A point lost rather than gained was the general mood amongst Tipperary supporters following the dramatic draw with Cork last Saturday night.
Five points up with minutes remaining, Tipperary managed to grab defeat from the jaws of victory on two occasions.
Photo Credit: John Coleman
Taking a step back, 3 points from a possible 4 is a return that Liam Cahill would have grabbed prior to this years Munster championship. Swings and roundabouts is a term that could definitely be used when describing the game of hurling. Tipperary received their fair share of lady luck in Ennis with goals gifted from Clare turnovers and errors, although Tipperary and Jake Morris deserved more credit for the efficiency of the finishing. This luck was with Cork on Saturday.
If one was to watch last Saturday’s game with no scoreboard in the corner, then it would not be unwise to assume Tipperary were 6-10 points better than their great rivals. If the game was broken into 10-minute sections, then Tipperary dominated the middle 60 whilst Cork won the 10-minute sectors at the beginning and end of the game by 3-7 to 1-5.
Before expanding more on the nature of this result, it is important to remember that the modern game is now a possession-based sport played in 15-30 second bursts. Scores and shots come for 3 distinct areas, Tipperary puckouts, Cork puckouts and turnovers from general play.
Key Stats
| Tipperary | Cork | |
| Score | 2-25 | 4-19 |
| Shots | 42 | 35 |
| Shot efficiency | 64% | 66% |
| Long Puckouts won | 19/26 (73%) | 14/24 (58%) |
| Short Puckouts retained | 7/12 (58%) | 8/14 (57%) |
| Turnovers forced | 27 | 29 |
| Throw’s | 20 | 19 |
The big stat in modern day hurling is that the team that shoots the most generally wins the game. Limerick aim to get 50 shots off in a game for two main reasons. They want to score, and they want to defend the opponents puckout where they can turn over the ball and get the next shot off.
The Treaty’s opponents also know these key metrics and are following suit. Tipperary had 20% more shots than Cork on Saturday night which should lead to 5–6-point win with good shooting and avoidance of soft goals against the run of play. A 64% return on shots is below what Tipperary would expect with 3 placed balls hit wide after Jason Forde’s injury costing Tipperary dearly when their total score was added together.
The concession of goals is a real worry, 7 green flags have been waved in 2 games with the final quarter seeing Tipperary concede 2 more. There is the impression that teams are having success on the ground against us but what is more startling is goals from aerial duals that we generally pride ourselves on in this county.
Nature of Scores
| Tipperary | Cork | |||||
| Score type | 1st Half | 2nd Half | Total | 1st Half | 2nd Half | Total |
| Tipperary Puck out | 0-1 | 2-3 | 2-4 | 1-1 | 0-4 | 1-5 |
| Cork Puck out | 0-2 | 0-3 | 0-5 | 0-3 | 2-6 | 2-9 |
| Turnover | 0-11 | 0-5 | 0-16 | 1-2 | 0-3 | 1-5 |
| Overall | 0-14 | 2-11 | 2-25 | 2-6 | 2-13 | 4-19 |
There are two main factors highlighted above which both teams prospered on. Tipperary have used the Limerick template of being at their most dangerous by turning over Cork and using their striking skills to put the ball over at the other end. Noel McGrath was the catalyst of this, but man of the match Alan Tynan and Seamus Kennedy also benefited from Tipperary breaking quickly and using the wide-open spaces of Pairc Ui Caoimh.
Tipperary outscored Cork 0-10 to 0-1 in the middle section of the 1st half with the majority of these coming from turnovers. 0-11 of Tipperary’s 0-16 total came from such sources. It was noticeable that after our initial concession of 1-3 and another 2 goal chances missed by Patrick Horgan and blocked by Johny Ryan, Tipperary changed their structure with Dan McCormack dropping deeper and Ronan Maher sitting at the top of the “D”.
Corks deliveries struggled to stick during this section of play. They successfully retained the first 3 balls into the full forward line, but the rest of the half was a disaster with only 2 out of 10 being retained.
Tipperary also seemed to win nearly all the “rucks” during this time and disposed Cork defenders coming out with the ball.
Cork 1st half Goals
Tipperary failed to get many scores directly off their own puckout during the first half. They won only 5/12 long restarts with the wind and off their short one’s were struggling to retain the ball. Again, going back to the Limerick template there was a focus on the second phase possessions and turnovers. Cork scored their first goal directly off a mis placed short puckout and our defence parted like the red sea as Declan Dalton finished with a tidy bat. This was before the afore mentioned changes to our formation.
