GAELIC GAMES/Kilkenny Senior Hurling final: Ian O'Riordanon how Shamrocks are still favourites even without injured county stars Henry Shefflin and James Fitzpatrick
If any further evidence was required of Kilkenny's unrivalled depth and strength in hurling then consider Sunday's county final - Ballyhale Shamrocks against St Martin's - which won't feature a single player that started in last month's All-Ireland victory.
That's partly explained by the fact that Ballyhale's two big players, Henry Shefflin and James "Cha" Fitzpatrick, are out injured.
One of their other big players, midfielder Michael Fennelly, did appear as a substitute in the All-Ireland, although St Martin's, chasing a first title since 1984, couldn't get any representation on this year's Kilkenny panel.
This could be seen as creating an even contest, and yet Ballyhale, the reigning All-Ireland club champions, still come to Nowlan Park as daunting opposition. When winning that All-Ireland last March, Shefflin didn't score from play, and Fitzpatrick was scoreless, and while both were highly influential, there were plenty of other stars, including the Reid brothers, TJ, Eoin and Patrick, who hit 3-7 between them.
Naturally, the Ballyhale manager Maurice Aylward is still lamenting their loss - with Shefflin's knee injury (from the All-Ireland final), and Kavanagh's foot injury (from the Kilkenny semi-final) leaving them both on the long-term absentee list.
"Well, look," says Aylward, "if Kilkenny were playing in a final on Sunday without Henry and Cha, would everybody be as confident of them winning? Even in the All-Ireland against Limerick, once Henry went off, they weren't the same team. So of course they're a huge loss.
"Having said that, we do have a strong panel, and there's far more to Ballyhale than two men. Our team are very workman-like, play for each other. And a player like Michael Fennelly has really stepped up to become one of our leaders, with a tremendous match in the quarter-final. We need players like him, and Bob Aylward, and Aidan Cummins. All these can all step up for us on Sunday, and we'll need them to.
"And of course the three Reid brothers are fabulous hurlers, with the eldest of them, Patrick, our captain this year."
The fact that St Martin's don't boast any members of the Kilkenny panel isn't fooling Aylward into any complacency:
"They've had some very good minor teams for the last number of years, and a number of players on the Kilkenny minor and under-21 teams. And remember, John Tennyson, James Ryall and Richie Power didn't make the Kilkenny team for the All-Ireland final. That shows you how strong the Kilkenny panel is.
"So basically they are an up and coming team, and it's from now on that you'll see the best of them. They're very skilful and strong, play a fast brand of hurling, and use the ball well, always running into space, and looking for the loose man."
Even without Shefflin, and after losing Fitzpatrick early on, Ballyhale still had an impressive semi-final win over James Stephens, the 2005 All-Ireland champions. With an average age of around 24 Ballyhale are still the team of the moment in Kilkenny.
"Well, if we'd Henry and Cha on Sunday, I'd be very confident," adds Aylward, "and would be quite confident for the rest of the club championship. But now, without those, things have changed. I'm still hopeful we can pull it off on Sunday, but I'm certainly not looking beyond that."
There is still one Shefflin to look out for, with Paul, younger brother of Henry, playing at corner back, and wing forward Eamonn Fitzpatrick is a cousin of James. The two Aylwards, Bob and Mark, are also nephews of the manager, while another wing forward, Brendan Costelloe, is a first cousin of the Fennelly brothers Michael and Colin.
"Sure that's what you'd expect in a small country place like Ballyhale? It's the same in places like Portumna and that. And I'd say if we pull it off on Sunday it will be one of the greatest ever victories for the Shamrocks. To win without those two, but also without Keith Nolan, who hasn't been talked about at all, but is out with a shoulder injury, and has been a tremendous wing back for us the last two or three years, a Kilkenny minor and under-21.
"But the hunger is still there, and there's also that motivation factor there among the other players to do it without the two lads, and for them. Cha is based up in Dublin, but Henry is down with us every night, shouting them on, and is a big help to me. He'll be there on the sideline on Sunday, and don't be surprised to see him hitting balls with the crutch."
