It’s will be a month or more till the draws
for the county senior hurling and football championship will take place, but
already those that have serious aspirations of lifting the Waterford News and
Star Cup or the Conway Cup already who the what county champions they will be
playing in the Munster Club Championships in October and November in 2013.
2012 was a year where something’s proved
very predicable while there were also some surprises along the way. Here I rate
how the clubs did in 2012 going on results in both the Championship and in the
County Leagues. (The hurling league was not finished in 2012. If it was, there
is the possibility that things could have finished ever so slightly different).
Senior
Hurling:
The fact that De La Salle came out above the
rest was hardly a surprise.
They were amongst the favourites from the
off and were expected to be even more dangerous than in previous years,
especially after former inter county hurler Jack Kennedy joined the club in
January.
The Grace-dieu club made changes to their
team in recent years. John Mullane played a lot of his hurling not in the
corner where most would expect him to play but out in the half forward line and
while he may not have featured as prominently on the score sheet as in other
years, he proved to be very effective further out the field.
Playing Eoin Madigan in the half back line
has worked a treat as has the moving of Stephen Daniels to wing back while Dean
Twomey and Eddie Barrett in the middle of the field were very effective as
well.
The Grace-dieu outfit have some work to do
if they are to be climbing the steps of the Hogan Stand on Saint Patrick’s Day.
They are not far off the mark, but we did see some frailties in their full back
line in 2012 and if they can put this to right over the winter and early in
2013, then there is no reason why they cannot put back to back titles together
for the first time.
Very little separated both Dungarvan and
Fourmilewater in 2012. The Old Boro outfit reached a first county final since
1951 this past year, beating Fourmilewater in the semi finals.
Both clubs will be hoping to go a step or
two further in 2013 and both have the ability to do so. Both will have learned
a lot from 2012 and in the previous two or three years.
Dungarvan have a very young team. The
average age of their starting team on county final day was around 21. The
average age of the Fourmilewater team would be that little bit older, meaning
that they have more players at their peak right now, or are just about to reach
it or maybe have just past it.
However, they have some good talent to bring
forward. The name of Jamie Barron is on the lips of many in the past year or
two. In 2013 and beyond look out for the name of Conor Gleeson who promises to
be an exciting talent. They also have some other good players coming through
that won Minor, Under 21 and junior finals with the Ballymacarbry based outfit
in 2012.
Dungarvan have at this point possibly all of
the best of their underage players in their senior set up with the exception of
Patrick Curran who many believe to be the best of the Curran Brothers. He will
make the break through in the next year or two and when he does he will further
strengthen the Old Boro.
It may come as a surprise to most that in
2012, Mount Sion are my fourth placed rated team.
They did not have the best of starts to the
championship in 2012 loosing all three of their opening games which had people
predicting a relegation battle for the Monastery Men but they came good at the
right time recording two wins in their last two games in the league section of
the championship to secure a place in the last eight of the competition where
they played and beat an fancied Ballygunner side at Walsh Park. They also had a
reasonable campaign in the County Senior Hurling League. Like many other clubs
in Waterford within their team they have a nice sprinkling of experience and of
youth, and if they can keep the panel together for a few more years and maybe
add to it, we could see them back challenging to add to their record haul of
County Senior Hurling Trophy’s.
Lismore are my fifth place team in 2012.
They had a reasonable start to the championship and looked at one stage if they
were going to top group one of the league with some ease. However, results fell
away in the latter stages of the league section of the championship, but they
did enough to secure a place in the last eight where they played De La Salle.
Against the eventual county champions they
were minus four players from the starting team earlier in the year, and were
given little or no chance of securing any kind of a result, with the loss of
Maurice Shanahan through suspension coming as a massive blow.
However, the Heritage Town side put in a
performance like we have not seen in a number of years from any side with Dan
Shanahan and Ray Barry particularly impressive and in the end it took a late
point from the city side to secure their place in the semi finals of the
championship after sixty plus minutes of hurling.
In 2011 Ballygunner won the county
championship and were unlucky not to have gone further than they did while
representing the county in the provincial championship. They have built a team
around the teams that won minor and under 21 championships in recent years.
However, throughout 2012 they were hampered
with Injuries and with players having to leave the country at different times
over the year.
They will be disappointed with their senior
hurling championship campaign in 2012, but will take comfort that they secured
another under 21 championship. They will be back again in 2013 and wont be far
off the mark.
Ballyduff Upper’s seventh placed grading
will possibly come as a surprise to most. They did struggle somewhat in the
championship this year, but with a little bit of luck they could have finished
considerably higher up with table than they actually did. They retained their
senior status for 2013 with a relegation play off win over Dunhill, and in the
County Senior Hurling league, they were not very far off the mark where they
reached a semi final which unfortunately was not played.
