Who said Kilkenny don’t do tactics?
For years now, weâve been listening to this stuff that Kilkenny donât do tactics. Kilkenny keep saying it and everyone seems to believe it but yesterday confirmed for me that theyâre the most tactical team in the country.
I watched the game from behind the Canal End goal and they played it so smart with their set-up especially in the second half. Their defence seemed to drag the Galway attack into a funnel and Kilkenny just savaged them inside in that vortex. Paul Murphy, Cillian Buckley, Joey Holden and Kieran Joyce hit anything that moved and then just swept up the broken pieces. Richie Hogan sat in the pocket outside them and just mopped up any other loose stuff that came his way.
Kilkenny played very deep in the second half. There were long stages when they had just one man inside the Galway â45, and just two inside the â65. They sprayed the ball wide and always had runners coming off the shoulder. Even when they had so few bodies up top in the second half, they never panicked and were always looking for the right outlet pass.
And Kilkenny donât do tactics?
There was one stage late on which also totally encapsulated their know-how and craft. They were recycling the ball but nothing appeared on. Then Walter Walsh popped up on the blindside and Colin Fennelly picked him out for a classy point.
That type of composure and clinical play is what continues to separate Kilkenny from everyone else.
In fairness to Galway, I was very impressed with them because they contributed to what I thought was the game of the year. Not everyone might agree with that but being in Croke Park yesterday, you could feel the intensity off them; they were aggressive, manly, and they fought it out to the bitter end.
When they went seven points behind, you feared for them and worried it might turn into a turkey shoot, but Galway never allowed Kilkenny to leave them in their rear-view mirror.
They didnât have the same craft and class up front to make it count on the scoreboard but they still came up with two top class goals to keep them afloat when Kilkenny were flooding their decks with water.
You will wait a long time again to see a better goal than Joe Canningâs strike. His improvisation and finish was out of the top drawer but Galway were always going to need more than two goals to amass a winning total. Kilkenny were not going to be caught again after Jason Flynnâs excellent finish.
Brian Cody also proved once more that he doesnât do the âOld Boys Clubâ stuff. Jackie Tyrrell has been one of his most respected and cherished warriors. The bond between them is even stronger with the James Stephenâs connection but Jackie was struggling and Cody didnât hang around in taking him off.
Galway probably needed to make a change like that in their defence but they just probably donât have the required depth there. Paraic Mannion tried very hard on TJ Reid but TJ caused havoc and Mannion just wasnât able for him. Mannion was always right on the edge and was fortunate that he didnât get a red card.
I thought that match-up was crying out to be changed but there was still a lot to admire about Galwayâs defensive set-up. They kept their shape. They tackled hard. Kilkenny just had too many finishers and too much class up front for Galway to be able to muzzle all of them for the whole game.
istening to comments from Liam Dunne yesterday, he appeared to suggest that he had no control over Wexfordâs decision to play against the breeze after winning the toss on Saturday night. I couldnât believe that comment. I know the captain goes up for the toss but that call should be nailed down long before any coin is fired into the air.
Wexfordâs touch was way off but Cork were really impressive for 50 minutes. They had the job done at half-time but that still doesnât justify the lull for most of the second half. If Cork are to go anywhere for the rest of this season, they have to eradicate that from their game because lulls wonât do against Clare or Limerick, and they certainly wonât do against Kilkenny or Tipperary.
I know Jimmy Barry-Murphy is very conventional in his approach. Iâd say Jimmy has about as much time for sports psychology as he has for flying kites but Cork look like a team that could do with some sports psychology intervention, just something to explore why these fade-outs are happening. Whatever happens, they need to get to the bottom of it and quickly.
At least Cork and Dublin will go into Saturday nightâs qualifier now with some momentum, and with some of the toxins from their last match flushed out of their systems. The Dubs still have a lot to work on but at least they looked more balanced and better structured with their formation. Liam Rushe offered them far more stability at centre-back and Conal Keaney was a real focal point at full-forward.
Mark Schutte rediscovered the form he had shown prior to the Galway replay, scoring two goals and setting up two more for Keaney and âDotsyâ OâCallaghan.
Clare will also head into Saturday evening in a happier place after finally getting a win in the bag. At times, they kept their full-forward line close to goal but anytime they brought Darach Honan and Conor McGrath out, their runners looked dangerous when released into the vacated space. That was particularly evident from John Conlonâs goal. Conor Ryan also looked to have more freedom at midfield. I think he likes that role more than centre-back, but tactics apart, Davy Fitzgerald will just be happy that the machine is motoring again and in good shape.
Laois battled hard against Dublin but just paid too high a price for the concession of first half goals when playing with the breeze. They can take a lot of positives out of this championship going forward but the one team from the weekend that have nothing positive to draw on are Offaly.
It is sad to see how far they have fallen but that slide didnât start today or yesterday. A root and branch examination, hard planning, relentless coaching and proper structures is the only way they are going to get that show back on the road in the near future.
I was very impressed with Galway because they contributed to what I thought was the game of the year.
