REID IT AND WEEP
Ballyhale on cloud nine as they set new All-Ireland record and atone for last year’s loss
SOMETIMES, the cold numbers don’t really do justice to the full story. A record ninth AllIreland club title stretches Ballyhale Shamrocks’ lead in the roll of honour, with Birr and Portumna next on four titles. Just for a bit of context, only 11 clubs in the half century or so history of the competition have won it more than once.
But those facts and figures don’t tell how cult hero Joey Holden reversed his retirement plans, flew home from America to Ireland and buried his father before going on to be an inspiring presence in the club’s run to an historic five in a row in Kilkenny. How the same player is ready now to step on a plane and continue on his original flight path to Brazil.
Or how TJ Reid continues to set his own high bar, becoming the first club hurler to win six AllIrelands as a starter.
In 97 Championship games for Shamrocks in Kilkenny, Leinster and the All-Ireland series since his debut in 2004, Reid has scored a truly staggering 33-559, six of his seven points yesterday coming from placed balls and keeping Dunloy just at arm’s reach.
Despite Ronan Molloy’s fizzed early goal for the underdogs, last year’s finalists – only beaten by a dramatic late goal by Ballygunner – looked like they were always playing within themselves, doing just enough on a Croke Park pitch that has deteriorated badly over the winter to keep the Antrim and Ulster champions at bay. And then finishing with a flurry of points around the hour mark to put a flattering look on the scoreboard.
Again, the figures for the losers – this was their fifth final defeat – don’t tell the full story of the pain and heartache they have endured on final day.
And yet, as proud manager Gregory O’Kane put it: ‘The boys have put in a huge effort to this campaign. They will be sore, but we are Dunloy, hurling is our life.
‘It won’t change a thing, we will still be ready to play hurling come the first league match. That is what we do.’
For his part, Ballyhale Shamrocks manager Pat Hoban spoke of how the players used last year’s final defeat to drive them back to this point. ‘You don’t tip-toe around it. There’s over 170 senior clubs in the country.
‘Every club starts out every year to win their county, their province, and the dream for every club is to get to an All-Ireland final. You have to take it in steps. Get to the next game, the next game.
‘Straight up their ambition was to get back here and put right a chance they let slip last year.
‘Fair play to Ballygunner, they won it. That’s sport. But the lads felt it was a game they should have closed out.’
This time, they showed all their big-match nous to get the job done, Eoin Cody earning the official TG4 Man of the Match reward for his part in the victory.
The impact off the bench of his brother Brian was significant, too, after the late loss of star attacker Adrian Mullen to a hamstring injury.
‘The last week has been a rollercoaster. To lose Adrian Mullen was massive. He has probably been the standout player during the season. One of the best players in the country. To lose his physicality and all he brings, that was a big blow to the team.
‘Almost miraculously in the last 10 days – Brian has played one game of hurling in 12 months. But he’s kept himself fit. He has a foot problem and it looked like his season was gone – and it was gone until I’d say Wednesday.
‘Brian is on the Kilkenny senior panel so if you got him right, if the foot problem came good? So this is a fairytale. He’s heading to Australia next Saturday.’
Dunloy got the fast start they wanted with that third-minute goal. Conal Cunning laid off a handpass to Ronan Molloy steaming past on his shoulder, and he bounced off the challenge of Evan Shefflin and on to rifle a low shot across the body of Dean Mason.
With the pitch in an awfully scratchy state, players were really struggling to get their hurley under the ball, but Eoin Cody was the one player who was really putting his stamp on affairs. He scored one goal in the first half and could very easily have had a hat-trick.
Eleven minutes in, he could have taken his point but went looking to inflict damage early only to see his low drilled shot saved by the impressive Ryan Elliott.
Four minutes later he had the ball in the net. Colin Fennelly was fouled but referee Johnny Murphy allowed the advantage and he floated a handpass over the head of the last defender for Cody to flick it in first time from close range.
That put Ballyhale 1-4 to 1-2 to the good and five minutes before half-time, Cody had a rasping strike saved by the goalkeeper.
Ryan McGarry, Oran Quinn and Kevin Molloy were rock solid in a
hard-working Dunloy defence and, with Paul Shiels showing great leadership around the middle, Dunloy were back to within a point around the three-quarter mark.
Conal Cunning’s dead-ball haul of 0-7 was to mirror that of Ballyhale free-taker Reid as the match came nicely to a boiling point.
A superb effort from Eoin Cody from the Hogan Stand sideline summed up the kind of quality that helped to weather the storm and make another bit of history for this remarkable Kilkenny club.
BALLYHALE SHAMROCKS (KILKENNY): D Mason; K Corcoran (D Mullen 59), J Holden, B Butler; E Shefflin, R Reid,
D Corcoran; R Corcoran, P Mullen; E Cody, TJ Reid, J Cuddihy; E Kenneally, C Fennelly, N Shortall (B Cody 50). SCORERS: E Cody 1-5, TJ Reid 0-7 (2fs, 4 65s), C Fennelly 0-2, J Cuddihy, E Shefflin, B Cody, D Corcoran, R Corcoran, K Corcoran, P Mullen, E Kenneally 0-1 each YELLOW CARD: P Mullen 44, E Cody 49, E Shefflin 60. WIDES: 4 (1). DUNLOY CUCHULLAINS (ANTRIM): R Elliott; P Duffin, R McGarry, O Quinn; C Kinsella, Kevin Molloy, E Smyth; P Shiels, E McFerran; N Elliott (C McMahon 54), N McKeague (D Smith 45), R Molloy; Keelan Molloy, C Cunning, S Elliott. SCORERS: C Cunning 0-7 (7fs), R Molloy 1-1, P Shiels 0-2, N McKeague, O Quinn, S Elliott, K Molloy, E Smyth 0-1 each. WIDES: 2 (6). REFEREE: J Murphy.