By Michael Devlin

There were 13 points between the sides at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in the Bord Gáis Energy Munster Under 21 Hurling Final back in June, and while that margin might suggest that Cork are streets ahead of Tipperary going into next Sunday’s All-Ireland decider at the Gaelic Grounds, Rebel County legend Seán Óg Ó hAilpín believes it will be a much, much tighter affair.

Tipperary got the better of Leinster champions Galway, 3-17 to 1-17, to book their place in the final, while Cork beat Wexford in the other semi-final, 3-26 to 0-13.

“I was hoping Galway would beat Tipp for obvious reasons, because it’s very hard to get yourself up to beat a team you’ve already beat,” said Ó hAilpín at the launch of the 2018 Croke Park Charity Challenge match. “Not only did Cork beat them, Cork hammered them. From experience, when you beat a team where you kind of see yourselves as the same level, by that margin, it’s a once-off.

“I think we’ll get a proper reading on the 25th, but I still fancy Cork to shade it because I’ll be hoping their established senior players, Cork seem to have more of them playing than Tipperary. A lot of those Cork seniors are at the 21 age, whereas the Tipp team are minors from two years ago and maybe minor last year. It should be a rip-roaring game.”

The youthful age profile of the current Cork senior team is indicative of a shift in playing style since Ó hAilpín’s heyday of the early noughties, with faster, fitter and more agile players now dominating the hurling scene, as opposed to the more robust competitors of yesteryear.

“I think the focus has switched from physicality. From experience, physicality contested the stuff back then. If you were 23 or 24 you were only breaking onto the team, you had to sit on the bench to serve your time and make way for the likes of Jim Cashman and all these fella’s that had been there.

“That seemed to be the way back then. Now the game has switched, it’s all about speed now. I’d imagine with that in mind, a lot of people are going for younger type players with a bit of speed. Because most coaches will realise now that if you get a fast guy in, he can do more damage to you than having a stationary guy under dropping ball that’ll pull all day.”

There’s not much Seán Óg Ó hAilpín didn’t win during his decorated inter-county honour, but does the 2004 Hurler of the Year yearn to be back in the thick of things on hurling’s biggest day of the year?

“Not really, no! You know where I’ll be on Sunday? I’ll be on my couch watching the game on TV relaxing and looking at the great hurling we’re expecting!,” joked the Cork man.

“Ah, I do miss June, July and August but I don’t miss January, February and March for obvious reasons. But you do miss it, especially this week in particular. You just revisit what would be going on in your head, what you would be doing leading up to the All-Ireland final.

“The one thing I do miss more than winning, losing or performing or not performing is the banter you have with the band of players leading up to big games. The messing that would be going on, people doing prank calls pretending to be someone from the media.

"You’d miss Dr. Con telling his war stories about Cork teams from the 40’s and 50’s and finding out half of it is false! For me, they’re the moments I miss most.”

The big question, ‘Limerick or Galway?’, has been the question on everyone’s lips for the past fortnight, but what is Ó hAilpín’s verdict?

“I thought Cork threw it away against Limerick. Six points up you should see the finishing line there and go for it. They didn’t and hats off to Limerick, that’s not Limerick’s fault. Cork probably had one eye on this Sunday so if you take away that game I think it’s fair to say that Limerick are in the final hugely on merit.

“Galway are another team are there hugely on merit. The best hurling I’ve seen this eason has been from Galway. I see nothing to put my mind on anything other than a Galway victory. I think Galway’s performances this year have been much better than Limerick’s. When Galway really hit their crescendo, they can blow away teams. Limerick have been impressive and will win an All-Ireland but not this year.

“I think Galway’s know how of being here last year is huge. Having been in that situation myself, when you’re here for the first time you realise you’re just a puppet on the stage. Your second/third year, you just get on with business.

“Even the fella knocking on your door three times telling you to get out can spook you. The coach is trying to get his last message across and the knock comes from the steward. That’s not his problem but stuff like that can unsettle you.

“So I’m going for Galway, just about.”