By Kevin Egan

No matter what happens over the next three months, or three years, or three decades, Carlow will always be the first ever winners of the Joe McDonagh Cup.

Four years ago, the competition was being played for the first time, and while the Dolmen County opened up well, knocking over Kerry by three points in round one, they followed that up with defeat to Antrim, and then a disjointed performance against Meath, where they fell over the line.

With that win under their belts, they went on a fantastic run of victories over Laois and Westmeath (twice) to lift the trophy, and secure their place in the Leinster senior hurling championship.

Richard Coady was the captain of that 2018 team, so knows exactly what’s required to win at this level. The obvious question for the Mount Leinster Rangers veteran is whether or not the 2022 Carlow panel is capable of matching that achievement?

“It’s pretty much a new team, there is still some experienced players there but it will take a level of consistency to win it” he told GAA.ie.

"Last week's result against Kerry was very disappointing, we just weren't anywhere close to where we needed to be, and Kerry have the hurlers to make sure we paid a heavy price.

“We can’t have any more blips or else our fate is out of our hands and that's not a place you want to be, but momentum will go a long way as it did in 2018. Even in 2018 we went up to Antrim and lost, so you can have a dip and rebuild again. But the window to recover is so narrow this time around, we’ll be trying to avoid that if at all possible. It's seven days between one game and the next, and anything less than our best performance won't be good enough in Belfast.”.

In a long career that has featured some huge highlights for both club and county, Coady considers that period, and the following year when they competed in Leinster, as the high point of his time in the tricolour jersey. It’s something he’s determined to replicate, if at all possible.

“We won in 2018 and it was great to win in Croke Park. Then we went on to play Limerick who eventually went on to win the Liam MacCarthy, and you want to tog out and play the best. The Leinster SHC in 2019, we lost the games, but I don’t think anything will ever replicate that year. Having Kilkenny in Netwatch Cullen Park with a full house, nothing will replicate that. Going to Salthill and hurling really well for long periods against Galway, we came out of that experience with so much pride”.

In a tightly-bunched pack, Carlow produced an eye-catching result in round one, putting Meath to the sword in Navan, but that feelgood factor didn't survive their contest with the Kingdom in Netwatch Cullen Park. On paper, taking on competition favourites Antrim in their own back yard is as tough as it gets, but Coady's take on it is simple - they've three group games left, and their trend from the Allianz League of mixing good and bad performances just won't cut it.

"Kerry beat us quite comprehensively in both league and championship now. Down are riding a wave, they've developed a great habit of winning tight games, Antrim and Offaly played Division One hurling. No game is going to be easy, and if we don’t get our own house in order, then it will be a short season” Coady said.

“Everyone wants to be playing Summer hurling when the sun is shining and the ground is firming up. The intense burst of games is just the way it is at the minute, we’ll just have to make sure our season extends on for as long as it can. If you get to the Bank Holiday weekend in a good position, it opens up a bit more possibility”.

The Mount Leinster Rangers man is a fan of the new split season, but it has changed how every county, including Carlow, go about their business. There was some speculation that in the Allianz Hurling League, some counties kept their powder dry. All-Ireland champions Limerick certainly didn’t do anything to quell those notions when they exploded out of the blocks at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, despite coming out of a lacklustre Spring campaign.

In Carlow’s case, failing to reach a Division 2A league final was a disappointment, and there was no lack of endeavour in Coady’s opinion – but the looming shadow of the championship changed their approach considerably.

“At the start of the year there were three competitions. The Kehoe Cup ended with defeat to Westmeath, and the league didn’t go to plan. We didn’t go out not to perform, any competition you enter, you want to win, but we were fairly disappointed with how the league went. But in saying that, we took some elements of positivity out of it as well. We’re in a period transition, we lost five or six experienced players from the core group, but we introduced a few U-20s during the league and we found some good young players.  

“The way the fixtures have gone now, there isn’t that break where you could go away and refresh yourself, to taper down and peak again. Teams have had to keep the high intensity training going during the league and that might affect you at the weekends.

“Everyone always wants to win the main one, which is championship. The trainings during the league were that bit more intense, you had to look down the road so you make sure everything is relatively in order, that injuries would be right for this time of year, and of course that had an effect.

“Barring Down, the rest of the teams had their up and down days, and any day any of us could have beaten the others”.

Carlow lost some crucial games, but will take heart from the fact that they were able to beat league winners Westmeath.

“We just need consistency, and if we get that, we’ll be hard to beat.

“This is an excellent competition, there’s that  group of five or six teams there that are trying to bridge that gap to the top level and the Joe Mac gives very competitive games.

“If your standard is good enough you’ll go on, it’s all there for you. Playing in Croke Park, winning in Croke Park, there’s nothing like it, that day in 2018 was one of the best feelings of my life. Now we’re going again, and we’re hoping for that fairytale day that all we live for”.