John Allen Mostly HurlingDublin was the place to be last weekend if you wanted to see last year's All-Ireland finalists and two pretenders to the throne. Well, on current form neither Wexford nor Dublin are pretenders. They are both well down the pecking order.
Have Dublin made any progress in the past 12 months? I saw them play last season's Division Two league final against Kerry. It was like a junior game compared to the Kilkenny-Limerick game directly after.
This year they have shown glimpses of improvement but there is still a large gulf between them and the top hurling counties. I know there is a huge amount of work being invested in Dublin hurling, I know they won the Leinster minor title last Sunday, I know they are in the under-21 provincial final as well, but I also know this doesn't guarantee success at senior level.
There were probably only three Dublin players who would make the Kilkenny panel. Would Ronan Fallon, who had three different opponents and who was excellent in the first half last Saturday, displace Brian Hogan as the Cats' first-choice centre back, with John Tennyson waiting on the wings? Would David Curtin replace Henry Shefflin as the Cats' free-taker? Would Stephen Hiney take possession of the number three shirt? It would be hard to see any of that Dublin team making Kilkenny's first 15.
But they are not without hope of improving in the medium term. They will have to be patient and build slowly and hope too many players don't desert the ship for football.
There were five goals between Kilkenny and Wexford in the Leinster final and a point less than five goals between Cork and Dublin in the qualifier. There was a point between Dublin and Wexford in the Leinster championship semi-final. These results, I suggest, are a realistic reflection of the difference in standard.
Wexford were lucky to get off with only a five-goal beating. It could easily have been seven or eight. They just hadn't got any answers when Kilkenny moved the ball at pace. Shefflin and Martin Comerford dictated the game from the beginning. They scored 10 points from play between them. Remember, Wexford only scored seven points in total over the 75 minutes.
Yet I think we haven't seen Kilkenny's best starting 15 on the field yet. While I wouldn't attempt to advise Brian Cody I do think he won't have been satisfied with some of his players' performances last week. Can he afford the luxury of keeping James McGarry, John Tennyson, James Ryall and Richie Power, and others, on the subs bench? If he can, well, Henry might as well be getting his acceptance ready for the first Sunday in September.
Cork weren't overly impressive either. This was more like a league game. It never rose above mediocre. The most pleasing aspect from a Rebel perspective was the form of Joe Deane. His touch was excellent, as was his point scoring. New boy Kevin Hartnett has his name firmly etched on the team list at this stage after two very impressive championship starts. The problem might be he will have to be played out of position if all the regulars are available. After the two remaining qualifier games Gerald McCarthy might have a better idea of his best 15.
Well it's off to Thurles again this Sunday. It's good to see a different pairing contesting the second most important competition in the hurling calendar. Waterford and Limerick is a difficult game to analyse because in Limerick's case, we haven't seen much of them on the big occasions over the past number of years, until this year.
We've seen a never-say-die attitude transcending their play over those three games against Tipperary that could be very important on Sunday if the game is tight coming towards the end.
These are really evenly matched teams. Limerick's backs have been very tight as a unit. The full-back line has been particularly impressive. Brian Geary can also be quite pleased with his contribution to last month's epic. Mark Foley was mighty the last day out also.
Crucial to Limerick's chance will be the performance of the midfielders. There were lots of changes there over the three games. I'm not sure if they've got the combination right yet.
Ollie Moran has been consistency personified and thoroughly deserves his player of the month awards. All of the other forwards, though, have only played in fits and starts. I was very impressed with Mike O'Brien's wholehearted contribution the last day out. He was a colossus in extra-time. Kevin Tobin was another to impress coming off the bench the second day and starting the last day.
What of Waterford? They scored five goals against a depleted Cork side. They also conceded three goals and 18 points. Their full-back line was only average, as was their midfield. Their more established players, though, all played well.
However, mentally this was a difficult game to prepare for. They didn't know what Cork team they were playing against until late Saturday night. There was the added pressure of knowing that anything less than a comprehensive victory against a diminished Cork side would indicate weakness.
Who will win? Much might depend on the quality and quantity of training done by Limerick over the past fortnight. As in music, the pauses might be as important as the notes. Rest will have been of the essence. They need to be fresh. They are fit enough but are they good enough to defeat the Déise?
I think Waterford's forwards are physically stronger, slicker and more experienced than Limerick. Their midfield should win the middle of the field battle. Ollie Moran won't score as much off Ken McGrath as he did in the Tipp games and, as often happens in finals, the contest between the lesser-known players can be what decides the game. I think Waterford's lesser lights might shine brighter on this occasion.