The second goal was probably the most disappointing of the 4 conceded. Ronan Maher is a sideline specialist, but one would question is it wise to try a cross-field ball from inside our own 45. It backfired as Robbie O’Flynn latched onto the breaking and 12 steps later the ball was in the back of the net. There was some comment after that Johny Ryan should have cleaned the Erins Own player out but he definitely ran the risk of a black card, the Arravale rovers man was also thinking that O’Flynn would surely be blown for steps. Watching the goal back, Ronan Maher had a chance to pull O’Flynn down but couldn’t after receiving a yellow card.
The Rules of the Game (What Rules?)
Steps are another problem in the modern game as players are allowed to take as many as they like whilst in possession. This scribe counted 39 clear throws in last Saturday’s game after watching it back on replay with Tipperary out-throwing Cork by 20 to 19. Cork’s final goal produced one of the more obvious examples when Tim O’Mahoney found Shane Kingston with what Derek McGrath would term an “offload.”
Throwing and steps follow the same pattern every year whereby they are highlighted during the league but once the championship begins the majority of media want to stick their head in the sand on the issue.
On the plus side of the rule book, an issue that looks likely to be finally resolved is the dangerous head high tackles that have become ever present in our game. Ronan Maher should have been sent off when his flailing elbow made contact with Darragh Fitzgibbon. One would question did this effect Fitzgibbon for the remainder of the game. The reaction by Tipperary people to this incident is admirable compared to those from some (not all) pundits and supporters from across the border who claim that Gaeroid Hegarty and Seamus Flanagan’s dangerous head high challenges are part of championship hurling.
Donal Og Cusack correctly pointed out that defenders have a responsibility to protect the player on the ball, what he did not mention was that many of these tackles are because of throwball and steps that he has championed. The law of unintended consequences.
Noel McGrath
Alan Tynan gave an inspired display on Saturday but the Man of the Match award should have been given to Noel McGrath. In 22 possessions, he retained the ball on 18 occasions with 1-4 from direct assists and a gorgeous right sided point. McGrath is like the chess player thinking 5 or 6 moves ahead of his opponent. His appreciation of space, his faultless touch, his balance and striking were a joy to watch. He is worth the admission fee and more alone. His overall stats can be seen in the table below.
| Noel McGrath stats v Cork | Total | Result |
| Total possessions | 22 | 19 positive |
| Shots | 2 | 0-1 (1 short) |
| Assists | 5 | 1-4 |
| Passes | 20 | 18 retained |
| Stick pass | 9 | 9 retained |
| Ball into Full forward line | 4 | 3 retained |
| Hand passes | 6 | 6 retained |
| Sideline | 2 | 1 retained |
McGrath was stationed at 13 for many of Tipperary’s puckouts which allowed him to wander out and work his magic. This could also work against Limerick as Barry Nash will have to be asked whether he should stick or twist and follow.
In the league semi-final, Limerick dealt with McGrath in the centre of the park by placing Will O’Donoghue on him. Alan Tynan was the beneficiary of this, scoring freely unopposed.
Clare and Waterford have shown that man marking Nash and Diarmuid Byrnes is a must as Nash can go through the middle third and Byrnes can go over the congested middle third.
Second Half
For much of the second half, it looked as if Tipperary would come away with the 2 points. Cork played with the wind and directed much of their puckouts long on top of the full forward position. Tipperary have excellent fielders of the ball in Ronan Maher and Bryan O’Mara so this tactic was generally unsuccessful until the final ten minutes of the game.
Comparatively, Tipperary did very well on their long puckout throughout the second half. Gaeroid O’Connor was a constant target and Tipperary retained an impressive 10 out of 14 scoring 2-3 and getting 3 more shots off from this. Gaeroid O’Connor also showed great composure to score the first goal after Noel McGraths exquisite right-handed pass. The second goal came from a throw by Dan McCormack onto the path of Mark Kehoe. Kehoe finished with 1-4 in a brilliant display. Hopefully this only the start for the Kilsheelan/Kilcash clubman.
Cork only won 5 out of 12 long puckouts but crucially 3 of those were in the final 10 minutes and 2-1 came directly off them. As often happens in big games, the final minutes were frantic and frenetic. The phrase “stick to the process” has been banded out time and again by many successful teams in recent years such as Dublin footballers but it can be difficult with 30,000 Rebels baying for blood in the Cork coliseum.
