With the preliminaries over the ‘real’ season begins. For Tipperary that means the rocky road to Dublin and a tricky league opener at Parnell Park.
The rocky road image may be inappropriate in this motorway age but in terms of the difficulty this test poses the metaphor has relevance. It’s an awkward one. We’ve found ‘away’ games to the Dubs problematic in the past and under new manager, Ger Cunningham, we can surely expect a hot reception on Sunday.
Before narrowing the focus to the details of Sunday’s encounter it’s perhaps useful to take a broader sweep and set this game in the context of the entire five-match league series. On some years you can look at the games ahead and pencil in a few where you’d reasonably expect to win. Not this time. We have only Galway and Kilkenny at home, neither of which will be easy. Then we’re away to Clare, Cork and Dublin. It’s a tough schedule with only one free weekend during the series so pressure can mount very rapidly.
I’m sure the management will wish for a winning launch and then an avoidance of the angst we endured last spring. The format is the same as 2014 with the top two into semi-finals and the next pair facing quarter-finals against the top two from division 1B.
As a foundation for the championship the league can’t be underestimated and there is another incentive also to do well, one which will exercise the officer Board more than the team management – money. This is where the big bucks are available. In 2014, for example, the hurling league earned the Board over 200,000 euro, sixty-five grand of which came from the league final alone. These are staggering figures. County treasurer, Eamon Buckley, then will be excused for willing on the team on Sunday even more earnestly than the rest of us.
On Sunday we renew acquaintance with the Dubs after clashing twice in key games in 2014. We swept past them handily enough in the All Ireland quarter-final in July at the Stadium but matters were much trickier in the fifth round of the league back on March 23. We needed to win by three points to make the knock-outs and they could afford to lose by two. Imagine our relief then in the final moments when Niall McMorrow had a chance to point but instead dropped the ball into the goal area. We held out for a 1-19 to 0-19 win.
Amazingly Anthony Daly in his autobiography admitted that he hadn’t alerted the players to the mathematics of the situation in advance. His self-defence is two-fold – and lame on both counts. He claims that there is a responsibility on players to make themselves aware of the permutations and as manager he was pushing for a win so talk of losing by two would somehow weaken motivation. I don’t think a jury would buy either defence line. At a time when we hear so much talk about the professionalism of the game it’s incredible that such a crucial aspect should have been overlooked.
Anyway Dublin survived the relegation clash with Waterford and a new era dawns now for them under Ger Cunningham. They lost narrowly to Galway in the Walsh Cup decider last weekend but I’ve no doubt this league opener with Tipperary will be a higher priority entirely.
Here’s an interesting statistic ahead of Sunday’s game: Tipperary hasn’t beaten Dublin in an ‘away’ league game since late 1990. Of course as with all stats it needs to be put in context. In the past quarter century we’ve only met them on three occasions in league ties that were played in the capital and all of those have been recent. In 2012 we drew with them at Croke Park while the previous year they edged us out at the same venue by a single point.
2010 was the only year we ever played them at Parnell Park in the league and they doled out quite a decent lesson to us on that occasion, 1-21 to 1-12. Three years earlier we had a big win over them in a championship qualifier at Parnell Park, a game that Paul Curran will easily recall because of a nasty facial injury he received.
Speaking of the Mullinahone man leads on nicely to a possible line out for Sunday. Curran is likely to make a competitive return to number three after missing out all of last year. James Barry, Paddy Stapleton, Cathal Barrett and Mickey Cahill are all on the injury list so presumably our last line of defence will feature those who manned the full back line during the pre-season games. Killenaule’s Joe O’Dwyer was one of the newcomers who made an impression so he could gain a first ‘cap’ with players like Conor O’Brien, Michael Breen, Stephen Maher and John Meagher also in the mix to front goalie, Darren Gleeson.
The significant news regarding the half back line is the likely re-location of team captain, Brendan Maher, to the half forward line, where he’s been deployed in recent games. It’s one of those moves that will stir debate. Remember it was his return to centre back last spring which steadied matters though there’s a view now that we are well stocked with half backs and it’s the attack that needs supplementing.
It will be interesting to see if Conor O’Mahony regains his centre back spot on a half line that should also include Kieran Bergin and Paudie Maher. Paudie’s brother, Ronan, has been shaping up well too so he could come into the reckoning either here or midfield.
James Woodlock and Shane McGrath are still in the frame for the centre and you’d expect ‘Bonner’ Maher, ‘Bubbles’ and Callanan to feature in attack. Niall O’Meara is one pushing for a place too and you have others like Gearoid Ryan, Jason Forde and Denis Maher also vying for a starting place, as are Conor Kenny and Shane Bourke. The Fitzgibbon Cup may be a complicating factor with team selection.
It’s all very speculative at this stage so the starting fifteen for the league will be interesting to see. The vibe from the camp seems to suggest that you could have nine or ten of last September’s All Ireland side on duty together with a few newcomers. Either way the suggestion is that the team has targeted this tie as essential to our league fate.
I’m sure Dublin will have a similar focus. It’s interesting to note that they have been experimenting with Liam Rushe as a full forward. He was flanked by two players with strong Tipperary connections last Saturday in Ryan O’Dwyer and Paul Ryan. Now there’s a full line to test Tipperary in a zone where we’re likely to be experimental.
In other news the Abbey School, Tipperary town, had reason to celebrate this week after their senior footballers brought home the Munster colleges ‘B’ title. They had ten points to spare on Hamilton High School, Bandon, in the final at Mallow last Saturday.
It was a slick, efficient display all round by the Abbey who defended superbly and then worked the crucial goal breaks against fancied opponents. Their first goal came via a penalty, won by Josh Ryan and coolly put away by Daire Egan. Full forward, Egan, followed up shortly afterwards with his second goal, a fantastic solo effort.
They led by five at the break and kept Bandon at a distance all through the second half thanks to some outstanding goalkeeping by Callum Fanning. It’s the school’s first win in the competition since 2011 and sets up an All Ireland semi-final later against Ulster opponents.
Sadly the celebrations were cut short later in the weekend when one of the heroes of the win, midfielder Daragh Fanning, was seriously injured in a car accident on Sunday night. The Pallasgreen native was recently called up to the Limerick U21 hurling panel. His twin brother, Brian, also featured prominently in Saturday’s win. He’ll have everyone’s best wishes for a speedy and full recovery.
Finally as a follow up to last week’s mention of Thurles CBS and their campaign to have a two-match ban on Ronan Heffernan lifted ahead of the Harty Cup final, it can now be confirmed that they’ve decided not to pursue the issue with the DRA. I assume cost featured largely in their decision. It’s rough justice on the player if, as the school seems adamant, he was innocent of the umpire’s charge.
By Jonathan Cullen Thu 12th Feb
