injury time. I don't know what was said at halftime but they came out a different side. There was much more purpose to their play.
Michael Brennan's first goal gave them huge belief. It was well taken by the young Ballyragget man. His colleague Ger Aylward can take great credit for his catch and pass that created the opportunity. Aylward really put his shoulder to the wheel during the second half. His power, pace and leadership was instrumental in landing the Irish Press Cup. Kilkenny's second goal scored by Brennan/Buggy in the 43rd minute was every bit as important because the Banner men weren't going down without a fight.
Kilkenny's youngsters must be given great credit for holding their nerve during those tense last few minutes. Clare may have left empty-handed but it sure wasn't from the lack of effort. I think we'll see a few from both sides in the senior ranks in the not too distant future. Congrats to one and all.
