Keeping rivals down is Kilkenny driving force
A MENTAL STRENGTH RUNS THROUGH KILKENNY AND BALLYHALE
BY CHANCE, I got to spend a couple of hours in the company of Kevin Fennelly, a proud Ballyhale Shamrocks man who managed Kilkenny – before Brian Cody took over – and the Dublin hurlers, too. The meeting took place before Christmas and there was a strong Offaly flavour to the gathering with Daithí Regan, Jim Troy, Johnny Flaherty and Joachim Kelly also there. Inevitably, hurling framed the conversation.
Ballyhale stand top of the All-Ireland roll of honour with six titles. It’s a club famous for Henry Shefflin and TJ Reid and so many other great players. What struck us all, was the absolute confidence Kevin had when it came to hurling.
‘We think we are going to win the All-Ireland every year,’ he said. He was talking in the context of Kilkenny, but huge confidence can also be seen in Ballyhale. As a sportsman, it’s vital to have that mental strength. And it’s remarkable how Kilkenny’s resurgence in the past 12 months has mirrored that of Ballyhale Shamrocks at a time when both were meant to be in a state of transition.
I was in college in Waterford in 1987 and used to drive through Ballyhale, a tiny little place that has managed to produce great teams and legendary players.
There was a lot of talk that the good times were coming to an end 12 months ago. TJ Reid was getting on, Henry Shefflin was retiring. So it was fascinating to watch them progress to the point where they are now in another AllIreland club final against the odds. After hobbling at times through the Kilkenny championship, I’ve seen all their matches in Leinster and beyond since and they’ve improved match-on-match. It’s as if they’ve bottled that confidence that Kevin Fennelly spoke of. Indeed, there was something very Kilkenny about the way they defeated Ballygunner in last Saturday’s All-Ireland semi-final.
Ballygunner had them on the back foot early on with their running game - the Munster champions breaking the tackle, giving the hand-pass, and coming at them in waves.
Whether by design or intent, Ballyhale gave a few fouls away, which took a bit of Ballygunner’s momentum away.
The way they regrouped in the second half was a lesson in itself. They put more pressure on the ball carrier and Michael Fennelly – continuing to defy medical science – dropped back into the pocket. Tactically, they completely outmanoeuvred their opponents.
Eoin Cody, who scored 12 points for St Kieran’s during the week – 10 frees and two from play against Dublin North – showed such composure to score a crucial goal.
Ballygunner were simply outthought on the field, Ballyhale playing a traditional game like Kilkenny, based around creating space inside and delivering ball early.
That mental fortitude they showed was all too familiar. And there was a sense of handing over the baton to the next generation coming through.
And look at the family tree that runs through the team sheet.
You have Colin and Michael Fennelly and then the three Mullens Adrian, Darren, and Patrick – whose mother is also a Fennelly. So that’s one third of the team.
Then you have the three Reids – TJ, Richie and Eoin. Evan Shefflin at wing-back is a nephew of manager Henry, so too Brian and Eoin Cody. Go back to last year and the three Mullens were dropped for the Under 21 final and Ballyhale won it without them. Now that was a hard call made in a small club with the potential to fester. Shefflin could sense all this in a small community. He put his arms around the whole thing and took it on, and brought everyone together. In his first year in charge, it’s an amazing achievement to bring his club to an All-Ireland final. It shows the mental strength that runs through the club, what makes them great.
It is particularly apparent when you look at all the changes from the team that last went all the way in 2015 – only six that began the semifinal against Ballygunner started on the team that coasted home against Kilmallock.
With Limerick coming to Nowlan Park this afternoon, it was like watching another version of what Brian Cody has recreated with Kilkenny. I said it last year, that this team couldn’t win an All-Ireland. Within 12 months, that has been turned on its head.
Cody clearly never thought like that. He kept plugging away. They have been so competitive even without Pádraig Walsh, Cillian Buckley, Richie Hogan, and Walter Walsh.
The psychological element of playing Kilkenny can never be understated. They always want to keep you down.
Limerick’s first Championship win over them since 1973 last summer proved to be the springboard to All-Ireland success, so Kilkenny will be keen to take them down a notch.
I’ve been really impressed with the demeanour of Limerick though, since winning the All-Ireland. They really showed their intent for the year ahead by going to Boston and winning the Fenway Classic, and then winning their opening two Allianz League games over Wexford and Kilkenny.
With Kilkenny missing plenty of big names, Limerick need to win this one. And I think they can. At the same time, a part of me wonders if the confidence that runs through Ballyhale and Kilkenny means the Cats will find a way.