A King not afraid to muck in with the best of them

KILKENNY'S HENRY SHEFFLIN: GAVIN CUMMISKEYon the many traits that make the wing forward the greatest hurler of his generation – not least his work ethic

THE GREATEST visited his ancestral home of Ennis this week. Yes, Muhammad Ali has Irish blood coursing through his veins, we learned.

Let us switch to hurling’s greatest; Christy Ring, we are reliably informed. On top of the scoring lists it is Kilkenny legend Eddie Keher, with 439 points in 50 championship matches. The more recently retired DJ Carey has nine All Star awards on the mantelpiece.

However, in Kilkenny there is only one King and his name is Henry. The Greatest is an accolade that can only be truly bestowed in retirement, unless of course you return from boxing oblivion to defeat a beast named George Foreman in Zaire as Muhammad Ali did in 1974.

For Henry Shefflin to cut free of Keher on the scoring list 15 points are required on Sunday. 1-12 will do. Even 2-9. Another All-Star would also see him equal Carey’s total.

That would not be enough to reel in young Joe Canning as this season’s sharp-shooter (Canning played an extra game), but it would eclipse Keher’s long standing record. Shefflin currently sits on 21-362 from 47 outings. In Kilkenny’s three championship games against Galway, Dublin and Waterford he has amassed 1-30 – 1-14 against Waterford alone to neuter Eoin Kelly’s expertise from dead balls.

He turns 30 in November and Sunday marks his ninth All-Ireland final. He has six Celtic Crosses.

A marquee forward for sure, it should be noted what really impresses is his work ethic.

Richie Hogan briefly filled in for a bloodied Shefflin in the semi-final and while destined for a fruitful career in his own right, when queried about the secrets of Kilkenny’s success the cousin of DJ Carey and the only under-21 on the panel pointed to the work without the sliotar Shefflin gets through.

In Abu Dhabi last March the Railway Cup was played out in 33 degrees heat at the Ghantoot Racing and Polo Club. Fortunate enough to be pitch-side for a game that so easily could have become an exhibition we witnessed Shefflin hunting Connacht hurlers with unbridled passion, his hurley slicing down on opposing sticks with such ferocity it left several defenders empty-handed.

We never expect much from him in interviews – that is just the Kilkenny way – but the Waterford performance felt like one of his best.

“I don’t know, it’s very hard to gauge because I wouldn’t be a great man for the clichés, but every day is different, you know?

“Some days you’ll work very, very hard and the breaks won’t go your way. Other days you won’t work as hard and the breaks will come your way.

“That day the ball just seemed to follow me around the place and the boys were throwing out great passes so it was just one of those days where things did go well, the ball seems to come to you.

“But saying that, I have had more enjoyable days where it has been rough and tumble and I haven’t scored that much, but I’ve worked hard for the team and created chances, and I think that’s what it’s all about. It’s a team game, I’m one of 30 on the panel and one of 15 on the team and you can only do what you can to help.

“You need to have 14 other lads with you helping you out as well, you know?”

We know, but really we don’t.

The expectations placed upon Kilkenny entered the stratosphere after last year’s All-Ireland final annihilation of Waterford. With fear a driving force, teams now set up to ensure this doesn’t happen to them.

“It’s very hard when you’re playing yourself to know if it’s us in decline or other teams are playing better.

“It’s very hard to judge. I don’t think we have set the world alight this year, proof is in the pudding when you compare ourselves to the way Tipperary have played.

“There has been a big difference because Tipperary have probably destroyed teams, to be fair. I know the scorelines didn’t reflect that because some of the teams came back at them and that’s natural enough too, but Tipp were never going to lose any of those matches.

“Tipp had those matches won, done and dusted, by half-time. We didn’t have any match done and dusted by half-time so, to be fair, I think Tipp are the team that are doing it this year.

“There’s one last day for one performance and you’d be hoping it would be a big performance.”

Maybe 3-6? 4-3 even! The King at his peak.

Henry Shefflin

Club:Ballyhale Shamrocks

Age: 29

Height: 6ft 2in

Weight:13st 10lb

Occupation:Bank of Ireland Finance

Honours: 6 All-Irelands, 10 Leinster, 5 NHL, 2 Fitzgibbon Cups, 1 All-Ireland club, 1 Under-21 All-Ireland, 3 railway Cups, 8 All-Star Awards.