He was an out and out midfielder, you could name better hurlers but how many other other and out midfielders of the last 25 years would you have ahead of him?
Mick Fennelly
Tom Kenny
David Burke
Tommy Dunne
Derek Lyng
Jamie Barron
He was easily in the same class as those lads.
The likes of Cha and Jerry O’Connor played around three seasons at midfield. While Ken McGrath and Carey spent as much time at 6 or 11 as midfield
Ahead of Tommy Dunne? Lynch was a force of nature but Dunne was an actual Hurler.
Tommy Dunne was a Rolls Royce.
Fair point…
Colin Lynch remains much underrated in technical terms, great to plant his feet and so on, but not as good an all out hurler, obviously, as TD. I admired TD, same as Kevin Cashman did, but I think he flagged in a lot of big games. And he was shocking at centre back, aged 30, against Kilkenny in 2003.
But I admit midfield holds desperate hard to pick. There is a strong case for Michael Fennelly. And I think @Big_Dan_Campbell is correct to make a distinction between career midfielders and lads good there. Ken McGrath, on sheer merit, has to make the team and I think he fits neatest on my team at midfield.
At his best, Cha was the best, I reckon. But… He was only there 2006 to 2008.
Kyle Hayes, Sean Finn, Cian Lynch I’d say.
I think Tommy was a Midfielder / Forward as opposed to a defensively minded attacker.
His scoring abilities from MF were very good and I can recall him single handily taking the game to Cork in 2000. Scored a couple of goals to put a minor gloss on defeat.
As regards his leadership, his display in the 2001 AI Final was as good as I’ve seen still to this day.
He was at ease totally with the occasion & responsibility he was taking into it and thoroughly excelled.
There are loads of caveats to be raised about my attempt at a XV… Like many people in Kilkenny, I rate Séamus Callanan and Brendan Maher extremely highly. A case could be made for BM, in a way, at midfield. Was EK definitively better than SC?
One of the most technically gifted hurlers ever: Ger Fennelly.
But hurling is funny. Bubbles is probably one of the 100 most gifted people who ever caught a hurl. He is that good, innately. But what can be said about him…?
That’s my point. You’ve straight off the bat named six and another four as good or better. Harry has added dunne and I’ll add tony Browne. The point on how long they played in what position is irrelevant as in a conversation like this some players may budge to accommodate fitting in the best.
I don’t disagree that he was a very good player but he is not in the top echelon, he doesn’t make it into this conversation for me.
True enough. I hope the gods spare me to see the whole of KH’s career. The question for him will be what happens when the legs go 5%.
But he has already done unforgettable things.
Johnny Pilkington was another chap I omitted. Himself and lynch both had a panache in their hurling that not many lads have
JP came into my mind as well.
Hurling is funny. One of the most gifted exponents I ever saw was Stephen Brown from Birr. But he was in and out the door like a May shower.
Callanan isn’t in the same atmosphere as Eoin Kelly imo.
Tony Browne easily played twice as many games at wing back than he did midfield I would wager.
Probably, probably. I am a huge fan of Eoin. But SC got some serious goals.
The other Eoin Kelly was scarily good. Everything in his wrists but nothing between his ears.
Once again, not the point when you’re trying to accommodate the best players on an all time great team.
Tom Kenny is the GOAT.
On underrated, prime ‘Bubbles’ O’Dwyer was an unbelievable hurler there for a few years. I wonder if ‘that ball’ had gone over against KK would it have driven him on. Read Eoin Kelly call him the most skilful he player he ever played with. I’d love to see him get ‘it’ back for another run at the elite level.
The likes of English and JBM are before my time but of what I’ve seen live of inside forwards, peak Eoin Kelly was the best and stood out to the extent that I can’t imagine there could’ve been 3 inside forwards better than him but it’s subjective of course.
TJ deserves a lot of credit today with the athleticism he has brought to it to go with with all the skills.
John Mullane was absolutely devastating in top of the ground summer hurling for about 4 or 5 years without having the hurling of the other top forwards mentioned probably. That Waterford team kind of all fell away around him and he was last man standing.
Jason Forde is maybe the most stylish hurler around at the minute.
@Malarkey can answer for himself but he is trying to pick a team on merit where players stood out rather than shoe horn in 15 hurlers.
Lynch is as good as any midfielder than played in the 25 or so years which is the period that Malarkey specified. He is worthy of consideration at the very least and it is far from controversial or wrong to pick him. Everyone can have a preference and if someone wanted to pick the other names I mentioned I wouldn’t really find an issue - but I’m not the one who found issue with Colin lynch
The likes of Pilkington was able to hurl every way. He could take a score, he could spoil an opponent deemed to be better technically.
It’s always the flash lads get the plaudits.
In fairness you can’t win much without the Colin Lynches and WOD’s of this world either. But, they rarely get the rightful recognition they deserve.