All-Ireland minor hurling success a real tonic for Tipperary hurling

Offaly secured a famous All-Ireland victory 40 years ago with a late goal.
Four decades after Seamus Darby’s heroics against Kerry in the senior football final, The Faithful County were involved in an equally dramatic conclusion to an All-Ireland final last Sunday. However, this time it was they who were on the receiving end of a late sucker punch, with a goal from Tipperary’s Paddy McCormack deep into additional time settling an absorbing Electric Ireland All-Ireland minor hurling championship final in sensational style.
The contrast in emotions at the final whistle couldn’t have been more stark. The Tipp players, management, backroom team and supporters celebrated their great escape in boisterous fashion. But you would have needed a heart of stone not to have felt sorry for the crestfallen, absolutely gutted Offaly players who had given everything, and then some, only to have a historic victory snatched from their grasp.
In some respects Offaly were like someone who had written a lengthy essay online but forgot to press the save button, and lost all of their hard work.
The Offaly team had played with more conviction than Tipp for most of the game and led for much of the way in an exciting tussle, played out in front of a packed UPMC Nowlan Park, which had an official attendance of 20,214 shoehorned into the Kilkenny venue.
But, of course, it’s never over ‘till it’s over. As they showed in the Munster final against Clare and the All-Ireland semi-final against Galway, not to mention the opening round of the Munster championship against Waterford, when they were six points in arrears at one stage, this Tipp team simply never knows when it’s beaten.
With some Offaly players succumbing to cramp, as the strain of their Herculean efforts took its toll, Tipp moved up a gear in the crucial closing stages, even after they had been reduced to fourteen players.

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Despite having Damien Corbett dismissed by Galway referee Shane Hynes for throwing his hurley at Offaly’s Cathal Robinson in the 54th minute, as he bore down on goal, Tipp outscored their opponents by 1-5 to 0-2 from there until the final whistle.
There might have been an element of daylight robbery, or the sense of a victory that was snatched, to Tipperary’s success. But there can be no denying the merits of that express train-like finish, their relentless pursuit of what appeared to be a lost cause or Paddy McCormack’s opportunism to pounce for the winning score, as well as Paddy Phelan’s perfectly lofted free to create the opportunity for the goal.
As the minutes and seconds ticked away, Tipp’s performance during the finale was controlled and measured. Even if they hadn’t managed to eke out that dramatic victory, they were still a credit to manager James Woodlock and his backroom team, their clubs, their county, their families and themselves throughout the campaign.
Having won all six of their championship matches, they have proven themselves worthy champions.
Not long after the Irish Press Cup had been presented to captain Sam O’Farrell in front of the jubilant supporters, the strains of the Tipperary anthem Slievenamon rang out around Nowlan Park. It’s not often that happens in Kilkenny.
Tipp’s under 20s were beaten in the Munster final and it was an even more forgettable season for the county seniors, who were beaten in all four of their games in the province.

This minor success, therefore, has supplied a timely boost and provided a silver lining to the cloud that had enveloped Tipperary hurling this year.