Limerick finally get to hold the ‘new’ Liam...
THE Cup that Declan Hannon hoisted above his head a couple of weeks ago is called the Liam MacCarthy Cup but it is not the same cup as Bob McConkey, another Limerick man from the Treaty County, lifted all the way back in 1923.
It’s a replica that was made a couple of decades ago. Tipperary were the last county to claim the original trophy in 1991 before it was retired.
Kilkenny won the new cup the following year, with a young DJ Carey hitting 1-4 as he collected the first of his five Celtic Crosses.
Weighing a hefty 2.5kg of sheet silver, the cup was based on design from the so-called Golden Age of Irish craft – the early Christian period. Its shape, an ungainly bucket, is based on the form of a medieval drinking cup.
It has four heavy soldered handles and is decorated with Celtic knotwork motifs that appear as thick ropes rather than the delicate filigree of smaller, authentic medieval objects.
The replica Liam MacCarthy is even heftier – made by Kilkenny-based silversmith James Mary Kelly in thicker gauge metal, it weighs in at 4kg, though Limerick captain Hannon (left) didn’t appear to be feeling the strain a couple of weeks ago in Croke Park.
Nowadays the original cup takes pride of place towards the back of the ground floor at the GAA Museum, alongside its equally coveted associate, the Sam Maguire.
In total, 10 different counties have had the honour of taking the Liam MacCarthy Cup home – Kilkenny, Cork, Tipperary, Limerick, Galway, Wexford, Waterford, Dublin, Clare and Offaly.
And thanks to their incredible run of success since Brian Cody took over as manager for the 1999 season, Kilkenny stand way out in front in the roll of honour, with 36 All-Irelands to their name – 11 of which have come during Cody’s tenure.
Cork sit in second place with 30 titles, the last coming in 2005.