Colin Fennelly: Ballyhale Shamrocks seeking the perfect anniversary gift

Ballyhale Shamrocks’ Colin Fennelly lifts the Leinster Club SHC trophy. Picture: INPHO/Ryan Byrne

Ballyhale Shamrocks can be inspired to win a third straight All-Ireland club title by their 50-year anniversary in 2022, claims captain Colin Fennelly.

To become the first ever team to lift the Tommy Moore Cup three times in succession is an ample incentive in itself. But to achieve it 50 years after the amalgamation of Ballyhale and Knocktopher and Shamrocks would be even more special.

“It will be motivation,” says Fennelly. “It all comes through from who started the club and if you don’t mention the 50 years and what they have achieved and tell players ‘this is massive’... you invite that pressure, you invite that opportunity. You don’t avoid it and ignore it.

“It’s a massive opportunity for the club and if you win, you win and if you don’t, you look forward to next year. It’s not the be-all and end-all but you try the best with what’s in front of you. We focus on game by game and we haven’t a clue who we are playing in the All-Ireland semi-final (St Thomas’s) and I don’t want to know. I want to enjoy my Christmas, relax with the family and get going again in the new year.

“In fairness to (manager) James O’Connor, he just focuses on each game as it comes and he is brilliant at going into detail of matches. You can see it out there, having TJ (Reid) and myself inside, it’s moving players like that which shows he’s not going out with the same team (formation) each week.”

Sunday’s win over Clough-Ballacolla marked 32-year-old Fennelly’s seventh Leinster senior club medal.

“I’m enjoying it a lot more because you’re coming near the end of it and you want to make the most of it and I think we are making the most of it. You don’t think about it when you’re younger, you think you’re going to win forever and think it’s great, but when you look back on it all, it’s an amazing feeling.”

Fennelly scored 2-1 on Sunday despite injuring his shoulder against St Rynaghs.

“I landed on it last week and then when it went out to extra-time it just completely tightened up. It was a struggle all week. I was able to puck a ball for the first time on Saturday. I just went out and hoped for the best.”

To see Eoin Cody impress on frees after TJ Reid, another walking wounded, made way on Sunday pleased Fennelly no end. 

“You want to keep onto Eoin, ‘You need to be getting these over the bar. TJ’s not going to be hurling forever’. And he needs to be moving and stepping up into that position and it was great to see him putting those balls over the bar. You don’t just stop. 

“That’s the problem we’ve had over the last number of games; we go up by seven, eight, nine points and then we just fall asleep. We had that scare the previous weekend, it was a massive scare. Realistically, St Rynaghs should have bet us, they were all over us and here we are today Leinster champions, it’s just amazing.”