Tipp’s incredible Young Men.
By Noel Dundon (Tipperary Media)
We thought the weather might just ruin the All-Ireland minor hurling final. Then we thought it would be the officials. Truth is nothing could have ruined the occasion for one of the most outstanding teams the Premier County has had the pleasure of producing in a very storied history.
To beat Kilkenny in UPMC Nowlan Park is a big achievement. To beat Kilkenny in UPMC Nowlan Park when you are down to thirteen men is a huge achievement. But, to beat Kilkenny in UPMC Nowlan Park, when you are down to thirteen men and it’s an All-Ireland Final – well it just doesn’t get much better than that now does it. There’ll be poetry written about this one in time to come.
Tipperary’s minor hurlers produced a performance which has been described as one of the greatest ever from a team wearing the blue and gold jersey. So, better than Killarney ‘87? Better than the All-Ireland Final of 2010? Perhaps yes is the answer to both of those questions. The enormity of this victory is perhaps best described in the scenes which greeted the final whistle. It was unashamed, unbridled ecstacy and by God did Premier folk dance on the rather dead surface of the Cats home soil.
It is really hard to coach guts, heart and utmost commitment into players – in fact it is nigh on impossible. Those qualities have to be drawn from deep within and the Tipperary management team, led by that ball of sideline energy James Woodlock , managed to draw deep from the well within this squad of players to sweep aside all the obstacles and win the game.
Going to Kilkenny, most thought that we would have to have an awful lot going right for us, to come away with the Irish Press Cup. So, you can imagine the mood when after just seven minutes we were down a man, and then that numerical deficit had doubled by the 26th minute . The fact that the decisions were so badly wrong – especially the Minogue red card – added to the anger in the stands amongst a Tipperary following which, for once, out-numbered the home side.
But, somehow these young men put aside the setbacks and the bodyblows and managed to claw their way back time and again. It was a remarkable show of resilience and desire, and Tipperary deserved to have the extra time bite of the cherry too, even if most of us thought that fatigue would have its say and the scoreline parity was just postponing the inevitable.
But no, as stubborn as a herd of mules, Tipperary continued to poke a finger into the chest of the Cats and their sheer refusal to lay down and accept defeat resulted in them rattling their hosts, who, to be quite frank about, hadn’t a clue what to do with the two extra men. Sure they doubled marked Euan Murray but it didn’t stop him from hitting four wonderful points. They were unable to deal with the ball winning of Billy O’Brien and Adam Ryan, not to mention the high energy Man of the Match play of Tiernan Ryan who literally hurled midfield on his own for Tipp after O’Hora had been red carded – what a hero Tiernan was.
Tipp had heroes all over the field – Cathal O’Reilly was a wonderful captain and he inspired his troops time and again with hooks and blocks, while Jake Donelan Houlihan came good with four points in front of the excellent Patrick Ryan. Throw in Shane Ryan and David Ryan along the right flank and Owen O’Dwyer in the number six jersey – the Tipperary backs, directed by keeper Daire English were immense. They were under pressure all game long but Kilkenny’s kryptonite was in thinking that they could bully the Tipp defenders into surrendering – there were no white flags raised by the O’Reilly led men and Stefan Tobin and Eoghan Doughan made telling contributions too.
The introduction of Austin Duff added legs to the Tipperary attack and they were badly needed at the time. Aaron Cagney came in, played his part and departed for Killian Cantwell who snatched an all important score in that frenetic second half of extra time.
Billy O’Brien saved his best act for practically the last act of the game – what a goal from a young man brimming in confidence. He could have passed it off, maybe risked the move breaking down, but no, he assumed the responsibility and blasted Tipperary into the history books with a 22nd All-Ireland minor crown to top the roll of honour.
You just have to hand it to the players and management team. In last week’s column I offered the view that winning All-Ireland’s and big games comes down to how successfully you deal with adversity. Well, these men gave a textbook performance in this regard. Even on the line, they left nothing in the tank, took yellow cards to make their points, slowed things down and got their messages across. It was a masterclass in game management.
Those moments after the final whistle were incredibly special and afterwards on the steps of the Cathedral of the Assumption the party atmosphere continued as Tipp celebrated in traditional style having been welcomed home by Archbishop Kieran O’Reilly, Patron of the GAA, and Bishop Martin Hayes from Two Mile Borris, Bishop of Kilmore, who was also welcomed’ home’ at the weekend.
A premier weekend for the Premier County – this victory will live long in the memory of all who witnessed it. Sport has lifted the mood of the county just as the Cúl Camps kick off – how brilliant is that.
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