Hat-tricks are just for record books

Seán Moran talks to Liam Fennelly, whose three-in-a-row hope was ended 20 years ago by Wexford, about the nature of the task facing his county

Although it won't be a focus in the county, Kilkenny stand one match away from a first All-Ireland hurling three-in-a-row in 91 years. The county has never been this close in the intervening years with all the third-year defeats taking place in Leinster.

Under the old system that would have been the county's fate this year, but the current team have bounced back after losing to Wexford and completed an arduous route through the qualifiers.

Twenty years ago Liam Fennelly was part of a team whose three-in-a-row prospects were derailed by Wexford. Twice captain of All-Ireland winning sides, he recalls the circumstances of that defeat and its echoes this year.

"It wasn't exhaustion, probably more complacency and maybe a bit of fatigue, but more mental than physical. The routine's the same and it gets boring. You haven't the same bite, and then the day comes when you can't come up with the goods. Once beaten you realise there are no easy short cuts.

"We had a few injuries. Paddy Prendergast had broken a leg and Wexford beat us in a hard championship match. It's difficult to put your finger on what went wrong, because we weren't complacent - in those days there was no taking Wexford for granted."

Whereas there was less competition in depth in previous decades, the downside was that there was no qualifier system to allow former Kilkenny teams survive and learn from the jolt of a defeat.

"The qualifier system really suits the counties used to winning. You can see it this year with Kilkenny already in the final and Cork with a good chance of joining them. Maybe if we had the chance to go back at it again possibly we could have won a third.

"This team is different though. Brian Cody turned over a lot of players in the last three years. We won two All-Irelands, in 1982 and '83, using only 16 players in two years. But you'd only two games in the provincial championship and some years no semi-final."

After Sunday's dramatic win over Waterford Kilkenny are into a sixth final in seven years. History will record this as one of the county's great eras. Fennelly believes the current management deserves much of the credit.

"In fairness Brian Cody has an awful lot to do with it. He leaves nothing to chance and if you're not training well, you're not picked. That never happened in the old days. If you don't give it 40 minutes in training, he's made it very clear you'll lose out to players who do. It mightn't always be popular but look at his record."

The bigger picture is equally comforting with the minors also on the verge of a third successive title. And the under-21s are on course to give the county a chance of retaining its clean sweep last year. Fennelly was closely involved with the establishment of the county's elite coaching system and acknowledges the downstream impact.

"Hurling always survived in Kilkenny because the talent was there. But now with the development squads we're actually nurturing it and that's made a big difference. It helps there's effectively no such thing as football so there's no cross-reference, but there are soccer and rugby clubs.

"It doesn't really matter because when someone's good at one sport they tend to be good at them all, but in Kilkenny they're always going to pick hurling.

"The development squads started four years ago and what they've meant is the last 24 on the minor panel are the best 24 in the county. Everyone gets a fair chance now."

On the subject of the fabled three-in-a-row he is dismissive, pointing out that each season has its own dynamic and that longer-term implications play little role in its unfolding. "It wouldn't even enter your mind, just as I'm fairly sure it doesn't affect this team. You focus on the championship and the year in question. The three-in-a-row is something that happens in the record books."