And then there were six.
Last weekend went as expected. Carlow put in a very good performance for 60 minutes and gave it everything against the Dubs while in Tullamore all sorts of records were broken, and for all the wrong reasons for the Faithful side.
I felt Tipp were coming with a performance of hurt from the Waterford loss and this game was done after 10 minutes. Offaly looked tired, the Joe McDonagh final defeat knocked the life out of them and they were a shadow of a team compared to that day in Croke Park.
In a way, it’s hard to blame them. I’m sure some lads took a well deserved little break after that game and maybe some began to focus on the club championship, which is fast approaching, but Tipp did what they had to do and in emphatic style. Were they tested? Not at all but they did what was needed and they will take the confidence from the victory and drive on now for Galway on Saturday in Limerick.
What happened at O'Connor Park adds buckets of fuel to the burning question: should the McDonagh finalists still be playing in these preliminary quarter finals?
Fourth place in Leinster and Munster could have been involved in these clashes against Offaly and Carlow
Fourth place in Leinster and Munster could have been involved in these clashes against Offaly and Carlow, this year that would be Cork and Wexford, and then let the winners of those games play Tipp or Dublin. So in your quarter finals you would have, for example's sake, Tipp v Wexford and Cork v Dublin. Neutral venues or a double header somewhere.
Ok, people will say more games than week on week for the fourth place teams, but if I went to Pat Ryan or Darragh Egan with this right now they’d bite the hand off ya for another shot at it. That’s my solution. Does it have flaws? I’m sure it does, but lets have more solutions folks and less problems to these things.
If I had a crystal ball, I would have bought a chip van site outside the Gaelic Grounds last year. I’d have my money made back already such is the volume of games and full houses the Ennis Road venue is getting this year.
The people of Cork are not happy, they have a state-of-the-art stadium sitting idle, crying out for these games but unfortunately, geographically it just doesn’t make sense to take these games there. Even when you get to Cork it’s a nightmare to get out of afterwards and that’s after walking a mini marathon to get there for the match. So maybe the answer lies within, make it easier to get in and out for people and more games might follow suit?
But it’s the Gaelic Grounds for us Saturday so how will it go?
First game is simple: Clare will win. Dublin got the job done versus Carlow but with no fanfare whatsoever. They played well for 55 minutes against Galway and then let a 12-point lead slip and other than that they haven’t caught anyone’s attention this year. They’re coming down to what is effectively Clare’s second home ground this year, a place they have played very well in, and their supporters will travel once again to support this team.
Clare will have a world of hurt from the Munster final. Players wanting to prove a major point to the manager and themselves, case in point Aidan McCarthy, subbed off after 44 minutes the last day. The Banner know they are serious All-Ireland contenders but to get back to Croker and the Cats they have this obstacle to overcome - they will and they’ll do it with points and energy to spare.
One thing to note in this game will be the performance of Dónal Burke. If he has another worldy performance, his name must be in the pot for All-Star selection when that half-forward line is discussed later this year.
Now to the main event, Tipp v Galway. Let me give you the last four championship results between them and then you’ll understand why this one will be so hard to call. 2015 – Galway win by a point, 2016 – Tipp win by a point, 2017 – Galway win by a point, 2020 Galway win by two points.
You see where I’m going here. These two teams have consistently brought the best out of each other over the years. In 2010, we were haunted to beat Galway, only for the tippy toed genius of Larry Corbett to dance around a few defenders and slot it over the bar in Croke Park. Form is always something to go on but for me it goes out the window when these two meet and comes down to who is better set up and, most importantly, who wants this more.
Which of these two teams have that fire in their belly, that desire to get back to Croke Park for a crack at the top dogs, Limerick? My heart says Tipp, my head says the same. I just feel Tipp are coming into this game in a great place, getting bodies back from injury, getting a win the last day. Okay, against a much inferior opposition but a win nonetheless and some great performances from players who needed game time.
Galway, on the other hand, are coming off the back of a devastating defeat, one which does take time to get over even for the most mentally strong individual. They have not set the world alight in any game in Leinster and they were a dozen down to Dublin at one stage. They have shown great resilience to make those comebacks against Dublin and Kilkenny, in the Leinster final, but there are only so many times you can keep going to the well. I feel if they go seven or eight points down on Saturday their year will be done.
Are Galway hurting? Of course they are. Will they put that hurt into a performance on Saturday? They will certainly give it their all and the sight of that blue and gold jersey could be enough for them to give their best performance of the year. But I still think Tipp will do it. They are very well set up this year, they now have the option of choosing from all their top players, they are certainly fit and strong enough for the Galway challenge and they will be ready for whatever battle is coming. The individual battle I am most excited about, should it happen, is Cathal Barrett v Conor Whelan. One of the best corner-backs in the business against the forward talisman for Galway right now and a guy in serious form. The winner of this battle alone could dictate the overall result.
On the outside, Tipperary's progress has been mighty, but this group and their management team will not be satisfied with that. They want results and performances against the top teams and this is the perfect opportunity to announce to the rest of the hurling world 'We’re still here you know'.
No more safety net for anyone. This is it now, do and it’s onto Croke Park, die and it’s onto the Ryanair website looking up the best deal and at the nearest time. Two men will rest easy this weekend in the forms of Derek Lyng and John Kiely but I have no doubt both will be in attendance to witness their opposition in the flesh and plan ahead even before the final whistle sounds in Caherdavin.
Now we are into the championship. Now we are into the colosseum. Now we see who gets the thumbs up or thumbs down. One thing’s for sure, we will be entertained.
Watch the All-Ireland Hurling Championship quarter-finals, Dublin v Clare and Galway v Tipperary, on Saturday from 3.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie/Sport and the RTÉ News app or listen to live updates on Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
