Kilcormac-Killoughey in Leinster - 2014

[Bord na Mona man]

How are Ballyhale set for the match on Sunday??

Off the drink since Tuesday.

Shite. I was hoping they were taking K-K for granted.

[onthefence]

Looking forward to Portlaoise on Sunday there should be a great atmosphere and big crowd and I will be the first time in a good number of years that an Offaly team wont fear going up against a Kilkenny team.
However its the first time in a long time that I fear for the double Ks, a lot of people are comparing Ballyhale to Thurlas but Thurlas had won their first Muster ever and had no experience like KK for semi final stage, KK were an unknown package back then and Thurlas were extremely cocky. bally hale will know all about KK and how they hurl and work and Kilkenny teams are use to favourite tags and although they will be confident they will treat KK with respect.
Like a lot of other posters I don't think we have to worry about KK not turning up or putting in a huge performance and Ballyhale will go 15 on 15 and wont be hurling extra men on the back line like the last two teams but they use the ball very well with 40 and 50mtr passes and forward line continuously moving and wont allow KK half forwards and mid field to close them down.
another problem is the KK forward line you cannot question there work rate but there decision making, communication and striking has been very poor and apart from the county final where Banagher stood off them there last 4 competive games they have been poor, at times they have been getting in each others way Conor mahon tries to compete foe every puck out and often there is 2 and 3 KK under their own puck outs, they have to talk more in these situations.
I hope im wrong but I think KK could be chasing this game from a long way out. Ballyhale by 5 or 6 (please God KK will prove me wrong though)

PS, heres hoping we don't notice Barry Kelly on Sunday!!!

[Plain of the Herbs]

The fella who contributed that is an Offaly WUM, negating any clue as to Ballyhale's mindset.

but sure its only a matter of turning up

Just a few of the comment from the Kilkenny fourm.

[Plain of the Herbs]

With both Ballyhale Shamrocks and Kilcormac-Killoughey looking set to dominate their respective Senior county championships for the remainder of the decade, this may well be the first instalment of what could be a beautiful rivalry. Important then for both sides to strike the first blow.

I don’t bet and I don’t generally take much notice of the markets. But this week I have kept an eye on the market for Sunday’s Leinster Final, moreso from a mathematical viewpoint. The bookmakers may have opened with Ballyhale as strong favourites. The value lay with Kilcormac, yet each day this week has seen Ballyhale move in, with Kilcormac drifting out. Ergo, the market’s opinion is that Ballyhale couldn’t be favoured enough.

Now that may be due to Shamrocks’ stars, particularly in the forwards. They appear formidable on paper, but the worry for Kilcormac is that the Kilkenny champions’ forwards are in form and hurling well. It is fair to point that they are relatively infrequent county champions, this being their second Senior county title since 2010. The difference is that this year they are hurling well. They are fresh too, this being just their fifth championship game since the Senior inter-county All-Ireland.

Television highlights of Ballyhale’s County Final win over Clara clearly show how they targeted the right corner of their attack by withdrawing the right corner-forward outfield with Henry Shefflin drifting from full-forward into that space. Quite possible Ballyhale might hand TJ Reid the full-forward for a time on Sunday too.

Previously, teams have attempted to expose Ger Healion by having the full-forward move directly outfield and if he moved too far out, Peter Healion dropped back to assist. I don’t recall any team in domestic hurling attempting the play of dragging the full-back sideward. Ballyhale may well attempt this again, and if they do, Kilcormac are forearmed.

The natural defence to this is to keep a corner-back in the corner, filling space and collecting any deliveries. It does leave an opponent unmarked further outfield. In that eventuality, a tremendous effort of work, concentration and discipline is required if K-K are to overcome this.

If Shamrocks are in form, you couldn’t say the same about Kilcormac. It is worrying that their half-forward line won so little of their own puckout against Shelmaliers, this from a ball-winning line where one of them stands 6’1” and the other two are 6’3”, and where ball winning is a speciality. The consequence is that the inside forward line was starved of good possession. And all those rucks? Some times you gotta win ugly, but this is a team with All-Ireland ambitions. A five point win over Raharney may be categorised as ‘satisfactory’, but required a couple of late pointed frees and a goal with the game’s last play. Far more convincing if they had gone five points ahead, dictated the game, and ensured they stayed five points ahead.

Hard to know what to make of the Shamrocks’ defence. Joe Holden endured a torrid time at right half-back against Limerick in August and while there is a world of difference between inter-county and club hurling, I can’t envisage him in a full-back role. Getting sufficient supply to test that theory might be K-K’s biggest challenge. Michael Fennelly is one of hurling’s greatest midfielders. A concern would be that, as Kilcormac’s midfielders drop deep to help out the defence, the resultant space would open up for the midfielder-cum-centre-back to charge upfield on the front foot if a clearance is rushed or misdirected. That Ciarán Slevin is not hurling as well as he can (due to an injury, admittedly) is a concern. Thomas Geraghty’s likely introduction at some stage will add a spark.

Always difficult to know how two teams who have never met in competitive action will match up. We can only look from a logical standpoint to who is in the better form, and that formline points overwhelmingly towards Ballyhale, in the region of 1-15 to 0-13 or thereabouts. Now, it may well happen that Kilcormac hit the ground running, an early block goes in that lifts the team (as happened when they beat Thurles Sarsfields). There will be a funeral in Kilcormac on Saturday, a GAA funeral, which will only contribute to the team’s spirit too. All the intangibles you can’t legislate for. Kilcormac are not without hope.

