The intriguing thing about Kilkenny is that Ballyhale and the Village are the two best club teams in the country but the county team is in reverse gear. It doesnât really stack up.
Theyâll never be a million miles away under Cody but youâd imagine they are not going to improve significantly under him at this stage either.
1 Like
Cody is trying to turn water into wine down there.
All these lads in the Mycroâs bar TJ Reid just donât have it.
They were excellent against Ballyhale in that county semi but I think that is majorly overrating the Village
1 Like
Pa OâCallaghan is a super hurler but intercounty isnât for everyone. He wasnât spectacular in his last year U-21 at county level. Itâs a huge commitment these days.
I just love hindsight is all! 
1 Like
Is it fair to say that with the development squad structures and improvements in coaching that the days of the big three winning 4 out of 5 all Ireland titles will be consigned to history?
They have 16 of the last 20 but that is skewed by Kilkennyâs utter dominance. Wouldnât be surprised if they donât break double figures between them between 2020 and 2040.
Cork surely dwarf everyone else for hurling playing numbers? If they got their act together they could/should be the Dublin of hurling.
They have the potential to but until they do that is all it is. I think that will be a fine team in 3 or 4 years time and back consistently competing for all Irelands but nothing to suggest that they will be dominate.
Cork wouldnât have the internal discipline to do what Dublin did.
1 Like
They have a mentality Limerick donât possess. Ignore it at your peril.
2 Likes
Cork have such a big pick, so many clubs and so much tradition theyâll be back at the top table sooner or later. Once theyâve the stadium debt down to a manageable level theyâll be coining it in from the concerts etc. That feeds down to more GDOâs, better underage investment, club grants for facilities etc.
Kilkenny are Kilkenny. They ruled with an iron fist for so long, a nice good famine to make them feel mortal wouldnât go amiss. Theyâll always be contenders because of the name alone but the supply line seems to have tapered off.
Once Cahill gets his hands on those Tipp underage sides heâll win a few AIâs with them. If Tipp overlook him after Sheedy it would be mind boggling, IMO. Thereâs gonna be big holes to fill once a few of these big names depart. Padraic Maher already looks in decline, has so much hurling played since 2009.
Galway. The great unknowns. How do you replace JC? You donât. Mind you they were level after 75 mins of the semi final so arenât far away.
Clare still recovering from the damage Davy inflicted. A lot expected from Meehan and Rodgers, Dugganâs return is needed too. Hard to see them winning an AI in the next few years but stranger things have happened. Still vulnerable at the back.
Imperative Waterford hold on to Cahill & Bevans. Along with Galway they are the best of the rest at the minute. De Barcaâs possible absence for 2021 would be disastrous though.
Wexford, forget about it as long as that lunatic is in charge.
If Kiely and Kinnerk stay in situ - and thereâs a bit of luck on the injury front - thereâs hopefully another All-Ireland in them which would transform this group from a great team to an iconic, generational one. The short run in could actually benefit them in 2021, other teams donât have much time to form a plan of action to break them.
Youâd hope hunger wonât dwindle with competition for places so intense.
2 Likes
Cork are finished.
Tipp have had a lot of very good underage teams in recent years and continue to have them but doesnât seem to be many game changers at senior intercounty among them.
The 2016 minor team looked unbelievable at the time and destroyed everyone in their path and only Jake Morris really coming through off that so far, and he even has been very inconsistent
When Waterford and Limerick can beat Kilkenny then you know the value of the name is gone.
When Young Sean Halpin started sneering at players from Junior clubs in the Sunday Independent, you knew Cork were fucked for a long time
1 Like
Why would Cork want to be the Dublin of hurling? Dublin are fairly shite. They lost to Laois last year and went out tamely to Cork themselves this season.
1 Like
Cork obviously have playing numbers and will surely cop on eventually but the geographic size of the county must be a bit of a hindrance.
Split Cork in 2?
McManus is pumping more and more money into limerick. Itâs basically now just a blank cheque for all teams where as before it was more structured and there was a limit on the money.
Iâd imagine thereâs a bad news story of sorts coming Down the line or something that might not make him too popular. He has every single limerick person hanging off his finger as it is. The live line show After his gaa donation was interesting. Everyone from limerick defending him and everyone else just saying he should pay his taxes. I presume the gesture back fired in a way.
I guess it could be the first and finest example of sports washing in the gaa.