ALL IRELAND COMES WEST
The Galway Minor hurlers bring home an All Ireland Cup to make amends for last years defeat at the hands of the same opponents Kikenny. Kilkenny secured the grand slam of hurling in 2008 when they won Senior, Junior and Minor titles. The Senior win against Waterford last year gave the Cats an air of invincibility but in truth the Galway lads had put it up to them and were denied by a late goal in the Minor contest. The Cats are mortal after all and there is life in the hurling world outside of Kilkenny.
The tribesmen were dominant in every aspect of the game and when 16 year old Shane Muloney assumed the responsibility for free taking they left the Cats in their wake. Kilkenny showed some of the spirit of their senior colleagues when they came within a point of the westerners after a fruitful period in the second half but Galway’s class shone through and they created a four point margin that was never likely to be closed.
Richie Cummins scored Galway’s two goals and Nial Burke a survivor from last year’s defeated team was accurate from play, frees and 65 to put his team in the driving seat at half time. What Burke started in the first half Muloney finished in the last quarter to leave no doubt about this year’s destination of the Minor honours.
Galway Minors will now have an even stronger case in their argument to be included in the Leinster Championship like their Senior colleagues.
SEMI FINALS
A week is a long time in football and the improvement in the form of Eastern Harps and Tourlestrane was remarkable as the two replays were decided in Kilcoyne Park on Saturday. Last week Calry St.Josephs were held to a draw by a last minute extra time point which will go down as this year’s late late score, and having held the Champions scoreless for the first twenty five minutes would have been disappointed not to leave Markievicz with a result. On Saturday the Harps made no mistake when a return to form leaves them with a credible chance of securing a double. Tourlestrane made easy work of the second Ballymote challenge and coasted to victory with Eamon O’Hara on the bench.
The Duffy brothers Marty and Michael were in charge of the replays. There was a warm reception for Marty when it was announced that he would be the referee for the Eastern Harps, Calry game but he still wasn’t immune from the usual vocal criticism in the heat of battle! Nothing like a Yeat’s County decider to prepare you for an All Ireland.
END RESULT
The decision of the authorities in Croke Park to change the arrangements for the presentation of the Liam McCarthy Cup did not go quite according to plan. After what was probably the best display of hurling in an All Ireland in recent years it would have been hard to expect fans to remain in their seats no matter what the result. A Tipperary win, which seemed the likely result until that fateful penalty, would have elicited the same response from their supporters. A four in a row victory meant that “health and safety” were the furthest things from Kilkenny minds.
Health and safety has to be a priority for those in charge of the Stadium however and they sensibly allowed fans on to the pitch when to do otherwise would have spelt more danger. Plan B ensured that the Cup was presented in a dignified way using the old format, the mobile platform was abandoned and resembled the “Lake isle of Innisfree” among the happy Kilkenny supporters.
The reasoning behind the attempt to reconfigure the presentation ceremonies was to do with the safety and indeed dignity of the players as much as anything else. Two incidents involving fans and players at the end of a game recently were partly responsible for the Association ‘s change of tack on this issue. The incidents were serious enough to alert Croke Park to the possibility of a player being injured or worse at the end of a big game. When devising the new plan the Gardaí and Croke Park security realised that the first few minutes after the game were the “golden minutes” from a player’s perspective. The victors and the vanquished are entitled to a few moments to themselves after seventy minutes of physical and mental intensity. “A few moments to themselves” seems a contradiction in a stadium with 82000 spectators but the images of Tipperary players with their heads buried in the newly laid Croke Park surface shows how precious this time is for a player. In those few minutes the defeated player probably does not want any human contact until the finality of his team’s position sinks in. The last thing a team in that position needs is to be jostled by a crowd of well meaning fans.
In that respect the plan was a complete success in that players got a bit of quality time before the presentation proper began. If that can be replicated for the football final then it doesn’t really matter where the presentation takes place.
FINAL PROGRAMME
Clubs are reminded that they will all have an opportunity to give an account of themselves in the Club Final day Programme on the 27th., of September. The programme will be the same format as usual that is A5. Each Club will need about two pages to include about 500 words and some photographs. Each Club decides their own format and if more space is needed please advise us in plenty of time. Some Clubs are deciding on photographs by going with the oldest and youngest teams. However there is no need to confine the shots to team pictures. Action photographs, Club house or grounds, individual players or officials; use your imagination! Most Clubs had a character in their midst that uttered a profound or witty statement that has endued in the folklore of the unit down through the years. These snippets should also be included. pro.sligo@gaa.ie