Abbeyside in 2012 were the draw specialist.
Three of their five games in the league section of the championship finished in
draws and they and many others will be wondering what if they had scored one
more point in these three games, how would their year have finished. They
faired slightly better in the league, winning two of their five games. The loss
of players owing to work problems have hampered them somewhat in 2012, but for
the year ahead if they can put out to near as full strength team as possible in
each game, they wont be far off the mark.
Passage is a side that are a little puzzling
at times. They struggled somewhat after coming up from Intermediate for a few
years but looked to be a side moving in the right direction having reached the
semi finals of the championship in recent years. They may depend on their big
guns more than other clubs playing in the senior championship and it showed in
2012 as both Noel Connors and Eoin Kelly missed out on playing important games
for the club. Had they been in a position to field a full strength side would
things have been different? We will never know now.
Roanmore since coming up from the
Intermediate grade have managed to fight off relegation each year which in
itself is an achievement, but now is the time for them to stand up and be
counted. Three years after coming up to Senior Dungarvan contested a county
senior hurling final. Will Roanmore do it in 2013? Personally, I can’t see it
happening, and if they were to fight off relegation again in 2013 it will be seen
as an achievement for most. However, if the draws for the championship were to
prove kind to them, then they could well reach the last eight of the
competition, but for this to happen they will depend a lot on Gavin O’Brien and
you have to wonder is it fair to put so much pressure on a young players
shoulders to see them through.
In 2012, Tallow were very disappointing.
They reached the county final in 2011 where they were well beaten by
Ballygunner. They were moving in the right direction but in 2012 appeared to
move backwards a lot. Questions will have to be asked of the management team
over the course of 2012. Some of their placing of the team was very interesting
to say the least, with players often associated with playing in defence and
doing so successfully asked to play further out the field. The ability of
Thomas Ryan is unquestionable. In some of their games, he struggled for some
reason to get into the games, and you have to wonder why he was not asked to
take a few frees to build up his confidence. Losses through injury, to Aidan
Kearney in particular also had an effect on the team. If they manage to turn
things around in 2013, there is no reason why they can’t be ranked much higher
this time next year as there is plenty of ability to be found along the banks
of the Bride.
That Dunhill finish as the lowest ranked
team is hardly a surprise. They did manage to beat Mount Sion in one game and
went close in a number of others, but they were a side that were always going
to struggle. They lost a number of players that helped them win the
Intermediate Championship twelve months ago through emigration and retirements.
They also depended a lot on Eamon Murphy and Shane Casey at times and when
clubs kept a close eye and the duo, scores were hard to come by.
The number of clubs that struggle after
coming up from intermediate is alarming. In recent years we have seen too many
clubs who come up drop down at the first time of asking, and if they do manage
to avoid the drop, then it is only just. Maybe now is the time for clubs and
those involved in the G.A.A. at different levels to seriously consider where we
are at. A cull in numbers contesting the senior hurling championship is a must.
Bringing the Intermediate and Junior championships to be run on an all county
basis with possibly an Intermediate and Junior Premier championship has to be
considered seriously. Until we do we will be asking ourselves all sorts of
questions for years to come.
Senior Hurling Ranking 2012 (based on
Championship and League result):
1: De
La Salle
=2: Dungarvan
=2: Fourmilewater
4: Mount
Sion
5: Lismore
6: Ballygunner
7: Ballyduff
Upper
8: Abbeyside
9: Passage
10: Roanmore
11: Tallow
12: Dunhill
Senior
Football:
There was a change to the format in the
senior football championship in 2012. The three groups of four or five used in
recent years was dispensed with and instead there were two groups of six.
While there was a change of format in the
championship, the actual standard of play was very poor overall. The big three
once again reached the semi finals and you have to wonder with the present
system how long more will this remain to happen.
2012 saw nothing separate Stradbally and The
Nire. In the league stages the Nire finished with five wins from five games,
while Stradbally finished with four wins from their five games.
The question was asked going into 2012 how
would Stradbally fair. There is a perception that they are an aging team, but
in truth, because so many of the team came together from a very young age, they
are not as old a team as most say they are and could be around for some few
years to come.
There were also people wondering how they
would do without Sean Ahearne leading them from the sideline. Under Pat Curran
we saw how they would do. At the back very little changed. They remained as
hard as ever to break down, while in attack we saw a little more of them than
we have in recent years and they managed to kick final scores that they could
only dream about in previous years.
In 2012, The Nire played the best brand of
football and many neutrals hoped that they would not only reach the county
final but to win it because the standard of football they played at times was
very good.
The fact that both sides reached the county
final was not a surprise. Neither was it a surprise that after sixty minutes of
football that the sides could not be separated and even after the replay, the
sides were still all square with both sides having lost key personal with
injuries during the course of the game and it needed a late David Grey point to
win the game for the Cove Men.
