Former Offaly hurler Brian Carroll believes that Tipperary took a leaf out of the Kilkenny playbook to beat their old rivals on a 2-29 to 2-20 scoreline in Sunday's All-Ireland hurling final.
Tipp's full-forward line plundered 2-15 from play thanks to a steady supply of long deliveries while their swarming defence restricted the Cats inside line to just 1-01.
Speaking on the RTÉ GAA podcast Jones' Road, where he was joined by Dublin defender Niall Corcoran, Carroll said: "There's no doubt about it. They mirrored what Kilkenny usually do.
"They gave in more direct ball. They outworked Kilkenny in the middle third. They dragged their half-forward line down the field. Their midfield tended to sit back and they nullified the Kilkenny forward line.
"They gave them no space. It always looked fierce tight in the Tipperary defence. They were working back all the time and the space was up front.
"Kilkenny usually eat people up in the air and Tipperary took them on. Ronan Maher won eight aerial duels at centre-back. At 20 years of age that's phenomenal.
"Michael Ryan has to take great credit for this because he's added serious steel to their team, and the belief and ability to win hard ball."
