GAA:BETWEEN THEM they've made 115 championship appearances and set all-time hurling records, but that's not the only reason Eoin Kelly and Brendan Cummins will probably be the first two names onto the Tipperary team sheet for Sunday's Munster final against Waterford.
One man’s job is to score goals, and the other man’s job is to stop them, and there aren’t many better qualified than Kelly and Cummins. Kelly has already scored goals in Tipperary’s two games to date, against Cork and Clare, to increase his championship scoring tally to 19 goals and 336 points – which is also Tipperary’s all-time scoring record.
Lar Corbett may have scored more goals – his 21st strike, against Clare, taking him one clear of Nicky English on the Tipperary all-time list – but as Kelly points out, goals are more about team effort, and that’s Tipperary’s primary focus going into Sunday’s showdown at Páirc Uí Chaoimh
“It’s the same with any team,” says Kelly. “Get the ball into the danger zone as much as you can, as quick as you can, and you’ll get the result from it. Luckily we’ve lads with pace in the half-forward line, like Séamus Callanan, Patrick Maher, and they’ll get early ball to the full-forward line. That’s how goals are scored.
“You can talk about the full forwards, but it’s also the half backs, and midfielders, whose job is to get the ball in. So it’s an all-around team effort. But if we keep scoring the few goals that we’re getting we won’t be complaining.”
The superb form of Callanan and Maher has certainly helped contribute to Tipperary’s scoring rate (4-19 against Clare, and 3-22 against Cork), but Kelly admits there is still some concern about the number of scores Tipperary are conceding (1-19 against Clare, and 0-23 against Cork).
“It’s something we’re working on,” says Kelly. “The day against Cork, if they had hit the two or three goals they missed, we wouldn’t have beaten them. Against Clare I suppose we were surprised with the start they got, but then the positive thing was the way we reacted to it. We kept our cool, kept calm and got the scores. But going into Munster finals, and beyond, you can’t be letting the teams get that far ahead of you.
“But it was encouraging that we drove on from there, racking up 4-17 from play, that’s good scoring. As long as we’re winning the games that’s the main thing.
“But there are definitely things to work on, and that’s probably good from the management’s point of view because it definitely keeps us humble. So I suppose it’s a good situation to be inl.”
It took a late, late goal from John Mullane to keep alive Waterford’s chances of defending their Munster title, and Cummins – whose 64 championship appearances, across 18 years, is also a Tipperary all-time record – will be keenly aware of Waterford’s own scoring threat. Kelly also points to his namesake on the Waterford team as potential match winners, particularly in a close game.
“Eoin Kelly and Séamus Prendergast were subs they brought on the last day, so they have experienced players too. If we come to the Munster final and perform and if Waterford come and perform I think all the neutrals will be happy because both of us have forwards that can score. It should make for a great final.”
Although they have a combined age of 65, Kelly and Cummins also have the same respect for manager Declan Ryan as the younger players: “Well the younger lads had dealt with Declan Ryan when he was minor manager,” says Kelly.
“But what a lot of people don’t understand is that you’re there January, February, March, and basically you’re with Cian O’Neill, the physical trainer, doing the gym work and all that. Then you come into April and you’re getting more ready for championship time, and Tommy Dunne comes more into it, as the coach. Declan’s job as manager is to delegate all that out. Sometimes, the easiest job can be a manager, once you delegate out all your jobs like that. So Declan has the respect of all.”
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THE Tipperary team to face Waterford next Sunday shows one change from the side that defeated Clare in the Munster semi-final, with Paddy Stapleton coming in for David Young.
Last year’s Young Hurler of the Year Brendan Maher is expected to be named amongst the subs as he continues his recovery from a broken ankle.
TIPPERARY(SHC v Waterford): B Cummins; P Stapleton, P Curran, M Cahill; J O'Keeffe, C O'Mahony, P Maher; G Ryan, S McGrath; S Callanan, N McGrath, P Maher; E Kelly, J O'Brien, L Corbett.
