'Blessed' Eoghan Connolly facing into third year at U20 with two All-Ireland titles

Liam Cahill threw 18-year-old Connolly in at the deep end in the 2018 All-Ireland semi-final

Wed, 14 Oct, 2020 - 06:05

Paul Keane

Eoghan Connolly reckons he's "blessed" that Liam Cahill took a punt on him in the summer of 2018.

Connolly was just 18 when boss Cahill threw him in at the deep end for his Tipperary U21 debut against Galway in the Bord Gáis Energy All-Ireland semi-finals, wearing number 19.

Six games later, the Cashel defender is still in the team and has two All-Irelands and a Munster medal tucked away.

He's been a virtual ever-present too, bar a couple of minutes late on in last year's All-Ireland final win over Cork.

Connolly's third season at the grade begins next Monday evening when Tipp launch the defence of their Munster title against Clare in Thurles.

"When I look back to 2018 it all happened very quickly," said Connolly.

"Liam Cahill took a chance and it paid off. It was supposed to be my last year as a minor but the age limit was brought back to 17 so Liam brought me in for the Munster U21 final to the extended panel.

"I didn't play but he started me against Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final and against Cork in the final and we won both games.

I was blessed really. I remember just going in with the attitude, 'I have nothing to lose here'. In fairness, I was wicked nervous for the final that year but I was more comfortable last year and I really enjoyed that final."

Of course, he enjoyed it - Tipperary had four goals on the board inside eight minutes in that 2019 final. They finished with five in total, short of the eight they scored against Wexford in the semi-finals but not a bad haul all the same.

"All those lads that were banging in goals, I was marking them in training every night and it brought me on massively," said Connolly.

"Jake Morris was brilliant for us and is a phenomenal athlete. I can see him having a really good run with the seniors over the next while because he's that good.

"The year before we had fellas like Cian Darcy and Dillon Quirke in the team, just outstanding talents and you had fellas like Jerome Cahill, Mark Kehoe, and Paddy Cadell in there too."

Tipperary's Eoghan Connolly in action against Shane O'Regan of Cork during the 2019 All-Ireland final. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Yet while Connolly is back for a third term at this grade, most of the others aren't so three-in-a-row talk doesn't excite him.

"It's a completely different group," said Connolly. "Liam Cahill was always saying that last year, 'What happened 12 months ago is out the window now, you can't be living off the past. This is a different team'.

"I think, starting wise, we probably only have three or four from last year, and maybe five or six more on the extended panel so it's a new setup really."

It's a new management team too, headed up by Clonoulty/Rossmore's John Devane.

If they do make it three-in-a-row, or even retain the Munster title, they'll have done it the hard way because the draw hasn't been kind.

If they get past Clare on Monday they'll play Waterford. The winner of that then meets Limerick, Kerry, or old foes Cork in the final.

"It's a straight knock-out so if we put one foot wrong against Clare we're gone," said Connolly, an apprentice electrician at the Bulmers plant in Clonmel.

"It would be horrible to put so much work in and then be gone just like that so we'll be giving it everything."