Cats’ gunslingers survive another Dublin shootout
‘DESERVE’S got nothing to do with it.’
One wonders if the Dublin hurlers are fans of Clint Eastwood’s epic western ‘Unforgiven’, because that famous line he growls at one point pretty much sums up their relationship with Kilkenny.
Dublin were the better team for large parts of this wonderfully entertaining, helter-skelter Leinster championship game and when Brian Hayes goaled in the 54th minute, to put them three ahead, most of the vociferous home supporters among the 7,028 at a sunsplashed Parnell Park were starting to believe that this was going to be a special night.
But we have all seen this movie before. The clock had just gone into the 70th minute when the excellent Mossy Keoghan’s endeavour and trickery on the right flank created some space which Eoin Cody exploited and bearing down on Sean Brennan’s goal, he had only one thing on his mind. He duly raised the green flag and won this frenetic hurling encounter.
It was typical Kilkenny. Almost inevitable. But the thing was that for long spells, this was the most untypical of performances for the Cats. After Hayes found the net, TJ Reid missed two frees in a row which he’d normally put over in his sleep.
But others stepped up for Derek Lyng’s team, as they always do. They have plenty of old dogs for the hard road. John Donnelly was inspirational, leading his side through a few rocky spells and nailing seven wonderful points from play. When TJ’s radar is off, others are able to grab the initiative and last night, it was Donnelly, Keoghan, Cody and David Blanchfield,
who nailed three vital points, to pick up the slack.
And yet, Micheál Donoghue and his players will have plenty of regrets today. Their midfielders, Hayes and Conor Burke, got a goal each but the home side spurned at least three more chances, the most gilt-edged early in the second half when Ronan Hayes had Eoin Murphy’s goal at his mercy but sent his shot wide. In the first half, the lively inside-forward was denied by a brilliant Murphy save while the goalkeeper also did superbly to hook Sean Currie when it looked like he would find the net after Tommy Walsh’s short-pass went awry.
It had taken Dublin some time to settle into the game – they hit four wides in the first nine minutes – but once they found a foothold and got Donal Burke, who ended the evening with 14 points, into the game, Micheál Donoghue’s charges were more than a match for the Leinster champions.
Kilkenny led by a solitary point, 0-16 to 1-12 at half-time, Dublin’s Conor Burke burying the ball into the net after some smart interplay with Sean Currie. Danny Sutcliffe caught the eye with three smart points while Chris Crummey was a huge presence in the half-back line.
When Brian Hayes finally got
Dublin’s second goal in the 55th minute – his low, rasping shot bouncing under Murphy – the roof almost came off Parnell Park.
It put Dublin three points up and the natives sensed that this was going to be a special night. But Donnelly and Cody had other ideas and stepped up when Kilkenny’s need was the greatest. Between them, they had clawed back the three-point deficit by the 62nd minute.
With the tension simmering, and referee Johnny Murphy seemingly annoying both sets of supporters, the game entered a fraught final few minutes, which is where Kilkenny know to win.
They have won dozens of games like this in the past. They are never dead and always know the moment to pounce for victory. As they did last night.
They might not have deserved it. But in championship hurling, as Dublin know only too well, deserve has got nothing to do with it.