Bloody marvel Michael at the coalface for Dub sliding doors moment

MICHAEL WALSH felt he had won the backing of the Kilkenny public after a heroic intervention during the 1991 Leinster semi-final against Wexford, his Championship debut.

Jimmy Holohan went to pull on a loose ball but Walsh nipped in first and felt the full force of his strike in the face (right).

“I got 24 stitches both inside and outside my mouth and from there on, that was a big turning point and it took that to stop all that type of talk.”

But if Twomey’s free had gone all the way to the net?

Ollie Walsh’s son would have been blamed for conceding a soft goal.

There would have been no All Star for him later that year. You couldn’t say with certainty that they wouldn’t have won those

All-irelands in 1992 and ‘93 but they would have been starting from a much lower base the following year.

His father (inset), he believes, would still have got a second year at the helm but the focus on his position would have been intense.

“I’d say the second year would have been unbearable pressure because he was the type of man that if he believed in something strongly he stuck to it and, like, he wouldn’t have changed, he would have still gone with whatever he felt was right.”

Dublin hurling has long been fighting a hopeless PR battle with football in the county. Had the hurlers won Leinster, they would have played Antrim in an All-ireland semi-final. Certainly not a foregone conclusion in those days, but eminently winnable.

An All-ireland final appearance back then could have fast-tracked the upswing in Dublin hurling that eventually became apparent at senior level during Anthony Daly’s reign.

“All of that momentum and that interest and support was building and the game would have really benefited,” says Twomey.

“I do recall at the time noting around Dublin, a lot more kids and young people going around carrying hurls and it was becoming much more popular.

“Were we a bounce of the ball away? I suppose we can dream about that. But there is no doubting that if Dublin had won, if Dublin had even progressed, it would have really improved the popularity of the game in the capital.”