Birr vs Ballyboden St. Enda's

[Lone Shark]

Possibly a bit light on detail seeing as it's for the paper, but here's my two cents to get the ball rolling anyway....

With the antepost favourites from Kilkenny beaten in their own home ground, a group of Offaly hurlers now have only the hurdle of a young and unproven Dublin side to clear before securing a hugely significant Leinster title. If the hurlers of Birr don’t already realise how tricky this hurdle could yet be, one suggests that players like Sean Ryan, Brian Watkins and Paul Cleary who were part of this year’s Offaly under 21 team will be fairly quick to tell them of their story – and how this Leinster title is far from won yet.

On the one hand this Birr side should have too much experience to underestimate Ballyboden, but anyone who believes they are taking the challenge of the Firhouse team seriously enough by measuring them as “dangerous” or “capable of an upset” are doing just that. This Ballyboden team is not just dangerous – they are seriously talented, chock full of intercounty talent and come into this game on a much better run of results than Birr. While Birr limped their way through the Offaly championship with Coolderry, Shinrone, and Seir Kieran all finishing within a goal of them, Ballyboden swatted aside all challenges in Dublin with ease. Uncannily they won their quarter final, semi final and final all by a margin of eleven points, and while once upon a time this would have been dismissed as merely the consequence of a weak championship, Offaly hurling people know all too well in recent years how the standard of Dublin hurling has improved immensely (The same UCD team who knocked Birr out of the Leinster club in 2005 only scraped past Ballyboden by a goal in the previous year’s Dublin final). Where once there were questions over the ability of Ballyboden to dig their way out of a tough match, their two games in Leinster so far have put those fears to bed, holding on against Camross in the face of a sustained comeback effort by the Laois men and coming back from behind for a fantastic five point win over a very highly rated Oulart-the-Ballagh team.

O’Connor Park in Tullamore, due to it’s relatively narrow playing area, tends to facilitate quite high scoring hurling encounters as most teams will generate as many as 30 shots on goal if not more. (The last four intercounty championship matches in the venue have been won with scores of 2-25, 1-26, 2-29 and 2-23 respectively). Even allowing for the winter conditions, it is common for both sides to get a lot of chances, and one feels that in this environment Birr will have to show a level of accuracy that has not been seen in any of their games so far. The combination of Birr’s lack of penetration in the full forward line and the top quality defending of Cathal Ryan and club captain Stephen Perkins in direct opposition mean that Birr goals will be hard come by. Likewise the Ballyboden half back line of Stephen Hiney, Tim Sweeney and Wexford star Malachy Travers have all been in fine form, so Birr will find themselves shooting under pressure when chances do present themselves. In this regard, accuracy will be crucial. Birr’s win over Ballyhale was notable for their refusal to panic, and always looking to work the ball into a good scoring position rather than shooting from range. The larger Nowlan Park pitch facilitated this, but in the marginally tighter confines of Tullamore and on a sod that has had two more weeks to absorb the rain, it becomes even tougher to move the ball in such a fashion.

None of what has gone above is meant to take from Birr and what they’ve achieved either in 2007 or over their incredibly successful recent history. The new combination at the centre of defence with Niall Claffey at 3 and Paul Cleary at 6 has been very impressive so far, and the disciplined pressuring of the Ballyhale men in possession in Nowlan Park was outstanding. Of all the statistics from that game, the most impressive was the fact that Birr only conceded one free in a scoring position, that single infringement being of a technical rather than personal nature. To chase down the Shamrocks players so intensely yet to never cross the line into fouling was the biggest single factor in that great win, and a replication of that effort here will go a long way towards ensuring that none of Paul Ryan, David Sweeney or forgotten hurler Conal Keaney have the hot scoring day that they are each capable of producing.

It would be unrealistic to expect Birr not to look a bit beyond this game. Portumna are already odds on to regain the All Ireland crown they won in 2006, and justifiably so, but for all Padjoe’s claims that this is a “new” Birr team, it is inconceivable that a team containing the likes of Claffey Paul Molloy, the Hanniffys and of course his own three sons would not have a slight edge in guile and know-how on St. Patrick’s day were that to occur, and with the similar veteran teams of the club scene (Athenry, Toomevara, Mount Sion etc.) no longer in contention Birr would be naïve not to understand that if Portumna are to be beaten, it almost certainly falls to them to do it. Having said all that, it will be no shock if Ballyboden derail that ambition on Sunday. It remains marginally less likely than a Birr win, and with home advantage in their favour, a result like a narrow Birr win having trailed with 15 minutes left is very plausible. Still, no matter what anyone will tell you, this Ballyboden team has proven their talent for years, and they proved their stomach for a fight already this winter. Expect them to show Birr plenty of each of those qualities and bring this game to the wire.

[Offalys Future]

Let's be realistic here, this is a very average Birr side.
They just about got out of Offaly not because they played great hurling but because the competition was poor. With the exception of kk. They beat a poor and overrated Ballyhale Shamrocks team. But that doesnt matter now, they play Ballyboden this Sunday for the Leinster Club title.

