How tiki-taka is now tut-tut

DAVY FITZGERALD and Donal óg Cusack, in separate interviews, seemed determined this week to lay the credit/blame for hurling’s new way at the feet of Pep Guardiola of all people.

Perhaps, there was a bit of devilment at play just to salt the pain of the game’s fundamentalists who have taken to wailing at hurling walls as to the state of the modern game, epitomised by the game-plan that Clare and Waterford will unleash on each other in Thurles today.

After all, what more could madden the traditionalists than to realise that the man who put the tiki-taka into soccer is the same one who has put the tut-tut into hurling.

But now that the architect of modern hurling has been unveiled, the question the game’s Taliban want to know is what poisoned him against us.

Was he served out-of-date sausages in a dodgy lodging house when he was over here on one of those Spanish exchange visits as a young fella?

Was he forced to watch omnibus editions of Fair City? Or was he led up the path on a promise by a wily camogie corner-forward who charmed him out of a bag of chips but left him footloose and fancy free?

The other thing that jars a little was Pep’s rather unremarkable philosophy had the Waterford and Clare hurlers flash-mobbing midfield last month as if it was an off-licence about to shut its door on Holy Thursday night.

‘His philosophy was that whoever controlled midfield would win the game,’ explained Fitzgerald this week.

On page one of the bluffer’s guide to the GAA, you will find the stock piece of advice: ‘whoever wins midfield will win the game.’

Maybe, it’s just that it sounds a lot more impressive in Spanish.