Kelly’s back to front priorities

We defended as a unit, we really stuck to our guns. Everyone got in hooks and blocks, which are crucial

FORGET about defying history, forget all the nonsense spouted in the lead-up to yesterday’s Munster SHC semi-final about Tipp not having been beaten Cork in Cork since the Stone Age. Only six times have the sides met since 1923, that’s six losses in 85 years — hardly the stuff of legend.

This was indeed a big win for Tipperary but not because of any jinx broken, not because of any hoodoo overcome; it was big because a young and vibrant Tipperary side confirmed what was becoming increasingly obvious this unbeaten season — Liam Sheedy has built a side of genuine class, a genuine contender. Veteran Brendan Cummins is as near-unbeatable as ever in goals, Paul Curran and Conor O’Mahony anchor a strangling defence of pythonesque proportions, Shane McGrath continues his development as a midfielder for the ages; it’s up front, however, that the real difference lies, and that difference is personified in corner-forward and team captain Eoin Kelly.

Since he burst onto the senior inter-county scene in 2000, a raw 18-year-old, Kelly’s talent has been obvious to all. A five-time Allstar, twice young hurler-of-the-year, Kelly was a leading player for Tipp when they won their last Munster and All-Ireland titles, their all-conquering season of 2001. Over the last couple of years, however, he slipped a little from his usual high standards. Won his fifth Allstar in 2006 but it wasn’t a stellar year for Eoin, and 2007 saw him at odds with his manager, Babs Keating. As Tipperary struggled for cohesion, there was an increasing frustration obvious in his play and his attitude. He knew there was more in Tipp, he knew there was more in himself, but it wasn’t happening. Under Liam Sheedy, however, it’s been happening and it happened big-time in Páirc Uí Chaoimh yesterday.

The first 23 minutes was a period of utter frustration for Tipp in general, for Eoin in particular, as Cork powered into an impressive 1-8 to 0-4 lead. Eoin was being really well policed by an old adversary, Brian Murphy, had been confined to just one shot at the posts, an off-balance wide ball. Then came a defining moment, for the Tipp captain. Superb drilled puckout from Cummins straight down the centre, added to by young centre-forward Seamus Callinan, landed between Kelly and Murphy, no-one else within 20m of them. From the time he gathered the ball, his back to goal, still with Murphy to beat, there was only thing on Eoin Kelly’s mind — goal. He shimmied, he shifted, used his considerable leg-strength to make the yard of space needed for the shot. Not even a keeper of Cusack’s outstanding ability had any chance. The stands erupted, the blue-and-gold thousands rose in relieved acclamation — Tipp resurrected.

“It brought us back into it,” said Eoin, not boastfully, just stating simple fact. “We were missing a few chances but when we got that goal we got a few points on top of it, so from being 11-4 behind it was 11-10 at the break — that was some lift to us. We had full belief at half-time then we were going to go on.”

He went on to score seven points after that goal, seven points from seven shots, two of those from play (hard to imagine now, but in a move that defied logic he was actually relieved of free-taking duties last year), but that wasn’t the sum of Eoin Kelly’s contribution. One of the most impressive elements of this new-attitude Tipp team is the tigerish way they defend, and that defence starts up front, with the full-forward line. It was referred to afterwards by a grateful Conor O’Mahony, centre-back and man-of-the-match. “We knew Cork were going to have a spell on top, it was just a case of working hard while they were on top. Our forwards defended very well, they didn’t give the Cork backs space to put the ball into us.”

That was the difference in Tipp yesterday, that’s the difference in Eoin Kelly. His scoring ability has never been in doubt but now he has added this new arrow to his quiver — he’s a defender, and particularly proud of it. “We defended again as a unit, we really stuck to our guns. Everyone did their bit but the happy thing for us is that everyone got in their hooks and blocks, which are crucial in the gam1e of hurling. The day you’re not doing that in the modern game, such is the way the intensity has been lifted, is the day you’re going to be under pressure. We’ve been up to that level so far this year.”

They were strong, they were committed, right to the end. “We’re back training since November and that stood to us. In the league we got into a few competitive, gritty games and we got through those. There’s nothing like winning those games, it gives you confidence, and when we got our chances at the end we were able to take them.”

Big win alright, for a Tipp side that is now very much a team, in every sense. It might appear like a contradiction to say so, but even as several forwards emerge to take the scoring burden off Eoin Kelly, in his new dual role of attacker/defender he is now actually working harder than ever. As for his battle with Brian Murphy? “A good clean player, we’re about the same age so back through the years we’ve been coming up against each other; maybe the way the championship is structured now, who knows, we could end up meeting each other again.”

A saviour and a prophet? Who knows?