Tipperary hurlers will need to be at their best to get the better of Galway

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On a day of thunder and lightning, the Premier County breathed fire and brimstone at O’Connor Park, Tullamore. Hapless Offaly got in the way of redemption-seeking Tipperary and the result was a mismatch of historic proportions.

No use to either side, was a common enough remark from those exiting the arena afterwards. Certainly, it was no fun for Offaly being eviscerated like that. Tipperary, by contrast, will take encouragement from such an energetic bounce-back from the Waterford game, while also acknowledging the poverty of the opposition.

Start as you intend to go on is a useful motto approaching any game and Tipperary certainly hit the ground running in this one. When Mark Kehoe flashed in the opening goal in the sixth minute the scoreboard read 1-5 to nil.

The pattern was already set. Tipperary, high on energy and running, were already looking the part. The groundwork was being laid around midfield, where Tynan and Stakelum were two of the busiest work bees. Behind them Ronan and Bryan O’Mara were mopping up and then the forwards were moving with menace.

The scores just continued to roll at breakneck speed. No time for note-taking, just tick the scorers or you missed the action. Huge credit for the second goal goes to Tynan who turned over possession and got the little flick away to the unmarked Callanan. The Offaly defence absent, Seamie moved goalwards before flashing the shot under goalie Corcoran.

Forde pounced for the third major, nipping in to collect a breaking ball and clinically finishing. Earlier Seamus Kennedy was denied by a fine save from the Offaly number one. It was that type of relentless bombardment of the Offaly posts. The hosts were out of their depth, getting turned over on short play and unable to beat the sweeping of Ronan Maher on the long deliveries.

Just before the break Offaly got some relief when they were awarded a penalty for Dan McCormack’s slap on the attacker soloing through. Should it have been a black card and penalty? Actually, yes it should. It was a goalscoring chance inside the D and McCormack’s foul could be labelled striking with the hurley. All of which fits requirements in the cynical foul rule.

That said, it was a penalty that probably wouldn’t have been awarded in other championship games where this rule is regularly ignored.

However, the problem for the referee here is that in the second half Jake Morris was high-tackled to the ground in the exact same spot and there was only an ordinary free given. Such inconsistency is unacceptable but is no surprise to Tipp fans based on past evidence of this official.

Incidentally, the failure of the referee to stop play for a serious-looking injury to Eoghan Cahill in the second half sparked understandable Offaly fury. He may not have been interfering with play over near the sideline but it was disrespectful and left Offaly a man short for a spell on a day when they had more than their share of difficulties.

The gap was a massive twenty-one points at half-time, though Offaly made some inroads on resuming. Two minutes after the restart we conceded a bad goal when allowing Charlie Mitchell to collect and whip past Shelly. On the three-quarters mark we conceded a third major, this time from a Cillian Kiely free. Leaking three goals in such a one-sided affair reflects poorly on the defence. Issues at that end haven’t gone away, you know.

Late in the game, as the rain lashed down, the lightning flashed and the thunder rolled, we rounded off the rout with further goals. Mark Kehoe completed his hat-trick heroics, Jason Forde volleyed the classiest score of the lot and John McGrath played a major role as creator and then finisher of the final greenback.

As a game it was all very leisurely, with space and time in abundance. The positives for Tipperary were obvious. The energy they brought to the game just totally swamped Offaly. You constantly had players running off the shoulder, ready for the pass, and chasing everything that moved. The touch was sharp, the shooting mostly economical.

The scoring returns highlight some of the individual inputs, such as Mark Kehoe on 3-3, Jason Forde on 2-11 (2-4 from play), Jake Morris on 0-7, Conor Stakelum on 0-6 and Alan Tynan on 0-3. Such an array of firepower was hugely impressive.

Forde and Morris are crucial to that attack and John McGrath’s input has surely played him back into the frame for selection this weekend. I suspect Alan Tynan and Conor Stakelum are players who really play to the Cahill recipe, high on athleticism and application but also with a nose for the posts.

The defence had some problems near goal, where we continue to lack the touch-tightness needed to close down chances. Michael Breen did very well foraging outfield, getting onto breaks and the like, but closer to goal is less assured. Craig Morgan’s return was something of a welcome surprise and let’s hope the latest injury is minor.

Eoghan Connolly is growing into the role and I love the expansive game of Bryan O’Mara, breaking from defence, setting up attacks and even hitting the target himself.

Johnny Ryan again showed his usefulness when introduced, and overall there’s a lot to admire, while not glossing over the fact that we conceded 3-18 to utterly outclassed opponents.

Galway will be an entirely different proposition this weekend. Coming from the deep disappointment of their failure to hold out against Kilkenny in the Leinster final, they’ll be on a mission of atonement and will be encouraged by their past record against Tipperary.

While historically our record against the Tribesmen is strong – played 31, won 22 and lost 9 - in recent decades it’s been very even between the counties. In fact, since 2000 we’ve shared out ten meetings, five-apiece. Furthermore, Galway have won the last two clashes with Tipperary in 2020 and 2017.

Just how tight it’s been between the counties is perhaps best gauged from the fact that five of the last ten meetings were won by a single point, and a further three were two-point games.

All of which tees up this game as a potential cliff-hanger. The bookies give Tipperary a very marginal edge, 8/11 versus 11/8 for Galway; to me it’s a 50/50 game, with Galway’s inconsistency a major variable.

We might best describe Galway by borrowing from Churchill’s comment on Russia’s potential role in World War 2: “It is a riddle, wrapped up in a mystery inside an enigma”. Translated, we haven’t a clue what they’ll bring to the party this weekend.
Even in the Leinster final there were patches of brilliance, but no consistency. They see-sawed in and out of the game and were rescued this time by the display of Conor Whelan, who is a formidable threat.

They’re a physically imposing side with a lot of skill on board so we’ll need to be at our best to cope. It’s a big game that will either end our season or send it soaring upwards to new levels of expectation ahead of a semi-final showdown with Limerick.

Finally, an interesting correction to last week’s reference to Cork’s Denis Walsh. He was an unused sub on the football team in the 1990 final, togged off and wearing number 22. However, he didn’t get a medal. The rules at the time stipulated that only 21 panellists got medals. Daft or what? My thanks to Ed Donnelly for clearing up that one and as ever to the doyen of GAA statisticians, Seamus O’Doherty.