GAA storylines: Ken Hogan's camogie dream, Strand Road believes, power cut scare in Dublin
St Rynagh's manager Ken Hogan slides in celebration during the team photo with the Sean Robbins Cup after the Offaly County Senior Club Hurling Championship Final match between Coolderry and St Rynagh's at Bord na Mona O'Connor Park in Tullamore, Offaly. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile
He’d a long Sunday, but Irish Examiner podcast regular Ken Hogan was still responding to the texts of congratulations late last night.
Of his remarkable county final double, he put it simply: “Dream come true to win the camogie.”
Ken, as you probably know by now, managed Offaly’s St Rynagh’s to a third Offaly SHC title in a row Sunday afternoon, when Stephen Quirke’s goal deep in injury time flattened Coolderry.
Amid the post-match jubilation in O'Connor Park, Hogan was pictured flopping to the ground in joy and relief. And probably tiredness. Because he’d already won a county title with his own club that morning, guiding Lorrha past Moycarkey Borris by 1-12 to 2-8 in the Tipperary Junior B camogie final. Lorrha had lost the last three finals.
Hogan’s day got going at 7:30am and he pays tribute to the Tipp county board and Moycarkey for facilitating Lorrha by moving the Tipp decider back an hour from 11:30am. He’d planned to leave that match with 10 minutes to play, but the melting pot was too hot and he had to stick it out to the end, cutting things tight ahead of his next assignment.
Ken has talked often on Dalo's podcast of his fondness for the Rynagh's lads. But speaking to GAA.ie this morning, he elaborated on what the camogie meant:
“I met a couple of the girls a couple of years ago at mass and they said they had no-one over them. They were in desperate straits, so I just said I'd give them one night a week.
“Of course, one night became three, that's what happens in the GAA. Just thrilled now for the girls in Lorrha, just really thrilled for them, having lost the last three finals. They really dug it out, they dug deep.
“You always cherish the victory with your club. To win with your own club yesterday morning was something special. I'd cherish the victories with my own parish down through the years more than anything else, the same way anyone else would. As the saying goes, the savage loves his native shore.”
We can only imagine how Sunday's Dublin football final would have panned out had electricity not been restored in the Dublin 9 area shortly before throw-in. ESB Networks confirmed a fault and power outage in the Donnycarney and surrounding areas on their Twitter feed at 1.39pm on Sunday. A couple of minutes before the scheduled 3.15pm throw-in between victors Kilmacud Crokes and St Judes at Parnell Park, it still hadn't returned.
In practical terms, it meant no scoreboard, no speaker system, no shop for sweets and hot drinks - the shop is controlled by an electric shutter - and, more importantly considering that sunset occurs around 4.20pm, no floodlights.
The second half would have been significantly affected by the lack of light, though both teams continued with their preparations and looked set to plough on regardless, with power only returning a couple of minutes before throw-in.
It's understood that behind the scenes there were strong fears of a postponement though the ESB intervened in the nick of time. For reporters who had travelled to the game with empty laptop batteries, the sight of the scoreboard suddenly flickering to life was a beautiful thing.
Honestly? When Tralee’s Kerins O’Rahilly’s needed to defeat Legion in the spring’s Club Championship to avoid imperiling their senior status, we all thought their County Championship ambitions were down the plughole. They got to a Division 1 League final but took a shellacking from Dingle. Things didn’t look too hot for manager William Harmon and the blue side of Tralee.
So what changed to the point that when they met Dingle again in the Co Championship, they inflicted a nine-point defeat on the West Kerry men? And this after riddling perennial danger men, St Kieran’s, in the opening round.
The theories around Strand Road are endless. For sure, the full return of David Moran, the fitness of Tommy Walsh and the emergence of young attacker Conor Hayes have been key. But on the outside looking in, it’s still a wee bit of a head-scratcher.
How many fancied them Sunday changing ends five points down to Dr Crokes in Tralee? Not important — the players themselves believed.
Ross O’Callaghan has been having a blinder at full-back, Cormac Coffey going well in the corner. Con Barrett, when he’s on, is a machine. David Moran is niggle-free and thriving back at the club, Ditto Walsh.
Critically though, they have inventive and clinical operators up top. From Gavin O’Brien to Jack Savage and the delicious inside trio of Barry John Keane, Walsh and Conor Hayes, the son of referee Paul, a Bishopstown man.
