Form be damned, unshakeable Gillane is still the country's most dangerous forward

UNSHAKEABLE: Form means nothing to Limerick’s Aaron Gillane. Picture: Tom Maher/Inpho

You weren’t surprised by Aaron Gillane’s two goals against Tipperary last Sunday week.

You weren’t because you know this is what he does: follows the bad with the good. You saw him come off scoreless on the hour mark against Waterford seven days earlier upon his return from a calf injury and expected he was going to start the following Sunday.

You understand this because Gillane is the most dangerous forward in hurling and he doesn’t need form. You appreciate that at this stage of his career he doesn’t require the crutch of frees either as he has demonstrated this season with Aidan O’Connor taking over those duties.

Going back to his first full senior season of 2018, Gillane has overcome setbacks with ease. He didn’t return to the team immediately after serving a one-game suspension for a petulant strike on Seán O’Donoghue. Just as John Kiely did with Cian Lynch against Waterford last month, he began his first match back on the bench yet went onto score 1-15 from play in the All-Ireland series.

Gillane spins Bryan O'Mara at TUS Gaelic Grounds. Picture: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Despite his collision with Gearóid McInerney in the 2020 All-Ireland semi-final which required hospitalisation, he was fit enough to score 10 points in the final win over Waterford, four from play.

For the Munster decider five years ago, Gillane was dropped but produced 1-5 and 1-6 tallies in the All-Ireland semi-final and final respectively.

If that omission wasn’t the nadir for Gillane performance-wise, it probably came in the 2022 Division 1 opening round defeat in Wexford when he was hooked at half-time. It was as anonymous as the Patrickswell man could be. Yet six days later, he was bagging 1-6 against Galway, 1-1 from play.

A month later and after picking up two yellow cards against Clare he bounced back with 12 points in the final round win over Offaly, half of them from play.

In 2023, the year he was crowned hurler of the year, Gillane wasn’t seen until March after an extended spell out of the panel for disciplinary reasons. In his first full game back scored 1-5 against Wexford and produced 1-7, 1-2 from play, in the Division 1 final.

Gillane celebrates after bagging Limerick's first goal against Tipperary. Picture: Tom Beary/Sportsfile

Held scoreless against Galway in the last round game of the 2024 Division 1, Group B, he was benched with almost a quarter of the game still to play. Kiely again showed faith and in the semi-final defeat to Kilkenny he contributed 1-5, 1-2 from play.

Over this year’s league games against Offaly and Cork, Gillane managed just one point from play, although in the latter he won the penalty which O’Connor sent to the net.

In the following two outings, including the final win over Cork, he amassed 2-8 from play and awarded man of the match in TUS Gaelic Grounds. The goal, initiated with that deft flick away from O’Donoghue, was the fifth of his career against Cork.

“Phenomenal” is how his team-mate Dan Morrissey this week described the man he occasionally marks in training. Unshakeable would be another.