Honesty is the mark of McGrath

Keith Duggan profiles Ken McGrath, a Waterford legend who knows no pain in his selfless efforts to deliver the goods at county level Justin McCarthy on McGrath

It is the fearlessness that so often lets him down. He is not wild or foolhardy or anxious to earn himself a hard man's reputation. But Ken McGrath is all about honesty, and his dedication to that principle has taken him places that the cleverer or smaller-hearted just do not go.

Hurling takes McGrath where it takes him and he follows, accepting the blunt chop down on finger-tips, the messy pull across his shins, the unforgettable clatter of a 13-stone centre back transferring mass and momentum through his loose and unsuspecting frame. McGrath takes the hits because they are all just part of the grand pursuit, the eternal chase that defines hurling for Waterford.

He accepts the knocks and cuts and headaches because they are as meaningful and vital as his inherited feel for the game, the velvet touch that convinced the 1970s generation of his calibre.

Around Waterford, they now listen for bulletins and reports on the health of the Mount Sion man the way fishing villages scan the airwaves for storm warnings. Nurturing McGrath has become a precious business and bad luck seems to present itself ahead of all of Waterford's big days.

The fretful waiting game ahead of tomorrow's Munster hurling final was second nature to the Waterford masses. McGrath has been essentially mummified since his last outing against Cork, desperately trying to shake off the stubborn and painful consequences of an injury he picked up in a challenge game against Dublin over a month ago.

It left him unable to hurl and forced Waterford manager Justin McCarthy to leave McGrath on the bench for the beginning of that Munster semi-final against Cork, a game of seismic importance in terms of the short-term confidence and the longer-term future of both counties. As it was, he was sent in after 25 minutes and provided the grace note to a memorable afternoon for Waterford, clipping the point that left it at 1-16 to 1-15.

"You could see through that game that he wasn't fully comfortable, I think he even had to swing at the ball one-handed a couple of times," says Jim Greene, his manager at Mount Sion.

"But he still contributed a lot to the play and finished with a couple of scores. He is an immense player and it's just a pity he has been so unfortunate with injuries. And it is not that he is prone, it is just that he is absolutely and totally committed, which is also the reason why he is as good as he is. And there has been nothing deliberate about most of the injuries he suffered from opponents' points of view, it was just Ken being brave."

Greene has known McGrath since he wore nappies. The McGrath family are among the cognoscenti of the sport. Eoin, younger brother of Ken, makes his senior debut at corner-forward tomorrow and his two other siblings are also deeply talented players. The gift came from their father, Pat.

"Oh, an absolutely gifted player, he really was," enthuses McCarthy, a hurling folklorist as well as a tactician.

"Primarily a wing back, but you'd have played him anywhere. He just had a real natural gift for the game. And, funnily, his game was almost a blend of both Eoin's and Ken's. You can see his style in each of them. Ken has his first touch and the obvious athletic ability."

Greene hurled with Pat McGrath and still can't get over how the selectors allowed his friend finish his career without an All Star.

"If anyone ever should have gotten one, it was he. He was a really fine player who was consistently excellent for Waterford. It is beyond my understanding how he was overlooked. But it is no surprise that the young fellows are as good as they are. Like our own house, the McGraths are hurling mad. They live for the game and would talk about it morning, noon and night."

Ken McGrath was something of a prodigy around Mount Sion. At the age of 17 he made his senior debut for Waterford on a day of loss against Tipperary, 1-14 to 1-11. After that, he progressed under Gerald McCarthy, gradually coming into his own during Waterford's bittersweet summer of 1998, when they made it to an All-Ireland semi-final while missing out on Munster silverware and, in retrospect, a blessed opportunity to bring the McCarthy Cup to the south for the first time since 1959.

McGrath hurled relentlessly through the frustrating years that followed when Waterford fell just short and seemed to gently slide out of contention. He is now approaching his prime. "I think it was tough on Ken in the beginning," remembers Jim Greene. "He made it so young and he was always getting these little accolades, Young Hurler of the year, things like that. People knew about him, there was a lot of expectation, a sense that he was capable of anything. And at times, he seemed to be.

"I remember him starring in minor and under-21 county finals against Lismore in the same year. There was a time when he would have been involved in senior and under age, with minor and with the club. Playing with six teams. And then he would be criticised for not doing it. So, in a way, it might have been better if they had waited on him for a year or two but having said that, you just couldn't ignore the talent that he had. And in Waterford, 'tisn't many Ken McGrath's we get."

Disciples of the McGrath game see in his combination of bold directness and intuitive skill elements of the disappearing art of first-time hurling. "He is very good at first-time pulling and doubling on the ball but he is also an exceptionally quick striker for a big man," says former Wexford manager Liam Griffin. "He is also robust and athletic, he can strike it comfortably and accurately off either side and, most importantly, he creates a platform for others to play. When McGrath gets the ball, defences tend to swarm him and he is very good at laying off then."

In the National League's springtime games, McGrath began to post notable scores, taking frees and also contributing handsomely from the flow, delivering eight points against Clare and Galway respectively. He seems to rest easily on the fence between scorer and deliverer, happy to leave the more breathtaking scoring feats to Waterford's other creative jewel, Paul Flynn.

"Ken has a great vision," says Greene. "He is not one of those players with blinkers and is capable of playing the telling ball. But look back at his championship games and he regularly knocks up three or four points a game too. Nothing big, but significant at the same time."

McCarthy sees both aspects of his game developing simultaneously, but Griffin is convinced that Waterford need a very direct contribution from McGrath if Waterford are to claim their first Munster championship since 1963. "I think it is imperative that they get scores from him in the final. Because the value of McGrath is two-fold. Not only is he a marvellous player himself, I think he lifts the other players. He works in tandem with Paul Flynn, who is obviously very dynamic and, on his day, an incredible talent. But Paul is mercurial while Ken McGrath is more consistent and they will need that steadying influence in a match as big as this."

And tomorrow's match is vital to Waterford, regardless of alternative routes. "All that we are concentrating on is Sunday," says Greene. "If Waterford could actually win a competition of significance, it would be of enormous benefit to us. And I think the lack of time that has passed without a title and all the talk about that has been damaging to us. So this is a big day for Waterford hurling."

Although McGrath is famously mellow in temperament, he is also keenly aware of Waterford's hurling legacy. The decades of standing still have consumed many fine hurlers from the county and McGrath is no longer 17 and oblivious to the repetitions of history.

Disappointment has already visited at both club and county level and although they are coming up against the team that many argue is the most complete in the land, tomorrow is a chance. McGrath, though, has his opponents to fight and almost six weeks of inactivity.

"Of course there is that question there," McCarthy admits. "But we will know after five minutes how he is. And the thing about Ken is that he has a grá for the game. People forget that desire is one of the main things about this game. Ken has that in abundance.

"So I think that once he gets stuck in, he will forget about the injury. He will just play his normal game."

And the fearlessness will get him through.

'The thing about Ken is that he has a grá for the game. People forget that desire is one of the main things about this game. Ken has that in abundance.'