AIB GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Club Final Preview

AIB GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Club Championship Final Preview

Sometimes when previewing a sporting event, writers may tend to refer to the upcoming fixture as a historic occasion, and in many cases this can be attributed to a spot of hyperbole. However, suggesting that today’s hurling decider is a historic occasion (the dictionary definition is “having considerable importance, significance or consequence”) may well be warranted as no matter which side emerges victorious, a new standard will have been set on the Club hurling scene.

--Wednesday, March 17--
Croke Park: Ballyhale Shamrocks v Portumna, 2.00pm
            
Currently Ballyhale Shamrocks share top spot in the roll of honour with Birr on four titles, and victory for the Noresiders this afternoon would see them take pole position on their own for the first time. For Portumna the stakes are equally high. A win would see the Corribsiders pull level with Birr and Ballyhale, but perhaps more importantly they would become the first Club to win three successive titles in either hurling or football. That indeed, would be historic.
            
Until Portumna’s success over De La Salle 12 months ago, just three Clubs had retained the hurling title, but Sarsfields (1993-‘94), Athenry (2000-‘01) and Birr (2002-‘03) all failed in their hat-trick bids with only the Offaly champions managing to retain county honours. The Midlanders subsequently lost the provincial final to O’Loughlin Gaels. Indeed, Portumna have already set a hurling record by qualifying for a third successive final.
            
Today’s protagonists also have a history as 13 months ago they met at the semi-final stage. However, the eagerly-awaited clash at Thurles proved to be something of a disappointment with the Noresiders always chasing the game after the reigning champions’ lightning start. Seven minutes in Portumna had 2-2 to their credit with Ballyhale still to trouble the scoreboard operator. Eoin Reid’s goal in the eighth minute raised hopes, but Joe Canning’s second goal in the second quarter pushed Portumna clear. An interval lead of six points was extended to 13 with another brace of goals (Damien Hayes & Ciaran Ryan) on the restart, before a typical Kilkenny revival narrowed the deficit to seven points at the final whistle (5-11 to 1-16).
            
In qualifying for today’s final Ballyhale have conceded just two goals in four matches and they will be determined not to give Portumna a head start this afternoon. The pressure will be on the full-back line with Aidan Cummins and Tom Coogan hoping to curtail the flag-raising abilities of Damien Hayes and Joe Canning, but they will have to do so with the minimum of fouling as Canning has the capacity to punish any indiscretions severely.
            
It’s a similar tale at the other end of the field where Henry Shefflin, TJ Reid and Eoin Reid, who to date have amassed 5-51 between them, will face off against Michael Ryan, Garret Heagney and Ollie Canning, and should the Kilkenny trio get the better of their respective markers they will be well on their way to a fifth title.
            
Last year Ballyhale manager Maurice Aylward suggested that “Portumna were a bit fresher” after their victory in Thurles, and with the comfortable semi-final win over Dunloy their only outing of the current campaign perhaps the same could apply this time out. However, tough games against Oulart-the-Ballagh and Newtownshandrum could serve Ballyhale well if, as expected, today’s game is a lot tighter than last season’s Semple Stadium confrontation.       

Click here to read the story of the AIB GAA Club Championships so far.