Shefflin and Canning shootout the icing on the cake

ALL-IRELAND CLUB HURLING SEMI-FINAL/PORTUMNA v BALLYHALE SHAMROCKS:A YEAR ago it was the football that electrified the box office at the semi-final stages of the AIB All-Ireland club championships. A roll call of former champions including the two most expected to make the final, roll of honour leaders Nemo Rangers and Crossmaglen Rangers, contemporary pretenders to the Cork club's throne. In the event both were beaten by St Vincent's from Dublin in two exciting matches.

This time the hurling championship has cut to the chase and brought together the one clash the game has been waiting for since before Christmas. Ballyhale Shamrocks and Portumna have won the past three All-Ireland titles but for added stardust they each have one of the game’s two outstanding forwards.

Since making his intercounty debut 10 years ago, Henry Shefflin has become rated as one of the game’s greatest exponents. His influence has been central to Kilkenny’s success this decade and when his club won the All-Ireland two years ago the control and direction Shefflin lent Ballyhale in the metronomic reliability of his free-taking and his use of the ball was central to that success.

If there is a pretender to King Henry’s throne the consensus would be he is Joe Canning. Three years ago Canning, then a Leaving Certificate student, scored 1-7 when Portumna defeated then champions James Stephens in the All-Ireland semi-final. Tomorrow he is back in Thurles where that match took place and also where in his first season in senior intercounty hurling last July he shot 2-12, 1-5 from play, in a one-man resistance against Cork.

Shefflin mightn’t be required to shoot out the lights every time he takes the field, as the team also includes James Fitzpatrick and the Reid brothers, as well as Colm Fennelly the latest shooting star from the famous family. But Canning plays under the constant expectation of producing scores.

“There will come a day when Joe Canning doesn’t score 1-12 or 2-12 in a match,” according to RTÉ’s Jim Carney, who has covered Galway hurling for the Tuam Herald for four decades, “and naturally Portumna and Galway people worry about that but so far it hasn’t happened. But it will some day.”

At All-Ireland club level, Canning’s output has been exceptional, 1-7 two years ago followed by 1-6 in the final against Newtownshandrum, 1-9 in last year’s semi-final win over Loughmore-Castleiney (when he was meant to be injured) and 0-10 in the final defeat of Birr – an average of over 10 points a match.

His totals are boosted by the fact of being Portumna’s free-taker but like in the case of Shefflin, that ability from the placed ball is a huge asset to his team and particularly in the heavy conditions of this time of year, the knowledge fouls will cost scores is a heavy burden for defences.

Although the Galway champions have just two titles, there are grounds for rating them as one of the best teams to have graced the championship.

The current Ballyhale side, with one victory, is in a similar situation except of course their predecessors were sufficiently successful to give Shamrocks the possibility of overtaking Birr at the top of the roll of honour if they go on to win next month’s final, as tomorrow’s winners will be favoured to do.

Since 1980 Galway clubs have created a remarkable record in the championship and now stand at the top of the county lists with Cork who also have five clubs that have won All-Irelands and a total of nine titles – meaning that nearly a third of the last 29 All-Irelands have crossed the Shannon. In more recent times the rate has stepped up so nearly half of the champions since 1993 – seven out of 16 – have been from the county.

“I think the quality of the county championship has helped in a number of those years,” says Carney, “but those clubs have also been blessed with extraordinary individuals. Castlegar had the Connollys and although they only won one All-Ireland they beat the great Blackrock side of the time (1980) on the way.

“Kiltormer had Conor Hayes, who had captained Galway to two All-Irelands, Sarsfields had Joe Cooney and Hopper McGrath, Athenry had Joe Rabbitte and Eugene Cloonan, and now Portumna have the Cannings and Damien Hayes.”

Ironically, this season Portumna’s comparatively untroubled run to the All-Ireland stage has helped the club keep the batteries charged. The county championship wasn’t as demanding as in the past and the Connacht championship has been abandoned.

This will be no harm given the amount of time the side has been on the road. Since 2003, they’ve won four out of six championships in Galway, a great record, but tomorrow will deliver the verdict on whether they will be counted a great team.