Pride of The Village

James Stephens 0-19, Athenry 0-14

All the ingredients were in place for what should have been a classic two highly-regarded sides, perfect sod, beautiful sunny afternoon and with a succession of well-struck points in an opening half that ended 0-10 to 0-9 to the Kilkenny champions, that promise looked like being fulfilled. The second half, however, put a sorry end to such expectation as James Stephens' superb defence suffocated the Athenry threat and ran out comfortable and convincing winners.

First blood on the day went to The Village, a well-worked point after 20 seconds by Eoin Larkin, their top scorer throughout this championship, but this was countered within a minute by a superb sideline ball from Athenry midfielder Brian Hanley, from over 50 metres.

And so it was for the rest of the half, the lead changing hands on several occasions as the 31,000 crowd were treated to much that is best in hurling. Much, but not everything, because even as the points were flying over what this game sorely needed was a bit of bite, an edge. It never got it. Text-book corner-forward points from all four on the field, the McCormack brothers, Eoin and David, for James Stephens, Donal Moran and David Donohue for Athenry, brought well-earned applause, as did the almost faultless accuracy of the two free-takers, Eoin Larking (six from seven) and Eugene Cloonan (four from four), but more is needed on a stage like this.

Six minutes after the restart, the writing was on the wall. Eoin Larkin had dominated the scoring for James Stephens in the first half (seven of their ten points, most from placed balls), but on the turnover, wing-forwards Joe Murphy and Richie Murray, along with the outstanding Eoin McCormack, had a point apiece from play, to open up a four-point gap. Athenry captain Eugene Cloonan, superbly marshalled by Martin Phelan, closed that gap to three, and the sides did exchange points twice in the next hard-fought ten minutes, before James Stephens went through the gears again, gears that a tiring Athenry just couldn't match.

That final run began with an iffy penalty won by Eoin McCormack, James Stephens' most dangerous forward, deliberately pointed by Larkin, and it was that same McCormack who followed with a hat-trick of unanswered points, to leave it 0-17 to 1-12 after 53 minutes.

That left Athenry looking for goals, and against a defence that would do justice, en masse, to the county colours, that was never on. Donncha Cody, Martin Phelan, Dermot Grogan, Jackie Tyrell, Phillip Larkin, Peter Barry, six different family names, three from the first James Stephens All-Ireland triumph of 1976, but so tightly did they operate, so instinctive their support of each other, all six looked like they'd been raised in the same house.

With most of the wind-assisted puck-outs in the first half going over his head, and well minded by James Stephens captain Peter Barry anyway, Joe Rabbitte had been totally ineffective in the first half; that changed somewhat in the second period, he began to get some ball to hand, but that James Stephens defence was simply outstanding, cut off every avenue.

"You have to hand it to them," admitted Athenry manager Billy Caulfield. "We might have got a goal, and that could have changed the the game, but it wouldn't come. They defended very well, played in packs, we just couldn't get that final ball away to our inside forwards. We have no excuses, we were beaten by a better team on the day."

Central to that defence was the man-marking job done by Martin Phelan on the ever-dangerous Eugene Cloonan, an achievement remarked on by another central character in this James Stephens triumph, number six Philly Larkin. "The full-back line played very well, the half-back line, we were dropping and dropping, but we held it together. Martin Phelan is probably one of the most underrated lads playing, he held DJ (Carey) scoreless from play in the county final, held Eugene to a point today. He's still only 27, Kilkenny could do worse."

For Larkin, Peter Barry and midfielder Brian McEvoy (another fine display), all of whom have won every honour there is at inter-county level, this was the crowning moment of their careers, a moment the long-serving Larkin thought he would never see.

"This ranks number one," he grinned, "this and the county final, though we took so long to win that it probably ranks even higher. That was something we were trying to do all our lives, whereas this is the first year we had a chance at the All-Ireland. The club is everything, we're just delighted to win this. We thought we'd never get our of Kilkenny, let alone win a club All-Ireland. We knew, not trying to be smart or big-headed, that if we got out of Kilkenny we'd be as good as what's there, if we got a run at it. We proved that today."

Indeed they did, comprehensively, and perhaps ominously, for the rest of hurling. Cork's great run last year began with Newtownshandrum's triumph in the All-Ireland club final; could this be the year of the Cat?

Scorers for James Stephens: E. Larkin 0-9 (0-6 frees, 0-2 65's); E. McCormack 0-5; D. McCormack 0-2; J. Murphy, R. Hayes, P. O'Brien, 0-1 each.

Athenry: E. Cloonan 0-6 (0-5 frees); D. Donohue 0-2; D. Moran 0-2; B. Higgins, B. Hanley (sideline), J. Rabbitte, M.J. Quinn, 0-1 each.

JAMES STEPHENS: F. Cantwell; D. Cody, M. Phelan, D. Grogan; J. Tyrell, P. Larkin, P. Barry (c); P. O'Brien, B. McEvoy; J. Murphy, E. Larkin, G. Whelan; E. McCormack, R. Hayes, D. McCormack.

Sub: J. Murray for Murphy, 62.

ATHENRY: M. Crimmons; T. Kelly, P. Hardiman, J. Feeney; B. Higgins, B. Feeney, S. Donoghue; B. Hanley, L. Howley; J. Rabbitte, MJ Quinn, E. Caulfield; D. Moran, E. Cloonan, D. Donoghue.

Subs: D. Burns for Caulfield 37, D. Carroll for Hanley 49, C. O'Donovan for S. Donohue 59.

Referee: S. Roche (Tipperary).