Denis Walsh calls on Ballygunner players to fulfil Munster potential

Denis Walsh has challenged his Ballygunner players to exorcise their underachievers tag as they prepare to face Thurles Sarsfields in next Sunday’s Munster SHC quarter-final.

Ballygunner claimed their third consecutive senior county title yesterday, emulating their team of the 1960s (1966-68), but Walsh wants more in the provincial competition. They lost last year’s final to Na Piarsaigh.

“I’m only in for two of the three years and, in fairness, they had Fergal Hartley, who steadied the ship,” he said of the three-in-a-row. “I was brought in to move it on and I’m delighted. I bedded-in very quickly and, I suppose, a no-nonsense approach helped the cause and we drove on from there.

“But they are ambitious and maybe they’ve underachieved, let’s be honest about it. They’ve a great opportunity, next Sunday, to show what they can do, really, and they’ll have to show it, because that tag won’t go away from them. That’s our focus now, next week.”

Walsh has the requisite tools at his disposal.

“You can talk about potential, but you can only send 15 out. We had guys who didn’t come on. There’s another three or four who would be well-capable of coming on and they wouldn’t let you down, and they can’t get a look-in, but what can you do?”

He was surprise at how Passage’s defence afforded the Ballygunner forwards so much space in the first-half.

“It was going to be a game where they were going to get a purple patch, because of momentum and local derbies, and what have you, and it was a case of trying to instil into fellas that you had to work your way out of that.

“We worked our way out of it, alright, but we were kind of surprised with the amount of space that they left up above, because we have a bit of ammunition. The fact that Brian had come out, Passage may have thought the boys wouldn’t do the damage, but, in fairness, they did and the two goals? Yes, against the run of play, but well-taken.”