PREMIER POACHERS
Post-Callanan, Tipperary are still racking up goals and Cahill deserves credit for positivity
WHEN Seamus Callanan announced his retirement last September, it brought the curtain down on the career of one of hurling’s all-time great goal-scorers. Only Wexford’s famous goal merchant Nicky Rackard bagged more Championship goals.
The year Callanan captained Tipperary to the 2019 All-Ireland, the decider itself rounded off an incredible run of finding the net — his 1-2 in the final against Kilkenny meant he continued his record of scoring a goal in each and every one of his county’s eight Championship games. The four-time nominee for Hurler of the Year scooped the ultimate individual award later that year.
Just to give a sense of how prolific he was, Nicky English was a guest of honour at the Cahir House Hotel on Thursday evening for the launch of the 2024 Munster championships. A legend in his own right, he finished with 20 goals for Tipperary. Callanan might have had the benefits of hurling’s backdoor system to help build his own personal tally but his final goals tally was double that — a remarkable strike rate that also took him past Eoin Kelly (21) and the previous record holder Lar Corbett (29).
For Tipperary supporters, it would have been only natural to expect some sort of drop-off in 2024 as life after
Callanan got up and running.
However, it’s testament to the way Liam Cahill sets up his teams and how he emboldens players to go for the jugular that Tipperary come into this afternoon’s Allianz Hurling League semi-final with the best goalscoring record across the two six-team groups in Division 1. In Group A of Division 1, Kilkenny and Waterford found the net more times than anyone else — eight times in total. While the former progressed to the semi-finals via second place, the latter ended up second last and consigned to Division 2 hurling next year. And yet Davy Fitzgerald’s side actually had the second highest total scored — outside of Cork, who finished third and were squeezed out of a semi-final place.
The top two places then were decided to a fair extent by defences — Clare and Kilkenny were the only two teams to concede less than 100 points (goals and points combined) — both 98.
Operating in Group B, Tipperary had the highest goal total by far with 11. That goes for across the two groups in Division 1. Nobody else threatened double digits, not even Galway who scored more combined than any other Division 1 team — but only notching seven goals.
And the Tipperary green flags came about in many different ways. Jake Morris was the most prolific, accounting for four. Against Dublin, Limerick and Antrim, he showed that electric turn of heel and crisp finish that makes him one of the best finishers around. In round two against Galway, it was all about Gearóid O’Connor’s tour de force, his 1-13 featuring a blasted penalty, eight frees and a 65.
Two Mark Kehoe goals in the space of a minute were crucial to beating Westmeath and showcased Tipperary’s capacity to score in rapid-fire bursts, really inflicting maximum damage.
All-Ireland champions Limerick take great pride in how hard they are to break down, so Tipperary scoring three goals against them was some consolation after an off-beat performance. That included Jason Forde’s slick batted finish in the blink of an eye when it looked like he would likely be hooked, as well as Patrick ‘Bonnar’ Maher using all his experience and guile to get clear and finish.
At the Munster launch, Tipperary captain Ronan Maher was asked about life after Seamus Callanan. ‘He was one in a million, he was very good. Seamie was unbelievable to score and finish goals. Thankfully, we have great forwards up there who are very good at finishing and that’s been shown in the league.
‘It’s all about carrying it forward and goals win matches and they’re not easy got nowadays with the way teams set themselves up. It’s something you need to be going after. We did get
Thankfully we have forwards who are very good at finishing
three goals [against Limerick] but there are lots of other things we need to improve on as well.’
While there has been plenty of talk of Clare and Tipperary shadowboxing with the Munster round-robin championship looming in a month’s time, Maher wasn’t afraid to point to the value of a winners’ medal, given it’s been so long for Tipperary.
‘I don’t have a National League medal and I wouldn’t mind one and I know the lads wouldn’t mind one either,’ he said.
‘It’s been a good few years — 2008 was the last time we won one — so it’d be nice to have a National League medal and it would set you up good for the Munster championship. We’re not out in the first round, so we’d have three weeks (from the final). They’re good competitive games and it’s great preparation.
‘I’m not going to go out and play at 50 per cent, so I’m sure I can speak on behalf of everybody else as well. When the ball is thrown in, it’s game on and you’re going for it all out.’
How successful Tipperary are in finding the net once more could play a significant part in the outcome.