Deise's Greatest

Ask someone to name Waterford’s best hurler of all time and you are sure to get a wide range of answers.

Many will go for one of the stars of recent years. The names of John Mullane, Paul Flynn, Ken McGrath and Tony Browne will feature prominently.

Press those you are asking to name someone other than the top three or four players of recent times and some more names will be mentioned, names such as Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh, Dan Shanahan, Stephen Molumphy, Fergal Hartley and Stephen Frampton.

Take those out of the room that were born pre-1980 and ask them the same question and some new names will come from their lips.

The men of the 1957-1963 era will get mentioned. Men like Frankie Walsh, the last man to lift the Liam McCarthy Cup in Croke Park, John Barron, Tom Cheasty, Austin Flynn, Phil Grimes, John Kiely and Mick Flannery, the hold of 25 county final winning medals (15 in senior hurling) will all be mentioned.

Before and after these greats wearing the Waterford shirt, others who are counted amongst Waterford’s greatest also come to mind. Men like John Galvin, Jim Greene and Pat McGrath in the 1970’s and 1980’s and before the men of 57-63 we had the likes of Erin’s Own Jim and Charlie Ware as well as Mount Sion’s John Keane who wore the white and blue for Waterford in the 1930’s and 1940’s.

To pick one over the other as Waterford’s greatest hurler would be difficult thing to do. Each decade brings a different type of player, and if a person was to try and get people to agree on one name, there is way that an agreement could be reached.

However, when it comes to the ladies game, things are a little easier, and there would not be too many arguments as to who is possibly Waterford’s greatest Camogie player.

Yes, down the years Waterford have had some fine players, but can many if any compare with Gaultier’s Trish Jackman in what she has achieved.

The recently turned twenty-one year old has all ready achieved so much in her carer, and while the playing career of a female competing at the top level of sport is often shorter than that of a man, but if Trish does not add to what she has already achieved, it would surely be considered a major surprize.

The Gaultier Club Player might be best known within the county and beyond for winning a fourth All-Ireland Poc Fada in the Cooley Mountains as recent as last Monday, this honour in fact is just one of many that she had achieved.

Last September she helped Waterford win the All-Ireland Junior Final after a number of near misses in the previous years, and with Waterford in the semi finals of this years Intermediate Championship later this month when they play Galway, If Waterford were not to make a return journey to G.A.A. Headquarters next month, many would be disappointed.

All-Star Awards, National League, Under 16 ‘B’ and Ashbourne Cup medals are also amongst Trish’s collection as are Kilmacud Crokes 7’s and an All-Ireland Feile Skills Title.

Trish Jackman competing in the All-Ireland Poc Fada competition for the seventh year in a row, winning it four times in a row, if we did not know it previously has surely confirmed herself to be Waterford’s greatest Camogie player of all time.