Dublin and Kilkenny meet in the Leinster final at Croke Park this evening with the chance to put the cap on what has been a fine spell of hurling action in the eastern province.
Like the woman who takes off her glasses in a rom-com (She's All That, anyone?), we've found out over the last few weeks that the Leinster championship was beautiful after all.
Carlow’s famed draw with Kilkenny, Antrim’s guts and glory win over Wexford, Dublin striking a fatal blow to Galway, and potentially Henry Shefflin’s Tribe quest, in Salthill – there’s been plenty to remind the Munster fraternity that they don't own exclusive rights on provincial hurling drama.
There’s also enough to suggest that we could have a bit of an upset as Dublin aim to end an 11-year wait for the Bob O’Keeffe Cup with two Walsh Cups their lot in the meantime.
There are some good omens from that last provincial success back in 2013. They drew with Wexford (winning the replay) as they did in this year’s round-robin while there was also a win over Galway in there too. Another win, like in the 2013 semi-final replay, over Kilkenny would do them nicely.
Almost out of nowhere, Micheál Donoghue has engrained a steeliness in his side that really didn’t look apparent during the league as Dublin robbed two points in Belfast and won against a Westmeath side that ultimately struggled in the Joe McDonagh Cup. The losses to Tipperary, Limerick and Galway were by a combined 37 points.
In the championship arena though, they have been presented with a range of differing challenges and have managed to rise to nearly all of them.
Dealing with being a man up (Galway), forcing a Hail Mary finish (Wexford) and being ruthless when the opportunity presented itself (Antrim) - so many of those game scenarios practiced on the training field for months made an appearance.
In round one in Wexford, additional time goals from Danny Sutcliffe and Cian O’Sullivan secured what would prove to be a crucial point.
After a win in Carlow, a confident Antrim arrived at Parnell Park on the back of a brilliant win over the Model County in what was expected to be a tight affair. In the scorching heat, 13 different Dublin players got on the scoresheet in a 20-point win.
Kilkenny nabbed them late on thanks to an Eoin Cody goal, leaving their final prospects in doubt, as well as their participation in the All-Ireland series, but they led from the front in Galway, who had David Burke dismissed, and they used the elements perfectly to extend their season and open the door to possible silverware.
💬 "They'll be quietly confident going into a Leinster final"
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) May 26, 2024
Anthony Daly and Joe Canning on Dublin's progression to a provincial showpiece against Kilkenny #sundaygame
📺 Watch live - https://t.co/AKAre5FHdN pic.twitter.com/Tf0cCCbvf9
Their scoring spread has improved in the championship too, 18 players registering in Division 1B compared to 21 in Leinster.
In the league, only O’Sullivan (five games) and Diarmaid Ó Dúlaing (four games), who turned his attention to under-20 duties when the championship rolled around, scored in more than three of their five fixtures. In Leinster, that was up to a healthy six with Donal Burke, Danny Sutcliffe (their spiritual leader, according to Anthony Daly), Conor Burke, Seán Currie and Chris Crummey joining O’Sullivan.
Donoghue can now bank on consistent scorers from all areas of the pitch – the deadliest weapon in the game. It’s probable that they will still carry danger even if O’Sullivan misses out with a hamstring injury, he hasn't been named in the initial squad, not always a luxury associated with the side.
That’s maybe not what Kilkenny boss Derek Lyng wants to hear, especially with wing-back Mikey Carey's participation in doubt, even if he has been listed. His round-robin series was disrupted by injury but he starred in the final game win over Wexford – catching the eye at either end of the pitch – but an ankle injury looks like it may limit his availability.
John Donnelly, player of the match in their win over Dublin earlier in the championship, had been expected to miss out with a hand injury but also been named to start, but that may change. Adrian Mullen’s return does soften the blow of those injury concerns somewhat.
It’s been a bit of a strange campaign for the Cats.
After posting a staggering 5-30 against Antrim, they earned a credible point against Galway when the injury bug hit hard. There were victories over Dublin and Wexford by a combined three points but there was also that head-scratching day in Carlow when they were deservedly held to a draw.
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Killian Doyle’s ill-discipline saw them under pressure as he was red carded in the first half while the inability to provide Owen Wall with proper service after his stunning opening quarter was bewildering.
When the game was in the melting pot Kilkenny, famed for finding a way for so long under Brian Cody, fired wide after wide, and all mostly on the same left-hand side too.
Despite chasing their fourth ever five-in-a-row success (their best run was seven consecutive titles from 2005 to 2011) there is a sense that the side, admittedly with injuries playing a key role, have yet to find razor sharpness this season.
This evening at Croke Park would be a nice place to do that because given Cork’s renaissance, Clare’s obvious quality and Limerick’s, well, Limerickness, there’s a fair chance they could be facing a Munster heavyweight in the All-Ireland series in the next few weeks regardless of the outcome here.
Then there’s the other side of the coin. Across Leinster and Munster, only one team hasn’t tasted defeat – and that’s the Cats. They’re been in back-to-back All-Ireland finals and for spells in both looked like they had worked Limerick out. No other county has troubled five in-a-row in Leinster with Dublin, Wexford and Offaly next best with trebles.
History is very much their domain here, even if Dublin lie second on the roll of honour – albeit with 23 of their 24 provincial titles coming before 1962.
But it’s been a funny old championship, surprising and unpredictable. The home win rate stands at a low 50% and five of the six teams, Antrim the exception, have been involved in draws.
There’s been entertainment though, and plenty of it – and there could be one final act to add to that.
A shame then that the counties appear so reluctant to engage with the media to help promote the decider. There's no obligation there, but such moves always feel reductive and unnecessary.
Given what has been served up since 21 April, as many eyes as possible deserve to be on the finale. Leinster, after all, may no longer be the ugly sister that it was once deemed.
Watch the Joe McDonagh Cup final, Offaly v Laois, on Saturday from 3pm. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport, follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
Watch the Leinster Hurling final, Kilkenny v Dublin, on Saturday from 5pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
Watch the Munster Hurling final, Limerick v Clare, on Sunday from 3.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
