All on the line for Moycarkey-Borris in Tipperary

The wide-open nature of the Tipperary SHC is evidenced by 15 of the 16 teams remaining in contention heading into the final round.

Moycarkey-Borris reached the 2024 Tipperary SHC semi-final. Pic: Picture: Padraig Hogan

As one of the four table-topping teams heading into the final round of the Tipperary SHC group stage, Moycarkey-Borris are in a strong position to progress.

Uniquely, though, they are also the only team in their group that could be knocked out this weekend.

The Premier championship confers a safety net to the winners of the divisional championships, which are played before the group stage.

Unusually, the three divisional winners in the top grade are all in the same group alongside Moycarkey: Mid champions Loughmore-Castleiney, North champions Borris-Ileigh, and West winners Clonoulty-Rossmore. Any of those teams that finish outside the top two will have the fallback of a preliminary quarter-final.

“They all have the cushion, but at the same time, everyone is going full throttle for these championship matches,” says Denis Kelly, who took over as Moycarkey manager following a three-year stint in charge of the Tipperary camogie team.

History endorses his view that the preliminary quarter-finals are best avoided.

Under the current format, there have been 12 preliminary quarter-finals played since 2017. The divisional champions have lost eight. On the four occasions they won, the divisional champions were then dumped out at the quarter-final stage.

Back-to-back county champions Loughmore sit bottom of the group with no wins after two games ahead of their clash with Clonoulty. They are reliant on a Moycarkey win and a score-difference swing to secure a direct route to the quarter-finals.

Unless they win the county championship, whichever divisional champion finishes bottom of the group would also have to contest a relegation semi-final once they are eliminated.

The wide-open nature of the championship is evidenced by 15 of the 16 teams remaining in contention heading into the final round. Only Roscrea are guaranteed to finish bottom of their group. Cashel King Cormacs and JK Brackens have already booked their quarter-final spots as table-toppers.

Losses for pre-championship front-runners Loughmore and Holycross-Ballycahill have made a favourite impossible to pick. The past two runners-up, Nenagh Éire Óg and Toomevara, will also meet on Sunday in a do-or-die showdown.

“It would be a brave man to put down big money on any team to win the championship,” says Kelly.

“Teams could get caught on the last day on score difference and it's going to be very tough, so it's all to play for. There's going to be a lot of nerves jangling and a lot of nails bitten to the core before this is over.” 

Kelly took over the Moycarkey job from Eddie Brennan, who led the team to a county semi-final in 2024.

“Following their form up through the underage ranks, they have absolutely oodles of hurlers,” says Kelly. “It's just about pulling them together and getting them going in the right direction.

“I'm delighted. They've worked really hard to date, so two from two is good, but it'll count for nothing if we lose out on Sunday.” 

They defeated Loughmore by seven points in the opening round before holding off Clonoulty by two.

Including their penalty shoot-out defeat to Brackens in the Mid Championship, David Costigan has tallied five goals in three games.

Two more recent Tipp U20s, Max Hackett and Jack Hayes, have been featuring and scoring off the bench following injuries to add more competition for places.

The club has a strong tradition, with 14 county titles having gone to the parish under different team names: Moycarkey, Horse and Jockey, Two-Mile Borris, and Moycarkey-Borris. The Littleton-based side’s most recent county title was achieved in 1984.

“None of these lads were born at that stage, so they’re hearing about it from previous generations, but to date, they haven't got the job done themselves,” says Kelly. “Sunday will be another step.” 

For Toomevara-native Kelly, there will be an extra dimension to Sunday’s match, going up against his adopted home of Borris-Ileigh, for whom his son, Jerry, is a key player.

“It's interesting, alright. Before I went to Moycarkey, we had a chat between us to see what he thought. They were together last year in the group and we said, look, what's the chances this year,” Kelly chuckles.

“It turned out that the two teams ended up in the same group. Look, we're used to it. Jerry's away in Dublin at the moment, so I'm not seeing much of him during the week, but previously I'd have come up against him at under-21 and senior level when I was over Toomevara, so we're used to it.

“We won't be making a big deal about it. Others might, but we just get on and do the business, and whatever team comes out on top, then, fair play.”