It’s all systems go for Premier

ANY concerns Liam Sheedy held about the well-being of his young Tipperary senior stars were eased in the early exchanges of Saturday’s Bord Gáis Energy All-Ireland U-21HC semi-final in Tullamore.

The tone for this game was set from the throw-in as the Munster champions dominated the tie and by the 11th minute had sailed 0-6 to 0-0 clear. At that stage it was already evident that this was going to be a carefree stroll rather than a bruising tussle for Tipperary and they would definitely be contesting the All-Ireland U-21 decider next month.

Of greater concern to Sheedy and the Tipperary hurling populace, with their Croke Park date on September 5th in mind, was that their senior contingent all avoided visits to the infirmary. Such was the tepid nature of the action here, the prospect of Noel McGrath, Michael Cahill or the Maher trio suffering injury was remote. Having a healthy dressing-room pleased U-21 boss Ken Hogan, yet crushing their opponents by 28 points left him with some concerns.