Curran says Tipp have ‘massive spirit’

The last time Tipperary and Clare met in a Munster U21 hurling final, two years ago, Tipperary had a team chockful of stars.

Michael Cahill, Pádraic Maher, Brendan Maher, Noel McGrath, Patrick ‘Bonner’ Maher, Seamus Hennessey, Brian O’Meara and Michael Heffernan were all members of the Tipperary senior panel that won that year’s All-Ireland senior title, the first-named five all starting in the final.

Tomorrow evening in Cusack Park in Ennis it’s Clare with all the senior stars while Tipperary have just the one panellist in Seán Curran.

Seadna Morey, Colm Galvin, Tony Kelly, Conor McGrath, Aaron Cunningham, Paudge Collins, Colin Ryan and Cathal McInerney were all members of the Clare senior panel that lost to Limerick in the final All-Ireland championship qualifier game a few weeks ago while Patrick O’Connor would have been there but for injury. Again the first-named five started, Ryan introduced as a sub – a wealth of top-level experience.

Tipperary won that game two years ago, 1-22 to 1-17, went on to claim All-Ireland honours, which would suggest that Clare should have the whip hand here.

It’s not as simple as that, however. Unsung, this Tipp team may be but in the semi-final they overwhelmed a similarly star-studded Limerick team, and in their first-round game came with a late surge to deny Cork, who also were backboned by senior stars.

Inspirational for Tipperary in that win over Cork was Seán Curran (brother of senior captain Paul) and he knows what it is that makes this team greater.

“We’re all good friends off the field and we bring that on to the field with us,” he said.

“We know there are no superstars on the team so we all work hard for each other. Everyone is the same, no-one above anyone else. We have a massive team spirit, we’re all in this together, fighting for one another. We back each other up to the last; we want to win for ourselves, for each other, for everyone else around us, including the backroom team.”

Going into all these games as underdogs doesn’t affect them.

“Not really, we ignore everything around us, whatever is said in the papers. We have our own little group, our own self-belief.

“We know we have very good players in our team, we know if we play to our potential we’ll beat a lot of teams and that’s what we concentrate on, playing to our own potential.”

Being the only senior panellist does, however, bring its own bit of pressure.

“I know I’m not a major part of the senior panel but you do feel that with the U21s you have to perform, that you can’t let the other lads down.

“You want to prove that you are good enough to be on the senior panel as well, that you have the right to be there.”

A win tomorrow would complete a first Grand Slam of Munster titles for Tipperary. The senior, minor and intermediate crowns already bagged. Not a factor, claims the Mullinahone-man.

“It would be lovely to do it, something to look back on, but we’re not thinking about that. All we’re thinking about is winning a game.”