Our best hurlers since 1970
Fitzhenry, Neville and the two Ryans fill first four spots
WHEN IT comes to talk about hurling, the ancient game will occupy many a fireside conversation over the coming months.
With licensed premises in lockdown, games fully on hold, and social separation, the frantic search for hot topics will go on.
As the month of April is now in lockdown regarding games, with little sight of a resumption date, many fear the crisis will now bring us towards the end of June before we get a chance to watch another match.
The withdrawal symptoms have been gathering momentum, and with months of abstinence now beginning to set in, one is about to get a glimpse of what solitary confinement is like.
It’s a time when all so-called experts will be taking a glance back, recalling the great days enjoyed following the Model county hurlers.
They will be remembering the players, the individual displays, the great comebacks, and the unlucky defeats, along with the subsequent talking points to have emerged from games over those 50 years.
Wexford have been lucky to have had so many great players through that era. The 1970s will be remembered as a golden – if ultimately fruitless in terms of the biggest prize – decade of Wexford hurling, having appeared in three All-Ireland finals through that era.
In 1970 an injury-hit side lost to Cork by 6-21 to 5-10. In the two subsequent All-Ireland finals, Wexford also went under to the Rebel county, losing out in 1976 by 2-21 to 4-11, while the following year it was a 1-17 to 3-8 defeat.
During that golden decade, Wexford appeared in all ten provincial finals, winning three, but losing the remaining seven to their great rivals, Kilkenny.
Having covered Gaelic games through those 50 years, I enjoyed the ringside seat for many epic encounters.
The traditional style of hurling remained through the majority of those years, with teams going 15 on 15, and the players tied to their actual positions. This is in stark contrast to how the game has developed over recent years.
There has been so much debate about the sweeper system, with defenders attacking from within their own half, and even full-back personnel getting on the scoresheet from play - something unheard of many years back.
It’s now a modern day game, far more open and expansive, helped in so many different ways.
Inter-county teams now enjoy a professional approach. They have become accustomed to a rigorous training programme, with special diets, pre-season training for many months before a competitive game, strength and conditioning programmes, physios and stats personnel.
Hurling has experienced a real transition, even compared to that golden 1970s decade. One can recall training being stepped up over a few extra weeks leading to a provincial final.
Subsequently, were a team to qualify for an All-Ireland final, it was reckoned that an extra few weeks’ training, to coincide with their normal two-week preparation, would be sufficient to bring the players to peak fitness prior to their bid for the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
The 1970s era was basically dominated by Kilkenny and Cork. The 1980s saw the first of the big breakthroughs, with Galway winning three All-Irelands and Offaly two, but still Kilkenny and Cork landed a couple apiece and Tipperary got one.
The 1990s are largely regarded as the revolution years, and even though Clare, Offaly and Wexford made big breakthroughs, Cork and Kilkenny still won two each, and Tipperary added another one.
The noughties began with Kilkenny against Offaly in the All-Ireland final, leading into the Cork versus Kilkenny rivalry in the early part of the decade.
That was followed by total domination from Kilkenny’s super team, winning seven All-Irelands that decade to the Rebels’ two.
The last decade has been the story of Tipperary versus Kilkenny rivalry, but also big breakthroughs for Clare, Galway and Limerick, and yet Kilkenny won four All-Irelands and Tipperary collected three.
So really, the last 50 years has just reinforced the dominance of the big three – Kilkenny, Cork and Tipperary.
It’s against that backdrop that I set about picking what I believe to be the best
Wexford side of my 50-odd years covering the small ball game in the county.
It’s no easy task, but hopefully it will help with lively fireside family conversation over the coming weeks. I’ll start with goalkeeper and the full-back line.
GOALKEEPER
Wexford has produced many great goalkeepers since its emergence on the hurling scene.
The 1970s started with Oylegate-Glenbrien’s Pat Nolan donning the number one jersey, continuing what was a marvellous career.
He was netminder on the 1970 losing All-Ireland final team to Cork, with his last major final appearance being the 4-13 to 3-7 victory in the 1972-’73 National League final.
His namesake, but no relation, John Nolan of Geraldine O’Hanrahans, took over the goalkeeping mantle for the two All-Ireland final defeats to Cork in 1976 and 1977. Like every position, some goalkeepers appeared fleetingly in between.
Then came the golden era of Damien Fitzhenry. The Duffry Rovers clubman was always adjudged - even by his opponents, the elite attackers of opposing counties - the best shot-stopper in the game.
He reached and maintained excellence over his career, capping it with those memorable displays through the 1996 All-Ireland winning campaign. Once he was handed the number one, he became the undisputed king of goalkeepers.
Given Pat Nolan’s short few years in the lead-up to retirement in the era under discussion, there’s no disputing that Fitzhenry was the outstanding goalkeeper of those 50 years. He has set the standards for Mark Fanning to try to match.
FULL-BACK LINE
In the 1970s, exceptional players featured in the last line of defence. In 1970 there was Ned Colfer, the late Mick Collins and the late Tom Neville, the trio in the All-Ireland final defeat to Cork.
Neville was undoubtedly one of the great corner-backs to follow in the footsteps of Bobby Rackard.
Then there was Teddy O’Connor, Willie Murphy, Jimmy Prendergast, Enda Murphy (Ferns St. Aidan’s) and John Quigley.
Yes, the red-haired Quigley captained
Wexford to National League success in 1972-’73 from the left full-back position, giving a glorious defensive display in the 4-13 to 3-7 defeat of Limerick.
The late Barry Murphy, Jack Russell and the late Liam Bennett formed the last line of defence in the 1981-’82 league final defeat to Kilkenny (2-14 to 1-11).
Eamon Cleary won an All Star, while Seán Flood, Ger Cushe and Niall McDonald emerged in that 1992-’93 three-game National League final marathon with Cork, eventually losing by 3-11 to 1-12 in the second replay.
In more recent times, the likes of Darragh Ryan, Liam Ryan, Matthew O’Hanlon and Damien Reck have all performed with distinction.
RIGHT CORNER-BACK: Plenty to choose from there. Neville may have had a short run in that era, but there’s no corner-back to surpass him. Alongside Bobby Rackard, he was Wexford’s best ever corner-back.
FULL-BACK: My choice on the edge of the square is Liam Ryan. Very few players have dominated a position like the Rapparees man.
Dominant in the air, he has brought a new dimension to full-back play. Powerfully built, with a deceptive burst of speed from deep in defence, he is even known to curl over the odd point from play.
He has the knack of being able to cope with big and small attackers. And he is loved by the crowd with those driving runs out of defence, charges that lift the attendance and his team-mates. An inspirational hurler who is still improving.
LEFT CORNER-BACK: Very like my full-back selection, but in his time more confined to duties on the fringe of the square, I’m opting for Darragh Ryan.
He would have shone even brighter in the modern game. An exceptional talent, with a real hurling brain, he could command any position in the full-back line. He could play anywhere with equal merit, even if handed a centre-back role.
Darragh was one of Wexford’s outstanding defenders, having overcome injury to reach the pinnacle of hurling.
Next week I will continue with my selections, naming the players in the three half-back positions and at midfield, numbers five to nine on my dream team.