There’s potency written all over that attack — probably more so than their final opposition from Rock Street in the town, Austin Stacks. The Rock might even be favourites with the bookies — it’s 2002 since O’Rahillys won a county final, and 2008 since they were in one. But going from early season also-rans to Kerry champions doesn’t sound so fanciful now….
Is there a worse way to lose a championship game than Tullamore’s misfortune against Naas in their Leinster club clash on Sunday?
The final whistle would surely have blown wherever Aaron Levy’s relieving clearance landed, with the Offaly men two up deep deep in injury time. Alas, for Levy, he blasted it at the onrushing Darragh Kirwan and the ricochet somehow wormed its way into the Tullamore goal. Heartbreaking.
There’s a better clip of it Wooly.. 👍 heartbreaking stuff. Was a game of top quality. pic.twitter.com/66rYOJX5i7
— John Kenny ☀️ (@JohnJk10221) November 22, 2021
As TJ Ryan put it on the GAA podcast today, “there will be psychologists in every Cork club team next year.”
We’re well accustomed to the work done by performance psychologists such as Caroline Currid at inter-county level, but less so on the club scene. Will Midleton set a trend?
Jennifer Hayes featured prominently on the list of credits when both Magpies manager Ger Fitzgerald and coach Ben O’Connor assessed Sunday’s Cork Premier SHC win.
Hayes is a clinical psychologist with the HSE from neighbouring parish Aghada. In the day job, she has worked closely with refugee families dealing with the trauma of fleeing conflicts. Armed with that perspective, she was heavily involved when Cork GAA set up a youth forum two years ago for development squads aimed at tackling the pressures on young athletes.
She also plays a bit of ball herself, having found football via the Mothers and Others movement.
Ben O’Connor revealed he brought Hayes in for one session with the Midleton players at the start of this season but everyone was so impressed, she became a fixture for the campaign.
Henry Shefflin probably had a lot of food for thought as he made his second journey home from Galway on Sunday night on a road trip to Ballyhale which he’s set to cover innumerable times in the next few years — not least the paucity of the second county semi-final he had just witnessed.
Shefflin’s first trip to Galway two weeks ago after being appointed in charge of the Tribesmen saw Clarinbridge reach their first final in a decade when they cantered to a 3-18 to 1-14 win over Craughwell in Athenry.
Shefflin, along with coach Richie O’Neill, was in Pearse Stadium on Sunday when St Thomas’ took another step towards four-in-a-row with a facile 4-20 to 0-9 win over neighbours Gort in another game which lacked bite.
Those one-sided semi-finals, with the losers managing just 0-12 from play between them in the two games, followed a championship blighted by big winning margins and a lack of competitive games.
Shefflin and Ballyhale had plenty of tussles with Galway club champions down through the years and he would surely have expected a lot more from a championship which produced 12 All-Ireland titles to six different Galway clubs in a 23-year period up to 2014.
Hopefully, the county final on Sunday week between St Thomas’ and Clarinbridge will up the ante and produce the sort of championship bite in which players’ ability can be properly gauged.
On Tipp FM, Stephen Gleeson’s commentary pretty much summed it up. “Brilliant play by Brian McGrath to turn it over, into Ciaran McGrath, into Liam McGrath, into John McGrath, John McGrath has won the county final!”
We are well aware how hectic things have been for Loughmore-Castleiney and the McGraths — next Sunday’s hurling final replay will be their 17th weekend on the go in a row as they attempt to complete the Tipp senior double having pipped Clonmel Commercials on Sunday.
But Ciaran might be entitled to feel the pace more than most — he’s already succession planning, with the arrival of Billy this week.
That was a fairly crazy week 👶🏻❤💚🔥 #LoughmoreCastleiney #Billy pic.twitter.com/aHBN08NMOR
— Ciaran McGrath (@ciaranmcgrath8) November 22, 2021
And Sunday's wasn’t even the first county title of the weekend for the clan.
Aoife McGrath, daughter of Loughmore dual boss Frankie, captained Drom-Inch to a third Tipp senior camogie title in a row on Saturday. Eimear McGrath, Mairead Eviston; Niamh Treacy, Anne Eviston, Siobhán McGrath and Miriam Campion are more cousins from the dynasty to feature against Clonoulty Rossmore — and no doubt we’re accidentally omitting a branch or two from the family tree.
🚨Team and panels for tomorrow’s @fbd_ie Senior Championship Final 1pm in the County Camogie Grounds, The Ragg 🎉 pic.twitter.com/FVFhPxXrBi
— Tipperary Camogie (@camogietipp) November 19, 2021
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
