No mistaking the surge of excitement as championships move up a gear
Silver service: The East Kerry team celebrate as captain Dan O'Donoghue holds the trophy after the Kerry final in 2020. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie
When East Kerry won their second Kerry SFC in succession in 2020, the divisional side looked so dominant that they were threatening to take over the championship. After winning those two county finals against Dr Crokes and Mid Kerry by an aggregate margin of 22 points, the dominance looked set to continue with David and Paudie Clifford leading the charge, combined with a host of other factors.
With demographics shifting the balance of power back to the urban areas, especially Killarney, East Kerry suddenly had an incredibly strong hand to play. That hand was further strengthened with access to Rathmore and Kilcummins’ players in 2021. Furthermore, with Kenmare District not entering a team after Kenmare and Templenoe were contesting the senior championship in their own right as senior clubs, Kilgarvan and Tuosist, the other two contributing clubs in the district, hooked up with East Kerry.
The divisional side though were beaten by Austin Stacks in the opening round of a knockout championship last year. A condensed format would never suit the divisional side, especially when they needed more time to build cohesion and momentum, but the group stage format this year will. East Kerry look even stronger again now with the addition of the Killarney Legion crew. A David Clifford-James O’Donoghue tandem certainly looks an exciting prospect, even if the former is doubtful for the opening joust with Kerins O'Rahilly's.
With ten clubs at their disposal, five of which are competing at second-tier intermediate level in the club championship, East Kerry are the team to beat again. They start their campaign Saturday evening in Tralee against a Strand Road side beaten in last year’s county final and who are in good form after their recent extra-time victory over Spa in the club championship semi-final. It should be tasty.
When Erin’s Own contested their first Waterford senior hurling final in 1925, losing to Lismore, nobody could have foreseen the empire that would be built from the rubble of that defeat. It took Erin’s Own another two years to win their first title but when they did, they couldn’t stop, embarking on a crusade that saw the club gobble up nine-in-a-row.
That incredible achievement is often referenced when speaking about the record in Waterford but it’s still mentioned in the shadow of Mount Sion, not just because they equalled the nine-in-a-row , but because of Mount Sion’s dominance during that period, winning 15 titles in 18 years between the late 1940s and mid 1960s.
Yet when Mount Sion were going for ten-in-a-row in 1962, it was Erin’s Own – who Mount Sion had beaten in the three previous finals – who stopped them, winning by 15 points. There are some parallels tomorrow. Ballygunner are unbackable favourites to win nine-in-a-row but, as well as Mount Sion not having the same psychological hang-ups that other clubs have with the Gunners, along with trying to end a 16-year famine, Mount Sion will be doing everything to stop the Gunners achieving what their forefathers managed.
Mount Sion’s confidence will be even greater again after they gave Ballygunner an almighty scare in last year’s semi-final when losing by two points. Alan Kirwan even had a goal chance to win the game late on.
The history and tradition between the clubs will ensure this is another tight battle but there is a flipside to that theory too. The Gunners have for a year been listening to stories about how Mount Sion nearly derailed the train. But the Gunners are All-Ireland champions now. And they’ll be out to show why they feel this train is unstoppable in Waterford.
With ten minutes remaining in last year’s Dublin county hurling final, Na Fianna looked well on course to win a maiden county senior title. The first time finalists led Kilmacud Crokes by nine points but they looked set to do more than just create their own history – Na Fianna also appeared primed to smash a dominant trend and prise the county championship away from south Dublin for the first time in 15 years.
When Ballyboden St Enda’s finally made the breakthrough in 2007 to win their first title, they went on to dominate the championship like they had always been expected to on the back of such underage dominance, winning five-in-a-row. When they were finally stopped in 2012, it was fitting that the finalists that year were Kilmacud and Cuala, because those two clubs represented the future, and how they were going to continue south Dublin’s dominance of the competition. After Cuala ended a 21-year wait without a title in 2015, they went on to win five of the next six titles, which included successive All-Irelands in 2017 and 2018.
When Kilmacud stormed back to win last year’s title after extra-time, they extended that south Dublin run. Cuala and Ballyboden, who meet tomorrow, will be determined to relieve them of that title. Na Fianna almost managed to alter the trend last year, but can it be done this year?
Crossmaglen’s incredible run of success in Armagh, winning 19 titles in 20 years between 1996-2015, was never going to last, but when it stopped, nobody could have seen how liberating the championship would become, with four winners of the Gerry Fegan Cup in the last six years.
Cross won two of those titles but Maghery also won two, while Armagh Harps and, last year, Clann Eireann reached the top. The fiercely-competitive nature of Armagh’s senior competition looks set to be even more cut-throat this year in a knockout championship.
Having lost the last two finals though, Crossmaglen will be as determined as ever to get their hands on the trophy again. They meet Silverbridge Sunday (live on TG4), which will be the fourth year in-a-row that the south Armagh neighbours have met, with Cross having won the three previous encounters.
Proximity has ensured that the Knockmore-Ballina Stephenites rivalry has always been strong but it became dormant for years before being rekindled in recent years. And tomorrow’s meeting in Group 2 presents another opportunity to ratchet up the heat.
Knockmore got the defence of their county title off to a winning start in round one but the Stephenites drew with Ballaghdereen and have left themselves with no margin for error now in a group of death.
Knockmore are going for three in-a-row and are full of confidence but, as well as being pumped to take them down in such a big game, the Stephenites’ hand has been strengthened by the return of Padraig O’Hora (injured), while Evan Regan had only flown in from America the night before the Ballagh’ game. Their presence will be a massive boost but Ballina need something, especially in such tricky circumstances. And particularly against Knockmore.
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