Tony Kelly is the most gifted hurler Iāve ever seen. Joe is up there too.
Lynch is class but I havenāt seen him beat teams on his own the way those two have.
As of right now the best is between Kelly and Lynch but again Iād edge it to Tony. A matter of personal preference really at the moment between the two.
Different players. Lynch is very much a play maker - his first thought is to find a team mate. Kellyās first thought is to score.
They can both do things the other canāt.
You wonāt ever see Lynch beat teams on his own, itās just not his game. Thatās not to say he couldnāt do it but he is unselfish almost to the point of foolishness. At underage level, it was a flaw in his game, that he would always look to pass the ball to less-skilful players than himself. But at adult level, in an unbelievable team, he can elevate the rest of the team because of the way he plays.
And I donāt think Kelly can do that, thatās not a criticism of Kelly, he is just a very different player as @Thomas_Brady says. He is almost a pure scorer; brilliant fleetness of foot, if he gets the ball and has any sort of space in front of him (pretty much anywhere on the pitch) and itāll be a score. Whereas you almost need to scream at Lynch to take shots that he should take on, Kelly will shoot from anywhere and itās the opposite really, heāll pretty much never pass.
Kelly is the better shooter, and probably looks better in full flight, his striking on the run is a joy to watch.
Lynch has the better vision, has an almost scary ability to win any sort of ball high or low and works harder defensively. That isnāt the pretty side of the game but has to be done too. Would say that Lynch is more unpredictable than most hurlers around because of his natural skill levels.
Very different players. Lynch is a much more team player and makes the other players around him 10x better. His vision, game IQ and skill level is off the charts Iāve never seen anything like it. Kelly is an individually gifted player and carries Clare but also that is partially to his lack of bringing others into the game.
Heās no Aussie Gleeson thatās for sure.
The usual suspects being sent out to bat, all weāre missing is the big dog
Is TKs ceiling even as high as GearĆ³id Hegartyās?
I would argue someone like young Cathal O Neill has a higher ceiling than Kelly. Big ask to reach that level mind but has all the potential in the world.
Ok, I think thatās a bit silly now. I expect OāNeill to be very very good but he has done nothing yet to suggest he is approaching Kelly.
Tony Kelly had won hurler and young hurler of the year by the age of 19. Cathal o Neill is still a sub and must be 20/21.
Tony Kelly in full flow is pure joy to watch. He has a grand way to him.
Ceiling is how good a player could possibly be. Hence why Canningās ceiling was the greatest ever as he was making clean shit of adults when he was still in primary school.
Kellyās ceiling never as high but got every bit out of his potential. TJ Reid another.
Gleeson an example of it not turning out as expected. A very high ceiling, higher than Reid and Kelly among others but hasnāt worked on his game, all facets, like the others have and unless something drastic happens very soon heāll always be seen in a lesser light.
O Neill has everything in the pocket to become an all time great. Thereās nothing any player has that he doesnāt from an ability and physical point of view. As I said, big ask to reach that level as so few ever do deliver on the promise but it is all there for him.
What age was TJ Reid before he broke through in KK?
I suppose the difference there is Kelly broke through to a shit Clare team (Iām going to say that they hadnāt won a single Championship match in the three years before Kellyās debut) whereas CON is trying to break in to literally Limerickās greatest ever team who havenāt lost a Championship match in 3 years.
As to the ceiling question, I donāt know how you really judge that, no arguing that Kelly has recovered from the meandering years post-2013 to consistently be one of the best forwards in the game.
25 by the time he was an undisputed starter.
Started in 2010 alright but there were obviously lots of injuries and was a sub again in 2011.
CON is well ahead of him so.
I see what youāre saying but itās very speculative re OāNeill yet, Kelly was hoty at 19 and has performed to a very high level. I donāt think any of OāNeillās performances to date threaten that level, though itās possible he may have it in him.
Iāve said it loads of times about TJ and Callanan, they were in their late 20s before they became the all time great players they developed into.
But it is a much better comparison. The thing that will halt CONās development is Hegarty, Lynch & Morrissey; the same way Henry, Larkin, Power, etc stopped Reid cementing his place as a young fella.
Kelly has done it all tbf to him, like Joe in Galway, he is the talisman of his team and I donāt know if CON will ever have that status (hopefully not, as it generally means your other players arenāt up to much).
Absolutely ridiculousā¦
Iād say 25/26