Delaney unfazed by lengthy ‘hiatus’

FOUR or five week breaks at this time of year means JJ Delaney is doing well.

He’s had plenty of them too. Since making his championship debut in 2001, there have been just four seasons where he’s known what it’s like to play twice in July.

One of them was by accident — losing to Wexford in the 2004 Leinster final forcing Kilkenny into the qualifiers.

The other three were by design, the 2005-7 period where provincial winners were rewarded with seeded quarter-finals as opposed to the current semi-final carrot.

While football counties complain about the lay-off between winning provincial finals, Delaney isn’t bothered by the “hiatus’’.

“No, it doesn’t bother me because it’s too important come the All-Ireland semi-final. There is no backdoor, no second chance — you only have one chance and you have to take it.

“If you lose the semi-final you are out. I remember in 2005 sitting down and watching the final, the whole year was a waste to be honest, because you want to be there on the big day.

“That’s how important the semi-final is because nobody remembers who loses a semi-final. You are just one step away from the final but if you lose it’s just a complete waste of a year.”

Delaney was personally delighted with the break as it helped clear up a hamstring injury which has niggled away at the Fenians man throughout the year. The Leinster final over Dublin put paid to a lot of suggestions made about Kilkenny following the heavy league final defeat to Anthony Daly’s side.

Delaney didn’t beat himself up too much about that reverse, though.

“On the day Dublin were the better team, there is no doubt about that and there is nobody in Kilkenny disputing that,’’ he said.

“Again, maybe it brought a few lads back down to earth, I don’t know. I would have been more worried if we had a full team and that happened.”

With Henry Shefflin, Michael Fennelly, Tommy Walsh and Richie Power restored to the team for the Leinster final, Dublin were never going to have it as easy.

“It is important to have them back but at the same time the lads who were playing in the league final were saying ‘right, we are going to have to do something here’,” emphasised Delaney. “It was a kick up the arse and we had the time to work around it.”

Delaney doesn’t make any secret of the fact Kilkenny are motivated this year by getting back what they lost to Tipperary last September.

“It’s funny, when someone takes something away from you, you want it more. When it’s there beside you, you can pass by it and take it for granted. It didn’t make it easier in January, February and March because that’s never easy.

“You just want to get back into it, get back into championship. The year is after flying by since we came back in January. Here we are looking forward to a semi-final and it could be all over if we don’t get our own house in order. “Waterford are serious opponents and we’re trying to get past them.”

Seeing Waterford dismantle Galway in the All-Ireland quarter-final, in doing so exorcising the ghosts from their horrendous Munster final performance, came as no great surprise to Delaney. Hurt is a strong motivational factor, he says. But would the Déise have preferred to be playing Tipperary again in the semi-finals instead of Kilkenny?

“It’s hard to know. It could be a great incentive for them as well (to play Tipp). Speaking personally, we were delighted to get Dublin in the Leinster final because of what they did to us in the league final.

“You want to play them again as quick as you can to get it out of your system.

“We’re lucky enough we beat them and Waterford could be the same; champing at the bit to get Tipperary.

“They see us in their way and they will want to go straight through us to get to the final.”

After all the scoring controversies this year, Delaney is obviously hoping Kilkenny don’t fall foul of another one in Croke Park next Sunday. He’s all for technology being used to ensure teams are rightly rewarded legitimate scores.

“I think it’s a good idea because it’ll avoid all this conflict. After training for six or eight months, one decision goes against you and your whole championship is over. I think it’s definitely something that should be tried out in the league next year, or even in the Walsh Cup or the Fitzgibbon Cup. If it doesn’t work, fair enough — scrap it. But you have to try these things and then we’ll know.”