As rain and hail drenched the first half, it wasn’t an afternoon for ‘playing through the lines’

In the Father Ted episode where a bomb was planted on Dougal’s milk float, two fellow priests and a tense Ted were involved in a major planning session.

And then there were two — but how many of the Kilkenny and Tipperary teams are in the driving seat for All-Stars? John Fogarty makes his shouts

John Fogarty Tipperary boss Liam Sheedy has drafted in Barry Heffernan and Michael Breen to give his team a more physical edge in tomorrow’s All-Ireland semi-final against Wexford.

The first time I saw Peter Casey during my time with the Limerick Academy, and as Limerick minor coach in 2015, I felt he’d be more suited to being a jockey in the Irish Derby than a hurler lighting up Croke Park.

In the sporting realm, it’s obvious, but often under-appreciated in business is the maxim that you can’t get anything done without a team.

Just before half-time, I glanced down from the RTÉ box and observed Brian Cody spitting into his hands and rubbing them together.

Cork senior hurling manager John Meyler says any of the county U20s who “put up their hands” playing at that level can come into consideration for the senior side this season.

About half an hour after the final whistle in Croke Park yesterday, as the Wexford players were still celebrating on the pitch, I ran into a bunch of Wexford supporters I last met in Down Royal racecourse years ago.

It was the first time that the Cats were beaten in the Championship on home soil since 1949.

Brian Cody’s 21st championship campaign got off to a winning start thanks to an inspirational display by captain TJ Reid.

A strong second-half performance, lit up by the individual excellence of Sean Morrissey, saw Bennettsbridge end a 44-year wait for a place in the Kilkenny senior hurling championship final.

A powerful display from TJ Reid helped Ballyhale Shamrocks end Dicksboro’s reign as Kilkenny senior hurling champions.

If the drawn final was the game Galway needed, this was the one they wanted.

Over the last while, I’ve been listening to Alan O’Mara’s excellent podcast ‘Real Talks’.

Was last weekend’s hurling a tale of two flicks?

Henry Shefflin enjoyed a winning start to life in management as Ballyhale Shamrocks blitzed their way to the points in the Kilkenny senior hurling league.

With the third round of the Allianz Hurling League taking place this weekend, Enda McEvoy eyes eight mid-term trends worth keeping a weather eye on...

Former Kilkenny captain Eoin Larkin said it’s natural that some pundits want to believe the county are hitting a fallow period but warned Brian Cody has other ideas.

Walsh Cup final: Wexford 1-24 Kilkenny 1-24 (After extra-time: Wexford win 3-2 after free-taking competition): There was silverware to show for their efforts, but Wexford manager Davy Fitzgerald sounded a note of caution after Saturday’s dramatic Walsh Cup final win over Kilkenny.

The word from Kilkenny is that all leave has been cancelled. 

The sweeper is arguably the most misunderstood and maligned concept in hurling. 

Wexford may not be favourites, but after their successful league campaign and with a home fixture the level of expectation brings its own pressure. Sometimes, this can overwhelm individuals, leading to simple mistakes, writes Donal O’Grady.

The outcome of this year’s Allianz Hurling League has thrown up many questions about the structure of the competition.

It was 2013 when people began to realise how much of a young man’s game hurling had become. 

Brian Cody has tended to treat the Bord na Móna Walsh Cup like an old college friend, a show of interest every now and then, enough to keep the relationship from crumbling entirely.

All 15 of Tipperary’s All- Ireland winning side have been nominated for All-Stars, the first time in over 20 years an entire hurling team have been honoured.

These three contests could decide the destination of the Liam MacCarthy Cup...

Inside the white lines, Kilkenny do the simple things well. They no longer have the capabilities to blow inferior teams away, as they did in 2007/08. 

An All-Ireland hurling final... scratch that, a Kilkenny- Tipperary All-Ireland final not selling out?

Want a slightly different take on the Leinster final? Here goes. Galway weren’t as bad as we thought they were. Really. Please don’t all laugh at once.

Ken McGrath and Conor Phelan were part of the Waterford and Kilkenny panels that contested an All-Ireland semi-final in 2004. McGrath captained Waterford to that season’s Munster title. Then a student at Waterford Institute of Technology, Phelan now works there as GAA development officer. Both men have also suffered serious health issues. They chatted hurling and heart problems...

Selecting the man of-the match on The Sunday Game last weekend was an easy enough decision, to a point, a straight shoot-out between Pauric Mahony and Austin Gleeson. We went for Mahony but nobody would have argued if we had gone for Austin. Richie Hogan also made the shortlist but if you were to stretch that long-list even further, the results would have shown how off the pace Kilkenny really were.

Eoin Larkin admits he found it difficult to catch up with his Kilkenny preparations after returning from a tour of duty with the Defence Forces.

I was walking out by Barry’s Hotel after yesterday’s All-Ireland semi-final when I came across a group of Waterford supporters, broken up and beaten down by the result.

Kilkenny 1-21 Waterford 0-24: Prepare to kill, not to die – the sagely advice of Brian Cody, 2015. How true those words rang in this sorely-needed All-Ireland semi-final epic watched by a disappointing if hardly disappointed 34,432 crowd.