It was as tough as we expected, says McGrath

NOEL MCGRATH ponders the first question, a query that’s not aired too often.

How does it feel to have an All-Ireland medal in your pocket before you leave your teens? He blows out his cheeks.

“It’s hard to know. It’s an unreal feeling. I don’t think it’ll sink in for the next few days. It’s hard to put into words.’’

Tipp were eight points better than Kilkenny at the final whistle, but at what point did he feel the game was safe?

“Last year we thought we had it won with 10 minutes left, maybe, so we decided we’d play it out to the end this year. On Sunday we did that. Lar (Corbett)’s third goal came on 68, 69 minutes, so we knew we had to finish strongly and thankfully we did.”

The contest was unremittingly physical in Croke Park on Sunday. Was it a step up on last year’s encounter? “We expected the intensity to be unreal. It was, Kilkenny are a good team, but our lads brought a good intensity as well. It was as tough as we expected.”

McGrath said that the speculation about Henry Shefflin’s injury didn’t affect Tipperary’s preparations.

“We concentrated on our performance. We couldn’t determine what was happening in Kilkenny or what they were going to bring to the game. We could only influence what we could bring to the game. Thankfully it worked out.”

A great week could have a fine ending, when Tipperary play the All-Ireland U21 final and McGrath has no concerns about the well being of those with a dual mandate. “It’d be great to get the win next weekend, we’ll probably get back with the U21s tonight and get geared up for Saturday.”