Tipperary managed to go 5 points up after Kehoe scored a point off a Collins puckout but 15 seconds later Seamus Harnedy caught a very quick puckout over Ronan Maher’s head and set up Conor Lehane who did well to beat Barry Hogan from a ground shot.
From a defensive perspective, the 5 Tipperary defenders in the vicinity all seemed drawn to the ball which allowed Lehane to be set free. Again, its easy to say retrospectively but was it wise for our goalkeeper to come off his line on this occasion? Cathal Barrett had recovered well to leave Lehane with only one option which was a pull going away from goals. There was a suspicion of a square ball as Fitzgibbon tapped the ball into an empty net despite it already on course.
The final Cork goal was well worked. Tipperary looked to have the situation under control with plenty of bodies goal side but Fitzgibbon gave a bounce pass to Tim O’Mahoney who did brilliantly to control and “offload” to Shane Kingston. Kingston gave an unselfish pass to the backpost where Brian Hayes tapped in. It is a facet of the game we are seeing more and more.
Tipperary could have got a similar goal from Seamus Callanan. One may wonder had the Drom/Inch man had more minutes in the legs this season if he would have doubled on the ball instead of controlling it. Callanan did exceptionally well to get a point from the play with a short quick swing in front of his body making it difficult to hook.
Injury time misses
The 5 minutes of injury time was nearer to 2 with both teams missing free’s. Declan Dalton struck to the left from almost 100 yards whilst John McGrath struck right from 65. McGrath was not on the field long and although he was the most capable freetaker on the pitch at that time, his brother Noel had given one of the great displays and was never going to miss in this scribe’s opinion.
There is a space for either John McGrath, Mark Kehoe, Conor Bowe or Sean Ryan to grasp in our forward line. Both Ryan and Bowe won their fair share of deliveries, but Ryan (1) and Bowe (2) struck wides from the sideline on the backfoot. Kehoe the obvious star on this occasion.
Playing on the inside forward line can be an unforgiving place. The maximum number of balls they contest is 6 or 7 a half, they are often outnumbered when receiving the ball and many of their efforts must be struck with the back facing the goal. It is why the form of Jake Morris is such a plus and why forwards like Aaron Gillane are worth their weight in gold.
The injury to Jason Forde does not appear to be as bad as feared. Tipperary will obviously need him from placed balls and frees going forward.
Where to next?
Limerick come to town Sunday week and from a Tipperary perspective it is a great position to be in. The pressure is on the champions with their form, discipline and now general health of their squad called into question. There should be a backlash but turning below par performances into good is easier said than done.
It looks like a full house in Semple Stadium is in store and it must be said we need Tipperary people to get behind this team. The drive to 5 points begins here.
GAAgo fiasco
The backlash from the GAAGO and general treatment of Hurling by RTE is not going away. The national broadcaster in partnership with the GAA has used the Munster Championship as a cash cow to increase subscriptions for this new venture.
The biggest issue is that to run GAAGO smoothly is not a simple process compared to the previous model of ringing Sky Sports and getting the games uninterrupted on the television. Up and down the country, older people are finding it impossible to subscribe as they don’t have a computer or Wifi. In many houses, the service is interrupted by poor Wifi and there are various stories going around of pubs where people congregate to watch the game also failing.
If the GAA are going pay per view, then it should be on channel 444 or some equivalent on the Sky Box. Secondly and probably more importantly, they shouldn’t have the right to play god with the Munster championship and monopolise the games to Pay per view.
Adding more fuel to the fire, there was no sign of the Saturday game highlights show on the last 2 Saturday nights with the Football leading on Sunday. It is as if RTE and the GAA are pushing the boundaries as to how much they can piss off the Hurling public.
Donal Og Cusack deserves huge credit for the way in which he tackled this subject and in time it may cost him financially as Declen McBennett reduces his appearances and eventually sets him free. Jackie Tyrell also pointed out that playing an All Ireland quarter final at 1pm on a Saturday due to the Tailteann cup final was another symptom of the big ball ruling the small.
Liam Sheedy rightly commented that it is time for the GAA top brass to admit a mistake had been made. But as with so many things in the GAA such as the underage grade fiasco, this scribe will not be holding out for any admission of error.
Hurler on the ditch 