A hardworking Tipperary team fighting for everything on offer is 'the minimum'

What a difference a year makes.

Twelve months previously, a downbeat Tipperary manager Liam Cahill had stood in front of the assembled media to explain his team’s departure from the Munster Championship, the defeat by Clare meaning they had concluded the campaign without a single win to their name.

On Sunday, his media duties were a lot more pleasurable, the nine-points victory over Waterford confirming their progression to the All-Ireland series at least, and possibly a Munster final, depending on the results from next Sunday’s final round of games between Cork and Waterford, and Limerick v. Clare.

“There have been big questions asked of everybody here,” he stated.

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“Hurling is a religion here in Tipperary, it’s so important to everybody and we, management, coaches, everybody involved, just didn’t represent that jersey correctly last year.

“And that weighed very heavily on us over the winter. We took unbelievable inspiration from our minors in particular last year, the way they ground out the All-Ireland success in Nowlan Park.

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“And for me, leaving Nowlan Park, I was so happy to be a Tipperary man. I was also embarrassed that our flagship team didn’t follow that and set that trend, that we had to rely on a group of younger players in Tipperary to show us the Tipperary way.

"My players acknowledged that, we made the necessary adjustments to the personnel in the dressing room, and they’ve gone after everything they’ve been asked. They backed me to the hilt in what I’ve had to do, the people supporting them, I’ve asked more of them, and they’ve come to the table, and everybody has worked extremely hard.

“I’m just happy now we’re one of the three (teams) out of Munster, and it opens up our season to go into the All-Ireland series and see where it takes us.

“There are big standards here in Tipperary, always have been, and when you don’t adhere to them there are consequences. Yes, we’re in a transition period here in Tipperary and we’re rebuilding, but we won’t be able to play that card forever.

“And I’ll be the first to admit that. There will come a stage when I’ll be standing in front of you, please God, and saying right lads, the transition is over, it’s time to deliver now.

“When that day comes, I’ll be the first to acknowledge it and the fellows down the corridor (the players) will be the first to acknowledge it as well.

“There are little gains, little green shoots coming all the time. We know now that there is an adherence to the jersey that has to be applied every day, and the Tipperary public will have no problem whosoever once they see a hardworking Tipperary team fighting for everything on offer. That’s the minimum.

“We’re far from the finished article but we’re getting there, and we’re going to continue to stay working hard and we’re enjoying it.

“Our supporters are back again and they love what they see and we’ll keeping fuelling that as long as we can, and please God success will follow in time.

"Great credit to the players. They’ve really stuck with me, they’ve really supported me and I’m very fortunate to have the responsibility of looking after such a group of players”.