Cats captain issues Wexford caution

IT’S been a hectic few years for Kilkenny’s Martin Comerford.

2002 was the year he burst onto the inter-county scene, introduced to an unsuspecting sequence of top-class full-backs by manager Brian Cody, all of whom he toppled as Kilkenny stormed their way to the League and championship double.

That double was repeated in 2003, the towering full-forward sealing the championship win with a personal haul of 1-4 off Cork’s Diarmuid O’Sullivan in the final. Each of those seasons ended in an almost uncontested Allstar award for Comerford.

This year however, before a ball was struck in competition, came perhaps the greatest honour of all. When his club, O’Loughlin Gaels, won the county championship, Martin’s name was put forward to captain Kilkenny.

He’s not a shy guy. Like big brother Andy, who captained Kilkenny to All-Ireland success in 2000, he’s intelligent, quick-witted, personable. But he’s also modest, a little overwhelmed by the success, and that captaincy offer knocked him sideways.

“I was surprised to be nominated, I was letting it off to Andy, but I don’t think he could offer the same commitment this year. Sean Dowling (also from O’Loughlin’s) was a bit reluctant to take it, so when it was offered to me, I agreed. People were telling me I should, it will probably be my one and only time.

“It’s an honour, and I’m aware of that, to be asked to captain Kilkenny.”

Could be some interesting speeches coming up then?

“Ah, you’re trying to lead me into something there!” he jokes. “Regardless of what others might think this year, we’re not assuming anything.”

What everyone is thinking is that Kilkenny will win comfortably this weekend against injury-plagued Wexford in the Leinster semi-final, will go on to win their seventh consecutive Leinster crown, extending their own record, will then complete their first All-Ireland championship three-in-a-row since 1913. Steady on, says Martin.

“There’s no talk of three-in-a-row, we’re concentrating on the one match, and that’s Wexford. They’ve had a few injuries, a few retirements, a bit of a row down there which can only be good for them (several Wexford players, including Darren Stamp, quit the panel). A good row always seems to galvanise a team, and I’m sure it will have galvanised Wexford, they’ll be focusing hard on Kilkenny.

“They have excellent hurlers throughout their team; Paul Codd is the leader of their attack and though he’s one of the injured ones, he’ll be there for this game and Wexford will be firing on all cylinders.

“It’s going to be a tough battle, that’s what we’re expecting and focusing on.

“If you look back over the last couple of years, Wexford drew with Tipperary in an All-Ireland semi-final in 2001, we beat them by a couple of points in 2002 in the Leinster final, maybe lucky to do so, then last year they beat Waterford in the qualifiers, were very close to beating Cork in the All-Ireland semi-final, drew with them the first day when they could have won.

“Had there been only two points in it near the end when Rory McCarthy got that goal, that would have been it for Cork, Wexford would have been in the All-Ireland final.

“There’s a lot of potential in this Wexford team, John Conran trains them very hard, they’ll be a formidable outfit. Other people might write off Wexford, Kilkenny won’t.”

Nevertheless, the pressure will all be on Kilkenny, not just this weekend, but every time they take the field this year.

Pressure of expectation, created and nurtured by the team itself and their record over the last several seasons.

All part of the gig, reckons their captain. “Pressure is always going to be part and parcel of the whole set-up, no matter what year it is; the question is how you deal with that pressure, how you react to it.

“Even within the panel there’s pressure; everyone who’s given a Kilkenny jersey, no matter what game it is, is playing to hold onto it.

“That’s Brian Cody’s philosophy and it’s the right philosophy to have. No one is taking anything for granted, I can assure you of that.

“Hopefully, we can react well to whatever pressure there is this weekend and get the win.”