Lally: Shefflin destined to follow Cody into Cats job

St Thomas’ boss Kevin Lally reckons Henry Shefflin is destined for the Kilkenny manager’s hotseat after guiding Ballyhale Shamrocks to the All-Ireland Club final at the first attempt. The sides meet in Sunday’s decider at Croke Park, with Galway winners St Thomas’ back in the final for the first time since their 2013 victory, while the Kilkenny winners are hoping to add to their record six wins.

Lally is an experienced manager on the Galway club scene, having spells with his native Pádraig Pearses, Craughwell, and Kilnadeema/Leitrim before being approached to succeed John Burke at the helm of St Thomas. That the side contains five of Burke’s sons - including Galway captain David - was never an issue said Lally. “Initially, when I sat down with the officers here and the players, the one thing they said was that they were looking for an outside voice.