[Plain of the Herbs]

Kinnitty also beat Ballyhale in 1985. And they whupped them by 19 points in that 1979 win!

Kinnitty (1979) and St Rynagh's (1982) have also beaten Ballyhale in Leinster.

ballyhale have won 7 leinster titles ,5 of them were against offaly teams . birr twice coolderry kinnity and tullamore.
birr are the only offaly club to beat ballyhale in a leinster final back in 91/92 the score was 2 goal 14 points to 3 points .
a one point win will do kk this time .

[sam88885a]

ballyhale well be very professional and will have done their homework on kk for sunday . if anything ballyhale are even more professional this year as they are all aware that king henry could retire at they end of this club championship .
i dont think ballyhale have set the world alight this year .
the kilkenny semi final and final were average at best . killmacud really didnt turn up and conceeded two soft goals which allowed ballhale to win at ease .
we know there is more in ballyhale but that can also be said of kk .
i think if kk bring they workrate we saw against shellmailers with a bit more sharpness in front of goals they will cause ballyhale lots of problems .
it wont be easy but i expect a huge battle from 2 full commited teams and kk to shade it just.
maybe that my heart talking.
d owens said on the tribune " u cant make a dream come true if u dont have a dream."
d currams lifting the cup on sunday is our dream and d owens said kk will win and i belive him.

[Conrad]

Poth - getting side tracked here (apologies) but as you mentioned the 82 Rynaghs team.
I remember there being controversy over their all-Ireland semi final win over Kiltormor.
Do you have any knowledge on what surrounded it?

Best of luck to K/K this weekend. Very well capable of quietening the Kilkenny crowd.

[Plain of the Herbs]

Con,

Aye, there was ructions at that. Rynagh’s had some hardy buckos at that time and Declan Fogarty (probably the one of them the least likely to pull a stroke) got sent off – sort of. There were no red cads in those days, and either the referee pointed to the line but didn’t say “off”, or said “off” and didn’t pot to the line, but the message didn’t get through to Declan, who stayed on the field for a time (something that Charlie Redmond repeated in Croke PArk a dozen years later). Rynagh’s won the match on the day, Kiltormer appealed but Rynagh’s prevailed and went on to a Final that they lost to Loughgiel in a replay.

The episode is best summed up by Damien Martin’s recollections here -
http://www.independent.ie/sport/hurling ... 33073.html

Poth - getting side tracked here (apologies) but as you mentioned the 82 Rynaghs team.
I remember there being controversy over their all-Ireland semi final win over Kiltormor.
Do you have any knowledge on what surrounded it?

Best of luck to K/K this weekend. Very well capable of quietening the Kilkenny crowd.

[Bord na Mona man]

The fella who contributed that is an Offaly WUM, negating any clue as to Ballyhale's mindset.

but sure its only a matter of turning up

Just a few of the comment from the Kilkenny fourm.

Say no more! I should have copped this.

[Toxicity234]

The fella who contributed that is an Offaly WUM, negating any clue as to Ballyhale's mindset.

but sure its only a matter of turning up

Just a few of the comment from the Kilkenny fourm.

Didn't realise that. Thanks POTH.
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthre ... 5&page=432
That the link to the page for anyone that want to see it.

On a side note i see on the same website. that "I hear David Franks is training Carrickshock next year after retiring from playing"


Just back from Break with two friends from Kilkenny. One from Bennetsbridge and the other with Links with Ballyhale.
Both are exception huge battle on Saturday and Sunday.
Any talk on the Kilkenny Fourm of easy victory are not shared by the Bennetsbrisge or Ballyhale fans.
Both Really Looking forward to the matches and both exception great battles.

The game on sunday will come down to the battle in Midfield and the half forwards line. The Kilcormac Killoughey Half forwards line will have to Break even or more on the Ballyhale half backs line, but no better men than the 3 kilcormac Killoughey Half forwards line to battle like spartans.

[theoutsider]

4/1 for K/K is some price I think. Club hurling is a lot closer than county hurling. Think people think because its a Kilkenny team that they should have a given right to win. I'm not from a hurling area but have more of an interest in Hurling than football and although I dont get to many club hurling games due to work, football and small family, I will be there on Sunday supporting K/K and I urge every offaly supporter to be there. And also best of luck to shamrocks on Saturday. Great Dual club and best of luck cant make it due to a christening but hopefully they do it

[ah lethimoutwithit]

Best of luck to the Kk lads, will be there to cheer them on, indeed would like to thank all the club playerz whohave done so well to keep me from being dragged to the shops by the wife over last 20 odd years! Expect a big crowd tomorrow

[Chris]

Speaking to a few Bennettsbridge lads in Tullamore today at the Shamrocks match and they are certainly not convinced that Ballyhale will win......their concensus was tthatthe Ballyhale back line was weak and that theBallyhale half forward line spends a llot of time back in their own half protecting them. ......they believe the match could go any way.....I would still be fairly confident.....there will be a hugeoffaly support there......come on the super KK's

[kingscounty]

Best of luck to K/K tomorrow , there will be support from the whole county cheering you on . Il go for K/K 3-10 Ballyhale 1-15 , with a Dan Currams hat trick .

[kingscounty]

Hard luck KK , I thought KK were by far the better team in normal time and the missed frees were the difference . Reid missed nothing while Slevin was missing handy enough frees . The county team need to get the fighting spirit this bunch of lads has, they did their club and county proud today . Ballyhales fitness seemed a bit better in extra time and got them just over the line . I can't see Ballyhale winning the All Ireland, they are very reliant on TJ and poor enough in the back line . Well done to both teams on a good game for this time of year .