Kilkenny continue to tinker with the ‘engine’

IF IT ain’t broke don’t fix it. Never change a winning team.

A couple of the darts thrown at Kilkenny manager Brian Cody these days as he throws a number of youngsters in at the deep end of championship hurling. Since the former Allstar corner-back took over the team in 1999, and even in the two years before that, Kilkenny have reigned supreme in Leinster, six titles on the trot, three All-Ireland finals contested, two semi-finals. Tomorrow they head into another, but with a much-changed side from that which took the field at the same stage twelve months ago.

Out go Eamonn Kennedy, John Power, Stephen Grehan, Charlie Carter, no place even on the bench for Denis Byrne and Canice Brennan; in come a plethora of youngsters, names like Richie Mullally, Derek Lyng, Martin Comerford, with a host of others waiting in the wings. But, why change? Well, against the argument that six Leinster titles on the trot is impressive, in Kilkenny, one All-Ireland title to date certainly isn’t. Hurling uber alles, Kilkenny uber alles, in a county where hurling has no rival, they expect a much better strike rate than one-in-five. Change, as manager Cody explains, had to come.