Team Tipperary is coming together

Previously, a House of Pain, Nowlan Park has proven to be a happy hunting ground for Tipperary in recent years.

By Shane Brophy

Since 2022 there has been two All-Ireland Minor titles won there, while on Sunday, the seniors recorded their second successive league win over Kilkenny, to add to their 2023 success.

Tipperary were full value for the win, even if the challenge provided by Kilkenny was disappointing to say the least. It is hard to remember when a Kilkenny team that was so out of sorts, even allowing for the fact they were missing key players such as Huw Lawlor and Eoin Cody who cried off before the start.

Regardless of who is given a black and amber jersey, the least you expect from a Kilkenny team is grit and determination, but that was largely absent. When that is missing, it suggests a lack of unity within a squad and was further exacerbated by three red cards in the second half, two of which for David Blanchfield and Mikey Carey were stupid, lashing out in frustration. The second yellow card for Jordan Molloy was harsh in that he was attempting to hook Eoghan Connolly but caught him on the head with the follow-through but any contact with the head is being clamped down upon by the authorities.

It led to a surreal last twenty minutes when twelve man Kilkenny were up against a fourteen-man Tipperary for whom Alan Tynan was the first man sent off it that ten minutes of madness.

The Roscrea man was hard done by as it has been proven since that he didn’t connect with the head of Cian Kenny, but that was with the help of replay. Initially, from my view in the stand, as soon as the incident happened I feared Tynan was in trouble, and that is the lens you have to look at it through when understanding why referee Sean Stack issued the red card.

The likelihood is Tynan will have his red card rescinded but it will serve as a warning to him and indeed all players that if you commit to line-up a player for a shoulder, which was the intention, and you miss, you run the risk of getting a red card, particularly with challenges around the head area.

The conclusion to the game brought back memories of last years All-Ireland Minor final when Tipperary played with two men less against Kilkenny, and for the ten minute period after the red cards here, much like Kilkenny’s minors, Tipperary’s seniors struggled to take advantage of it.

Defensively, they didn’t look like conceding a goal but their indiscipline allowed Kilkenny to stay in touch through the free-taking of TJ Reid who contributed eleven points from placed balls, added to two 65s.

Tipp only scored once through a Darragh McCarthy free in that period, indeed it could have been a black-card penalty as John McGrath was fouled after getting in behind Padraic Moylan. Kilkenny going down to eleven men at that stage, there could have been a riot!

Dylan Walsh also had a goal ruled out for overcarrying, the third Tipperary player pinged for that infringement in the game, as well as two throws as the referee, in fairness to him, applied the rules which is his job, and not to ensure the game is a spectacle.

When sub Willie Connors landed a much needed point on 63 minutes, it eased the pressure with Tipp going on to add another six more in the closing stages, including two from Noel McGrath as Tipperary’s resurgence in 2025 sees them on the cusp of a first National League final appearance since 2018.

At the start of the campaign, manager Liam Cahill pointed to this game, Tipp’s penultimate in the league, to have a settled team and it would appear that way.

With Rhys Shelly returning to fitness, the selection in goal was going to be notable and with Barry Hogan getting the nod, he is the number one going forward. He built on his display against Cork with another strong showing here, not just making a good save to deny Martin Keoghan in the first half, but his puckouts were largely on point.

One of the few disappointing aspects from the performance was Tipp’s ability to win the long puckout, not a knock on Hogan who delivered the ball but Jake Morris, Alan Tynan, and Gearoid O’Connor struggled in a ball-winning capacity.

Tipperary have developed more strings to their bow in terms of winning puckouts with Hogan looking to get the ball away quickly, particularly to the half backs and midfield, from where they had options, either off the shoulder, or fizzing the ball in quickly to the full forward line where Darragh McCarthy was once again superb, not only perfect from placed balls, but also created the goal for Oisin O’Donoghue, who apart from his excellent finish, found the going tough in his 35 minutes on the field but will come on for the experience.

John McGrath’s return to the starting team was notable, particularly if he is to bring his club form back into a Tipp jersey and there were positive signs of him being a focal point in the full forward line, holding the ball up well, bringing others into the play, and adding two points for good measure.

It helped with the quality of service they were getting, particularly from the midfield where Craig Morgan and Sam O’Farrell dominated that area, the latter in particular in just his second senior appearance having not played since the round 1 win over Galway, is hugely mature for a player of just nineteen years of age, and finished with three points to his name.

The defence is where Tipperary have been massively improved this year, helped by the commanding Eoghan Connolly and Ronan Maher manning the central positions. Robert Doyle has been the find of the league so far and was superb in this game, particularly in the first half, winning all his one on one battles without resorting to fouling.

Michael Breen was again given the man-marking role on TJ Reid whom he kept scoreless but once the management identified the mobility of Billy Ryan being the major threat, the Ballina clubman snuffed him out in the second half. The change came about after Ryan brushed aside the attempted tackle of Bryan O’Mara in the lead-up to Gearoid Dunne’s goal.

Joe Caesar had another solid outing at wing back, chipping in with a late point for good measure while Dylan Walsh, Willie Connors, and Noel McGrath were impactful off the bench.

All in all, a good days work in Kilkenny but not the challenge they would have anticipated but you can only beat what is in front of you and while Tipperary can play much better, it was sufficient to win on this day.