REACTION: Upperchurch Drombane coach McGrath happy to make it three from three in Croke Park!

Upperchurch Drombane coach James McGrath admitted he sensed history was coming as extra time loomed in Saturday’s All-Ireland Intermediate Hurling Championship final, with legs, belief and composure ultimately carrying the Mid Tipperary men over the line in Croke Park.

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Speaking after a dramatic decider, McGrath described a contest defined by fine margins, nerve-shredding moments and a growing confidence that the Tipperary champions would finish the job once the game went beyond normal time.

“It was a day of chances,” he reflected. “In fairness to Gavin Ryan, that was just a monster free. Ninety yards or whatever it was. Pressure. He was on the ground when he caught his breath and took an extra 20 or 30 seconds to compose himself.”

McGrath felt the momentum subtly shift as extra time approached.

“I felt it in the air,” he said. “Once it went to extra time, I thought we had legs on them. I thought we had a better bench and we got to run them. Even then, going ten points up, God almighty, it was a nervy finish, but thank God we got over the line.”

The performance itself raised eyebrows, with Upperchurch Drombane producing their most prolific display of the year on the biggest stage of all. McGrath was quick to dismiss any suggestion that it was the result of tactical overthinking.

“It wasn’t coaching, it wasn’t skill,” he said. “It was just finals. We have that mix of skill and talent, and that can go a long way.”

Fitness proved a decisive factor late on, with opponents visibly tiring in the closing stages of extra time while the Tipperary men continued to drive forward. McGrath explained that their conditioning is rooted more in intensity with the ball than endless running.

“We don’t actually do a massive amount of physical work,” he said. “We do a lot of hurling and we play a lot of ball. We don’t do mad running. What we do is hard. It’s hard-hitting, it’s tough, it’s very, very intense. We empty ourselves for 60 to 70 minutes every night and try to replicate games as much as possible.”

For McGrath personally, the final whistle marked the end of a long road filled with near misses. Having coached Toomevara teams that fell just short in big championship moments, Saturday’s triumph carried deep meaning.

“I was kind of in hard luck a few years,” he admitted. “I took Bennettsbridge to a county final, and we came up short. The junior finals with Toomevara hurt me as well, and I remember minor finals where we were beaten, too. Those near misses stay with you.”

As he soaked in the scenes on the pitch afterwards, a chance encounter added perspective to the moment.

“I met a good friend of mine, Frankie Flannery, going off the field, and he said to me, ‘You’re three from three in Croke Park,’” McGrath said, referencing his previous final-day successes with Milford Camogie.

“But look, there’s a very good management team here, and I’m very lucky to be involved with the lads. Some days you get over the line, other days you don’t. Thankfully, this one worked out.”

For Upperchurch Drombane, it worked out in the most emphatic way possible, crowned All-Ireland champions on hurling’s grandest stage, with a performance that will live long in Tipperary memory.

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