Pictured is Bord Gáis Energy ambassador Joe Canning at the launch of Bord Gáis Energy’s ‘It’s Anyone’s Game’ campaign to promote inclusivity in hurling. As part of the campaign and to celebrate extending its sponsorship of the GAA All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship until 2025, Bord Gáis Energy, is giving people from around Ireland the opportunity to win prizes throughout the season. Visit www.bordgaisenergy.ie/home/bge-gaa for competition details. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile
By John Harrington
Orthodox three-man full-forward lines are as rare as hen’s teeth in inter-county hurling nowadays, but Joe Canning believes such a strategy might be the best one for any team hoping to knock Limerick from their throne this year.
The Galway hurling legend has seen teams consistently fail to stop this Limerick juggernaut with a safety first approach, and thinks fortune might favour a braver one.
“I'd push up on the whole lot and just go all out attack and see how you go,” says Canning.
“I'd love to maybe play three in the full-forward line and just pump ball in as quickly as possible and see how it goes. Will it work? Maybe not. Probably not. They'll probably have another answer for that.
“But I think in different aspects you probably saw...go back to Tipperary in maybe a Munster final a few years ago (2021) down in Páirch Uí Chaoimh, I think they were 10 points up at half time by just going long, long, long and they got great results out of it.
“Even Brian Concannon's goal (for Galway) here last year in the All-Ireland semi-final, it was just a ball straight in long. He caught it, bang, goal.
“I think there's little bits and pieces but can you do that over a sustained period of 70-odd minutes? It's very difficult. But why not try it?
“I think everything else has nearly been tried at this stage or the same thing has been tried in a lot of cases. But one thing's for sure, eventually they're gonna be beaten. If that's in the near future, I don't know.”
Cian Lynch of Limerick with supporters after the Allianz Hurling League Division 1 Group A match between Limerick and Clare at TUS Gaelic Grounds in Limerick.
Canning lives in Limerick and says the county’s supporters regularly come up to him predicting their team will ultimately go on to win six All-Ireland titles in a row.
Such talk wouldn’t be entertained for a second in the Limerick hurling camp, but Canning believes it can be difficult to shut it out altogether and that the heightened level of expectancy in the county could eventually affect the players.
“That's really tough as a player to not listen to that or hear it and get into your mind,” he says.
“I think that's the toughest part for management and players is listening to supporters and family and stuff telling you you're great and you won't be beaten. Nobody will get within 10 points of you and stuff.
“That's a really tough place to be as well. All the other teams are gunning, they're getting a chip on their shoulder in a way to try and beat Limerick. Because people are saying they're no good and Limerick are the only team that's going to win.
“I actually think it's going to be a much more open championship than people say. There could be one or two upsets.
“If you're at the top, there's loads of guys with incentive to get at you. When you're at the top, it's a lot harder to get that incentive to go up against teams, if you know what I mean.
“I think that's the most difficult thing for Limerick. Everybody knows they're good, they know they're good. How they get that extra bit of an edge going into a game could be the thing.
“You might see a few slow starts from Limerick in matches, and then gradually get into the game. But if a team is mentally right for it against them and tactically right, you could get an upset. It's a tough place to be for Limerick as well.”
