Sheedy: Tipp stood no chance after observing club month

Tipperary manager Liam Sheedy claims the county never stood a chance of qualifying from last year’s Munster SHC because they used April for club championship games.

Three rounds of local championships were played over as many weekends and the consequences were felt, Sheedy reckons, as Michael Ryan’s side failed to win a game in the provincial competition which began the following month.

The 2010 All-Ireland winning manager feels because Tipperary abided by the spirit of the club month idea and organised championship matches last April, they suffered.

But it won’t happen this year — just one championship fixture for each code is scheduled for April this year, leaving Sheedy four weeks of a run-in to the county’s Munster SHC Round 1 game against Cork in Páirc Uí Chaoimh on May 12.

“It’s about trying to get the balance right,” he opens. “I’ll be honest, I don’t think Mick (Ryan) or the team stood a chance last year.

"There’s no way they could have managed to play three weeks of club matches in a row and look to roll on into four weeks in a row of Championship.

"That was an impossible situation for all involved. Credit to them, they did push it really hard.

“Let’s call it straight — 22 of the 32 counties absolutely ignored (the club month). They can talk all they like about club month but if they’re serious about a club month we’ll have a club month; if they’re not, well move it.

"It’s typical in some ways, it’s not right. Why is it that some counties inside and outside of Munster will decide ‘well, we won’t play any club matches’ and other counties are going to try and flog the life out of each other for three or four weeks?

I would be more upset about the imbalance and the inconsistency. We all know that teams went on camps and went and done various things and paid no penalty yet we had Waterford here playing their first league here because they got caught. It’s a bit all over the place and really needs to be tightened up.

The importance of having his friend Declan Kelly’s financial support with his company Teneo as sponsors is not underplayed by Sheedy.

Ask him what the biggest difference between inter-county management in 2010 and ‘19 and he laughs: “We’re not far off a second bus now at this stage, that’s one thing anyway.”

He continues: “It’s only when you saw John Kiely’s backroom team for the All-Ireland final last year (23 people), it was in The Limerick Leader, and you are thinking ‘Jaysus like, I didn’t have that many when I was here.’

"It’s just that the list seems to get longer and longer and the reality is every county is looking for the edge.”

Kelly will head up Tipperary’s new commercial board, an idea which had been on Sheedy’s mind in returning to the manager’s role.

“The supporters club, there’s only so far they can support and we just want to ensure we leave no stone unturned in terms of team preparation. It is a big animal now, a big wheel, and there’s a huge financial aspect to it.

“The county board and the supporters’ club couldn’t be more supportive of me but Munster Rugby has a financial board and most teams that are operating at the top level do have another level up, which is a commercial board.

“I am very fortunate, Declan is a proud Portroe man, he’s a proud Tipperary man and even in my last involvement Declan was hugely supportive as was Michael Madden and many others.

"I’m delighted to have him in as sponsor because he’s passionately cares.”

The 49-year-old is sticking to the line that Tipperary are not in the top six as much as he knows they are capable of being All-Ireland champions.

With his old charges in mind, he spoke of what drew him back to the role.

“I was saying if I could give something back before they go to cash in their chips, then that’s something I’d probably like to do.”

Sheedy currently has 14 of his 40-strong panel sidelined with injuries.

They include Barry Heffernan, who he confirmed was concussed by a late blow in the defeat to Limerick and AC shoulder injury victim Dan McCormack, who will be out for at least six weeks.

Former captain Brendan Maher could make his return to action later this month after his cruciate surgery last year but the scale of the setbacks has surprised Sheedy, who has effectively ruled out Michael Cahill, Billy McCarthy and Conor Hammersley for the season.

“I’ve never witnessed a situation where 14 of my 40 are unavailable.”