Kiely pledges 'uncomfortable' review as Limerick eye eighth Munster final in a row
EYES ON THE PRIZE: Limerick's Cathal O'Neill fully focused, like his colleagues, on securing an eighth Munster SHC final berth in as many years. Pic: James Lawlor, Inpho
If there’s no guarantee of a difficult examination from already-eliminated Tipp next Sunday, the Limerick players know for certain the uncomfortable reckoning that is coming their way at Tuesday’s in-house review session.
Outgunned by 0-10 to 0-1 between the 15th and 29th minute as wind-backed Waterford surged five clear, John Kiely insisted that there’ll be a great deal of shifting and squirming in Limerick chairs when the match tape reaches this second quarter on Tuesday.
“The review will be tough in some respects because we did leave Waterford get a run on us at times, and we paid a big price for it,” said the Treaty boss. “We were just struggling to get on breaking ball and struggling to win puck-outs [in that second quarter]. We lost a few battles as well, which we wouldn't be happy with. It was a poor spell in the game for us.
“When we sit down to review it on Tuesday night, it will be uncomfortable viewing for that part of the game.”
The final 14 minutes aside, so much of the tape will make for unpleasant screening. Where Kiely described his team’s endeavours as tentative, the view from the Mackey Stand would conclude they were far more casual and loose.
Intensity was sorely lacking until Aidan O’Connor applied sufficient pressure on a Mark Fitzgerald clearance that it travelled only as far as the nearby Gearóid Hegarty, who, in turn, fed Peter Casey for a scoreboard-turning goal.
“That goal was literally all about character. We had them in a vulnerable position, we put enough pressure on, we got the break we needed, and we took the chance when we got it,” Kiely continued.
“Listen, they weren't pretty by any stretch of the imagination but there was great desire in our group to try to get those couple of goals. We're getting them every day now and that wasn't always the case in the past.
“We were just a bit tentative in the second half. There was a huge amount riding on this game. This was a huge tariff game. If you don't get this right, your season is on the ropes. So, there was a bit of tentativeness and a bit of nervousness there. But once we settled, and with the leadership and the experience we had coming off the bench, it gave us great confidence to push on and get the result.”
The manager praised a supporting cast that delivered 0-6, explaining that Cian Lynch, and the immediate bounce he brought to Limerick efforts, was thrown in on 31 minutes because Adam English was on a yellow card and warning.
“I felt very confident coming into the game that we had a bench that would make a big impact. As it turns out, the bench was absolutely critical to getting the result. David Reidy came on and made a big impact. Colin Coughlan came on and it allowed Kyle to go back into the pocket. It made us very solid there.
“Cian came on and gave us great life for the following eight minutes before half-time. Tom Morrissey got three points. It wasn't just what they did, it was the energy they gave to everybody else as well.”
Their seventh successful navigation of the Munster round-robin complete, an eighth successive Munster final appearance is a strong probability given their Round 5 opponents, Tipp, have already been scratched from the summer cast list.
“There's nothing in the offing,” Kiely replied when involvement in the Munster decider was mentioned.
“It's quite simply, we have Tipperary coming to town next weekend, there are two points up for grabs and they'll be well fought for, I can assure you.
“At the minute, I'm focused on ourselves. We have a lot to take from today's game. There are positives but an awful lot of areas that we know we won't be happy with. We allowed Waterford to dominate a number of sections of that game, to out-fight us on a number of occasions, and that quite simply won't do next week.”
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