We can only watch and wait as the countdown to our championship opener on May 22 gathers momentum. It’s been a long, and unhelpful, gap in competitive action since Clare ditched us from the league on April 3. There was mention of some likely challenge matches to fill the void but so far none has materialised. Mr. Cody, it appears, decided against any ‘friendly’, opting instead to do all his championship prep on the training ground in Nowlan Park.
I can well imagine the top cat using the Clare defeat to drive his players in training. It was an unfamiliar feeling for Kilkenny to be so soundly beaten and I reckon the lesson won’t be lost on the manager. One of the hallmarks of Cody’s reign has been an ability to adapt to the challenge posed by any new pretenders on the block, so I’m sure he’s been casting a cold eye on Clare and Waterford recently and working on ways to counter their so-called ‘system’.
It was interesting to hear T.J. Reid suggest that Kilkenny may have to opt for a sweeper in response to the style being developed by Clare and Waterford. For his part Cody always stresses the importance of getting what he calls the fundamentals right and whatever about ‘systems’ the fundamentals of the game don’t change. So Kilkenny will still have those abrasive training matches in Nowlan Park, though, of course, like all good teams they will adjust and adapt to meet any new challenge.
Tipperary played an in-house game on Saturday evening last at Dr. Morris Park with the seniors against an U21/intermediate combination. It was a lively enough work-out, though mostly unremarkable as you expect these affairs to be.
Watching the game I was thinking of Cody and how different the approach is in Nowlan Park. We tend to practice this light-touch hurling where we work little passing manoeuvres to set somebody free and then he pops a point from maybe forty metres out. We can do those plays all day, and we’re good at them, but surely in challenge games you should be trying something different. If a forward has space in front of him surely he should go for the jugular, head for goal rather than the lazy option of a simple tap-over point. Is it any wonder that in critical matches we can hit twenty-plus points but have major difficulty when heading in for goal? On key days you play as you’ve been practicing and that’s where Cody’s approach wins out.
We see this same soft attitude even on a twenty metre free in front of goal. In a practice match where nobody is even bothered keeping the score why would you tap over a twenty metre free? Why not go for it, try bouncing the sliotar in front of the line of defenders or stitching it under the crossbar? Instead – and it was happening on Saturday evening – we take the lazy, leisurely option.
Anyway there were one or two interesting items in Saturday’s practice game. We saw very little of Seamus Kennedy all spring but he played centre back here and did well. The problem is he hasn’t got game time in the league so there’s an unknown aspect. He’s certainly the mould of player the management is searching for but we have still to see how he fares in a competitive match.
The other footballer on the panel, Steven O’Brien, played the second half on Saturday. He made a brave decision in opting for hurling this year but on present evidence it’s simply not working for him. As a guy with height and aggression we’d love him to make the grade but he’s struggling at this level of hurling. His introduction in the Ennis game was unfair and did him no favours.
On a positive note the panel seems to be mostly injury-free at the moment, apart from Brian Hogan who sustained a nasty facial injury in a freak accident in the gym. Two long-term victims, Sean Curran and Paddy Stapleton, were introduced on Saturday evening; Mickey Cahill played also as did Darren Gleeson.
I have a little anecdote to tell about Darren Gleeson. As part of a school project recently in Cashel lads were asked to write a letter to their hero. One twelve year old, who has played a bit in goal for the local club, chose the Portroe man. Shortly afterwards he received a parcel in the post. In it was a two-page handwritten letter together with a signed sliotar and a jersey. You can imagine the youngster’s excitement. While others sometimes let themselves and their county down by their attitude isn’t it reassuring to see such a decent human touch from an amateur player with nothing to gain from such a generous gesture?
People have been asking about John Meagher and the best information I have is that he has withdrawn from the panel and gone back to his club. Whether that’s related to injury or illness I’m not sure. I’ve never known anyone with such a disrupted career.
The two new additions to the panel, Aidan McCormack and Stephen Cahill, saw action on Saturday. Cahill came on for the second half and impressed. It was always something of a mystery as to why he got overlooked during the winter. A lack of physicality has been cited but in terms of skill, mobility, pace and scoring touch he has a lot going for him.
So, the build up to the Cork game gathers momentum. Thankfully it’s in Thurles, which is a bonus, but otherwise there’s a lot of uncertainty around this game. Our seven week break has left people unsure of what to expect. Cork’s league campaign was poor but they did get a boost with the relegation play-off win over Galway and I suspect they will be very difficult to beat. Anyway that’s matter for another day.
Elsewhere, apart from the league final, the most talked about outcome at the weekend was in Leinster where Offaly copped a hammering from Westmeath. It was a double-score pounding, 2-22 to 1-11, and has drawn very worried comments from many sources. It certainly represents an alarming new low for the faithful county because Westmeath aren’t exactly Kilkenny.
Given how small the hurling family is, it’s very worrying to see Offaly slip so far in the rankings. While we expect Munster to be ultra-competitive this year the situation in Leinster is much more problematic. Both Offaly and Wexford have declined worryingly, Laois are making little progress and only for the emergence of Dublin and the addition of Galway there would be no opposition to Kilkenny in the province. Offaly hurling at its best can be very wristy and attractive so their decline is a big loss to the game. Eamon Kelly has a tricky task now in trying to resurrect their season.
Finally there’s a long list of local club games scheduled to take place this coming weekend. A lot of them are crunch ties too in deciding group positions so I’m sure the county management will be keeping fingers crossed that the county men avoid injuries.
A big game in group 1 will be the meeting of Killenaule and Drom/Inch in Boherlahan on Sunday. Also in this section Upperchurch face Bracken’s in the Ragg on Saturday. Killenaule top the group but everything can change in remaining games. The delayed Drom/Upperchurch game is still outstanding.
Bar a major upset Sarsfields should top group 2 when they play Annacarty at Dundrum on Saturday. Borris-Ileigh will be fancied to take the second place in that section when they play Roscrea at Moneygall again on Saturday.
In Group 3 the Kildangan/Templederry game at Dolla is a dead rubber. Templederry’s fate is already sealed. They’re heading for Roinn 2 next year so they’ll need to win an historic first North title in order to qualify for the Dan Breen Cup. Brian Horgan is still coaching the side but injuries have proved very costly in the series so far.
Nenagh play Mullinahone at Templemore on Sunday in a game that will decide who joins Kildangan in the knock-outs; Eire Og will probably be the fancy there. Group 4 of the top tier has a few possible permutations. Clonoulty need to win their game with Portroe at Dolla on Sunday to top the section; a win for Kilruane over Lorrha would give them second slot. However if Clonoulty lose you could have a four-way tie which would then come down to score difference.
There’s a lot to sort in Roinn 2 also where Moyne/Templetuohy, Moneygall, Kickhams and Clonakenny are at most risk of entering relegation. Now don’t blame me if some of those expectations spoil your accumulator.