Battles between these two have become the
norm in recent years and heading into the future, I expect both to be there or
there about for some time to come.
One club moving in the right direction is
Kilrossanty and there is a line of thought that if the monopoly of the big
three is to be broken it is Kilrossanty that will do they. They have been lead
by John Kiely with the past few years and he is stetting his stall on the team.
They won the County Senior Football league in 2012. They have also won the
Phelan Cup in recent years and in 2013 will be looking to make a big impression
in the championship.
Ballinacourty are a side that you right off
at your pearl. They did not have the best of years in 2012 but they did do
enough to reach the county semi finals where with of luck could have beaten
Stradbally and they also reached the League final where they had to give second
best against Kilrossanty. They have unquestionable ability in their squad and if
they can get to field as near as many of their best players throughout 2013,
they will be not far off the mark.
Clashmore are another club moving in the
right direction and are closing in on the top three. They have some fine young
footballers most notably in Brian O’Halloran and Tadhg Bourke and some
experience in the likes of Sean Fleming, Cillian and Karl O’Keeffe, Kieran
Connery etc. Most people would love to see them make the break the dominance of
The Nire, Stradbally and Ballinacourty and they are not far from doing so.
An Rinn are one of the most consistent teams in the county in the last few years. Early in the championship they always seem to do well and reach the last eight fairly easily, but when it comes to the knockout stages, something seems to turn on them. 2013 is going to be a very big year for the club. Some of the players that helped An Gaeltacht to win the 2011 minor championship will be a year older and will be approaching their prime years. They also will be hosting the Comortas Peile which is a big even in the Gaeltacht areas across Ireland.
Ardmore are another club that manage to
reach the knockout stages of the championship each year with some ease, but
apart from qualifying for the county final a few years back now, have failed to
progress as far as they would have liked. They have some good footballers in
the Ardmore area, most notably the Prendergast brothers and the Hennessy brothers
and cousins. Will 2013 be the year that sees them advance further than in
recent years? It’s hard to see it, but some favourable draws and you never know
what could happen.
Between 1992 and 2001, Rathgormack appeared
in five county senior football finals, winning back to back finals in 1995 and
1996 and added a third in 1999. Since then however, as many of the players that
contested these finals called time on their careers at the top grade of
football in the county, their fortunes have somewhat changed. However, in
recent years, we have seen the wheel to turn once more and hopefully it will be
only a matter of time before it turns full circle. The winning of Under 14,
Under 16, Minor and Under 21 County Finals in recent years can only be good for
the club in the long term. They have some very good players coming through from
these teams and if they can all knit together, then it’s only a matter of time
before we see them vying for the Conway Cup once more.
For all too long now, Saint Saviours have
been keeping Gaelic Football alive in Waterford city. It looked as if De La
Salle would join them as a senior club for 2013 towards the end of this year
but it was not to be. The Ballybeg outfit have struggled somewhat in the league
in recent years, often finding them short of key players at different stages of
the year, but always seem to do well in the secondary competitions.
Brickeys are a side that have made little or
no impact since coming up from the Intermediate championship in 2006, but have
been doing enough to keep their place in the senior grade for the following
year which to seem is seen as success. They have some fine footballers, but it’s
hard to see them anywhere in the near future contesting the latter stages of
the championship, but they did win an Under 21 ‘B’ Championship this year which
might be the catalyst to pointing them in the direction that they would want to
be heading.
In 2012, so much was expected of Gaultier, but in the end they disappointed. There best result was a win in their last league game of the championship against Saint Saviours while in the senior football league things faired no better. They have some fine footballers in the Barony. Let’s hope that 2013 will be a much better year.
It might not be the most popular thing to
ask, but the question as to be asked. Was there a team in the Senior Football Championship
in recent years than Dungarvan in 2012?
For the past few years they had been there
or there about in the Intermediate Football Championship and when they won it
in 2011 against John Mitchells under the lights at Fraher Field, they were
worthy winners and many were hoping that with the talent they had in the team
that they could be as good in time as they were in the late 80’s and early 90’s
when they won three county finals in a row and were unlucky not to have won
even more. In 2012, all their eggs were put in one basket, their hurling one
and as a result Football in the Old Boro suffered. They were relegated at the
end of the championship which was no surprise, but its fair to say that
Dungarvan could well find themselves back up playing senior football again in
the very near future where hopefully the experience of this year will stand to
them and that they will retain their senior status for a much longer spell that
they just have experienced.
Senior Football Ranking 2012 (based on
Championship and League result):
=1: Stradbally
=1: The
Nire
3: Kilrossanty
4: Ballinacourty
5: Clashmore
6: An
Rinn
7: Ardmore
8: Rathgormack
9: Saint
Saviours
10: Brickeys
11: Gaultier
12: Dungarvan
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