Ballina aiming for second successive Munster Final

GAA: AIB Munster Club Intermediate Football Championship Semi-Final Preview

By Thomas Conway

NA PIARSAIGH v BALLINA

Kilmallock

Sunday 27th November

Throw-in @ 1.00pm (E.T.)

Referee: Chris Maguire (Clare)

Alright, we know the story with Ballina, but what are Na Piarsaigh doing here?

The Limerick city club recently sunk Kilmallock to scoop their seventh Limerick senior hurling title, the latest triumph in what has been a truly glorious era of success for the club’s hurlers, despite subsequently falling to All-Ireland champions Ballygunner in the Munster senior hurling semi-final last Sunday.

However, Na Piarsaigh are a dual club. Situated in the heart of Limerick city, it has a sufficiently broad catchment area to be anything it wants to be. Its playing numbers far exceed that of any other Limerick club. There are probably as many natural footballers on the pitches of Caherdavin as there are hurlers. Hence the reason that Na Piarsaigh are also contesting this Munster intermediate football championship semi-final.

The fact that Na Piarsaigh landed a county intermediate football title, and subsequently went on to overcome Roanmore of Waterford in the Munster quarter-final, is definitive proof that football is not just a distraction within the club. They are treating this seriously, even if most of their focus remains devoted to hurling.

So, Ballina will have it all to do. The euphoria of their county final triumph has now faded. The sense of expectation behind this team is inescapable. Both players and supporters believe they are capable of securing provincial honours, and perhaps going further. And while manager Kevin Byrne stresses that preparations for this Munster semi-final have been running smoothly, he also admits that Ballina do have a few lingering injury concerns ahead of the clash in Kilmallock next Sunday.

“We do have a few injury concerns at the moment - Jack O’Mahoney and David Grace are struggling with hamstring injuries and one or two others are carrying minor knocks and other things,” Byrne revealed.

“So, that is a slight concern, but in general our preparations have been going well.

“I saw Na Piarsaigh play against Roanmore of Waterford and they are a strong, well-organised outfit. They play a nice brand of football, and they’re well able to move the ball through the hands, to transition quickly from defence to attack, so we’re expecting a big challenge from them. That’s what we’re preparing for.”

Ballina are riding on the crest of a wave at present. There is a feel-good atmosphere in the club, and the positive vibes have trickled out into the wider community. Everybody is talking about this team, in the pubs, in the schools, on the streets.

The Ballina boss is genuinely appreciative of the support which has been issued to this group of players, both from sponsors and from the wider community. The players themselves also know they are part of something special, and they’re doing their utmost to extend their 2022 journey and achieve further success, as Byrne emphasises.

“The club has always been behind us, from the very start, and the support has ramped up further since the county final,” he added.

“But the buy-in from the players in particular has been huge. We’re training three times a week, we’re doing yoga sessions, the players themselves are doing their own individual training in the gym. And we’re also lucky that a number of sponsors have come on board and really supported us, and that has allowed us to put a few additional resources in place for the players. But the enthusiasm and support from everybody - from club chairman Diarmuid McKeogh right down to the ordinary members - has been fantastic.”

Winter football is notoriously unpredictable. Weather conditions are invariably volatile, playing surfaces are often akin to an ice-rink. Notwithstanding those factors, Ballina will probably still enter this game as slight favourites. Their county final performance was exhilarating. Emulate it and they should prevail.

But Na Piarsaigh are proven winners. They will test the Tipp club in all sorts of ways, and they will care little about Ballina’s fairy-tale rise over the past two seasons. If it is to continue, Ballina will have to pull out all the stops. And on a bleak November day in the relatively confined surroundings of the Kilmallock pitch, that will not be easy.