THERE’S LIFE IN THE OLD CAT YET!
TJ Reid not following Cody into retirement Gillane tips Byrnes to
IF there were any suggestions that TJ Reid would follow Brian Cody into retirement, then they’re wide of the mark as he looks set for a 17th season in black and amber.
At 34, Reid became the oldest outfield player to start an AllIreland final for Cody in last month’s defeat to Limerick though his form held up remarkably well as he was Kilkenny’s most influential player on the day and, arguably, throughout the campaign.
But with his first child due in November, the month he turns 35, a number of club campaigns with Ballyhale Shamrocks behind him and possibly in front of him too, it would hardly be surprising if Reid drew a line under his Kilkenny career now, particularly as it took him quite some time to recover from a groin and abdominal muscle issue earlier this year.
But not a bit of it.
Provided there are no significant setbacks, he will be back in 2023, when he looks set to break Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh’s all-time Championship appearances record (Reid is two behind on 72), while he may also have a shot at surpassing Patrick Horgan’s SHC scoring tally too.
“The only thing that motivates me is performing to the best,” said Reid. “Look, at the start of the year you see how it goes and look, I’m very happy with my own personal performance.
Injuries
“I had a setback at the early start of the year with a few injuries and stuff like that, got myself right, got back competing on the field and feeling strong at the end of the year.
“So me personally, I’ll go for as long as I can, so I will. Touch wood, I haven’t had any major, major injuries that would set you back for a couple of months.
“Next year is six months’ time and I never look that far ahead because who knows what could happen in six/seven months’ time. You don’t know.
“The example I expressed was Padraic Maher from Tipperary, he was continuing on and then, bang, injury, had to retire with it. You don’t know.
“I’ll personally go for as long as I can. As I said, I have club Championship coming up now and then usually in November, December, January you see how you’re going, is the appetite there, is the hunger there, is the motivation there to go again and obviously the new management team that comes in.
“That’s obviously going to give you a bit of a buzz as well and a bit of adrenaline, that there’s a new core of people coming in so next year will be different so for the likes of myself next will be something to look forward to because I had 16 seasons with Brian so it’ll be nice to go for a year or two with a new management crew just to get a different feel.”
Reid was on his way for a holiday to Nice when Cody posted a message on WhatsApp confirming his departure.
“I was on holidays so I wasn’t around to meet him or ring him but Brian is very shy in one way, you’d never see Brian around, being honest.
“From 10, 15 years I’ve never seen him in
High Street in Kilkenny so I don’t know where he’s hiding out! So yeah, look, he let us know.
Message
“There was a message sent around that he was stepping away and look, obviously, in WhatsApp over the last couple of years there was legends who have been exiting, send a small message and they’ll exit the group and it’s sad to see it because you have great times with those people and next year Brian Cody and the peak cap will be missed.
“As I said, I’m only home from holidays there on Monday so yeah, we’ll catch up maybe with a coffee.”
Retirement may be something that Reid is entertaining at 34, yet he was on the brink of it in 2012 after being left out for the All-Ireland quarter-final win over Limerick.
He re-established himself and emerged as one of Kilkenny’s all-time greats, with his relationship with Cody suffering no long-term damage.
“Obviously as a player you have standards and ambitions and you want to play every game and I didn’t like being a sub.
“That was the reason, it was nothing to do with Brian.
“I didn’t want to be a sub and back then I was thinking about retiring and that and obviously myself and Brian had conversations over it and after that we were great friends over the last couple of years but it’s like any manager. You have ups or downs, you
AARON GILLANE has backed Diarmaid Byrnes for the Hurler of the Year award after his stellar season for Limerick.
Gillane featured in conversations for the game’s biggest individual award for much of the summer though another tour de force from Byrnes in the final against Kilkenny appears to have made him a shoo-in for the prize ahead of his Patrickswell clubmate and others.
“I’m a bit biased but I’d have to go with Diarmaid,” said Gillane. “Just from the very first day below in Pairc Ui Chaoimh this year, I thought he was unbelievable. Brought his game to new heights this year and carried it on through the whole year. agree, you disagree. It’s normal.
At the end of the day I’m sure every business, every organisation has a manager where you agree or you don’t agree with things.
It’s normal.
“I have only high respect for Brian and what he’s achieved with Kilkenny and I wouldn’t be the player who I am today if it wasn’t for Brian and all the selectors and backroom team that he brought through with him.”
“I’m best friends with Diarmaid since I was a young fella. We live next door to each other growing up. I really do hope that he lands that one — and it would be well deserved.”
While Gillane may not have quite reached the same levels as Byrnes over the whole campaign, it was still one of his better seasons after an indifferent showing in 2021, when he even found himself out of the team for the Munster final win over Tipperary.
Indeed, having been introduced during the first half of that game, some felt he was fortunate to avoid a red card for