Jackie Tyrrell backs Limerick and ‘rugby team’ Galway

Paul Keane

Nine-time All-Ireland winner Jackie Tyrrell has backed Galway to retain the MacCarthy Cup and compared Micheál Donoghue’s physically imposing side to “a rugby team”.

Galway won last year’s All-Ireland with one of the most powerful sides in history, particularly in attack where five of their final starters were six-foot-two or more.

Johnny Glynn is six-foot-four and almost 16 stone, contributing to an average height of six-foot-one — a massive difference to the All-Ireland winning Clare side of 2013 that had an average height of of five-foot-10.

Those two sides will go head to head in the first of this weekend’s All-Ireland semi-finals at Croke Park on Saturday evening in what will be the ultimate clash of contrasting styles.

“If Clare are to beat them they will have to do something different, they will have to drag them around the place,” said Tyrrell.

That’s easy to say but hard to do. Joseph Cooney drops back into space and they are just huge men. When you watch them standing side by side for Amhrán na bhFiann, it’s like looking at a rugby team.

“I’ve marked Johnny Glynn and I know he is big but some days, with guys like that, you can’t prepare, it’s only when you actually go and stand beside a lad and you are thinking, ‘Jesus, he is actually bigger than me’.

“I remember one of the Galway lads commenting about Austin Gleeson before, they knew he was big and physical, but when they actually went out and stood beside him for the throw-in, not that he was overawed but he was kind of thinking, ‘he’s a lot bigger than I anticipated’. Johnny Glynn has that kind of an imposing factor.

“You know he’s big but standing beside him you really know all about it.”

Clare will be back at Croke Park for the first time since beating Cork in the 2013 final replay and Kilkenny legend Tyrrell believes the ground should suit them, particularly free-spirited players like Tony Kelly.

But the former defender reckons Galway will ultimately come out on top and rates the Tribesmen and Limerick, in that order, as favourites for this year’s All-Ireland. “You’ve to bring width against Galway, you have to play through the lines, particularly for Clare because I don’t think they have the ball winners,” said Tyrrell.

“I don’t think Peter Duggan is a good enough ball winner to use him as an outlet. John Conlon is but you don’t want to take him from the edge of the square but you definitely have to move them around, you have to take those Galway players around the place.

“But Galway are very good at protecting that. Johnny Coen, I know he’s not on many people’s radar but he plays that protective role super, super well.

“Galway pass on a man very well so if Tony Kelly does drift around, Gearóid McInerney will pass him on to Johnny Coen, who will probably have the legs for him. That’s how they work it.”

Tyrrell argued that of the four teams left in the Championship, Galway are the side with most strings to their bow.

He places Limerick, who face Cork in the second semi-final on Sunday, just behind the westerners.

You can see that there’s a confidence there with Limerick, they have had success with Ardscoil Rís and with the U21s so I say probably yeah, they are ready to go on and win it (an All-Ireland),” said Tyrrell. “I would just worry have they enough older guys, experienced heads that can pull them over the line because it’s a different animal when you come to Croke Park.

“I know these guys are confident and all that but it’s going to be quite a challenge for them. I look at all four teams left and probably Galway are the one that ticks all the boxes; super set of backs, super set of forwards, physically powerful, well able to hurl, athletic. Cork are probably more specialised in an athletic sense, not as good at the back.

“Clare, probably a little light at the back. Limerick, to me, are the same mould as Galway; rugged, very aggressive, well able to move so I think they’re of a similar mould. Whether they have that experience and are able to deal with Croke Park is another thing but we’ll find that out soon. I would probably stack them in at number two behind Galway.”

- Style ambassador Jackie Tyrrell yesterday launched Littlewoods Ireland’s Ultimate Croke Park Sleepover. Littlewoods Ireland will give one lucky family the experience of a lifetime; to wake up in Croke Park on the morning of the All-Ireland Hurling Final in a luxury suite decorated with Littlewoods Ireland homeware, electrical, and fashion products worth €15,000 — theirs to take home — plus VIP tickets to the most anticipated game of the season.

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