While it is only right Birr are favourites you should note the following.
Half the Birr team decided to celebrate their overrated victory against Shamrocks for 3 days. Something that would never have happened in past glory years.
Birr's scoring threat - if Ballyboden have any clue they will put their two best and tighest markers on Brian Whelehan and Gary Haniffy. Haniffy usually hurls 1 good game out of 5. If they do this Birr wont score much unless from frees.
The Birr half back line is there for the taking. While Hayden hurled well last weekend he must perform consistently and not let his inflated ego get to him.
I expect Ballyboden to put someone that is good under the high ball in full forward as this is where Claffey is most vulnerable.
I dont know much about Ballyboden, i did see them against Camross but that game doesnt tell much. If they were so good how come this year was the first time they won a county championship? Birr shouldnt be and won't be afraid of them. Conal Keaney is an overrated footballer that plays a bit of hurling aswell. Unreal how the media blow these guys up. Even if he hurls well the weekend which i expect him too, that doesnt make him a great hurler.
Birr are average if Ballyboden are even a half decent half organised team they should win this game. Will they be? well that remains to be seen.

Anyway heres my prediction, Ballyboden to win by 4 points.

[The Biff]

...... Conal Keaney is an overrated footballer that plays a bit of hurling aswell. Unreal how the media blow these guys up. Even if he hurls well the weekend which i expect him too, that doesnt make him a great hurler. .....

That's curious; I always reckoned that Keaney had made a name for himself as a Hurler first, and only gave the Football priority a couple of years ago when pressurised by Pillar Caffrey to commit to the effort to win Sam. I saw Keaney hurl for Dublin a few years ago against Offaly in Portlaoise. He was so superior to every other player on the pitch; as much a case of one player winning a game single-handedly as I've ever seen.

I would agree with you that he is "an overrated footballer", but you dont need to denigrate his other skills to make that point.

[Plain of the Herbs]

BIRR

Group games
Birr 3-12 Kinnitty 0-8
Birr 0-11 Seir Kieran 0-9
Birr 0-18 Shinrone 1-12

Birr 1-19 Tullamore 0-10 (quarter final)
Birr 2-9 Coolderry 0-12 (semi final)
Birr 0-15 Kilcormac Killoughey 0-10 (final)

Birr 1-13 Ballyhale Shamrocks 1-10 (Leinster semi final)



BALLYBODEN ST. ENDA’S

Group games
Ballyboden St. Enda’s 2-16 Cuala 1-12
Ballyboden St. Enda’s 2-22 South Dublin selection 2 0-11
Ballyboden St. Enda’s 1-13 Kilmacud Crokes 0-12

Ballyboden St. Enda’s 3-13 North Dublin selection 2 0-11 (quarter final)
Ballyboden St. Enda’s 4-12 Lucan Sarsfields 0-13 (semi final)
Ballyboden St. Enda’s 2-13 St. Vincents 1-5 (final)

Ballyboden St. Enda’s 1-17 Oulart-The-Ballagh 0-15 (Leinster quarter final)
Ballyboden St. Enda’s 2-9 Camross 1-11(Leinster semi final)

[Lone Shark]

Let's be realistic here, this is a very average Birr side.
They just about got out of Offaly not because they played great hurling but because the competition was poor. With the exception of kk. They beat a poor and overrated Ballyhale Shamrocks team. But that doesnt matter now, they play Ballyboden this Sunday for the Leinster Club title.

While it is only right Birr are favourites you should note the following.
Half the Birr team decided to celebrate their overrated victory against Shamrocks for 3 days. Something that would never have happened in past glory years.
Birr's scoring threat - if Ballyboden have any clue they will put their two best and tighest markers on Brian Whelehan and Gary Haniffy. Haniffy usually hurls 1 good game out of 5. If they do this Birr wont score much unless from frees.
The Birr half back line is there for the taking. While Hayden hurled well last weekend he must perform consistently and not let his inflated ego get to him.
I expect Ballyboden to put someone that is good under the high ball in full forward as this is where Claffey is most vulnerable.
I dont know much about Ballyboden, i did see them against Camross but that game doesnt tell much. If they were so good how come this year was the first time they won a county championship? Birr shouldnt be and won't be afraid of them. Conal Keaney is an overrated footballer that plays a bit of hurling aswell. Unreal how the media blow these guys up. Even if he hurls well the weekend which i expect him too, that doesnt make him a great hurler.
Birr are average if Ballyboden are even a half decent half organised team they should win this game. Will they be? well that remains to be seen.

Anyway heres my prediction, Ballyboden to win by 4 points.

I wasn't really planning on another showdown here, but I have to pick you up on a few things in this post.

(1) Define "average" in the above context. To say that a team that reaches a Leinster club final, beating the AI champions on the way is average, implies that you reckon many teams are above that standard. By definition average is middle of the road. I'm sorry but there is no way that description applies to Birr in my book.

(2) I'm not sure how you can say the competition in Offaly was poor, but yet KK weren't?? KK did well enough this year, but realistically they only reached the county final because Coolderry were on the other side of the draw. They may have got a one off win over them in the group, but Tullamore beat KK in the group as well - one win does not necessarily make a side automatically the better team. I'm not agreeing or disagreeing with your assessment of the rest of the pack as "poor", but to say K/K were a clear second is contentious at best.

(3) in all their glory years, this was actually the first time Birr ever knocked out the reigning AI champions. The closest they came was their wins over Ballyhale in 1992 and Athenry in 2003, both of which were winners two years previously. That achievement was worth celebration for any team, much less this Birr side comprised of many players for whom all those All Irelands were celebrated as kids rather than as players.

(4) Keaney is a fine hurler who'd make any club team in Ireland - no amount of denigrating his football will change that.

[Offalys Future]

I saw Keaney hurl for Dublin a few years ago against Offaly in Portlaoise. He was so superior to every other player on the pitch; as much a case of one player winning a game single-handedly as I've ever seen.

In a league match

[Plain of the Herbs]

I want to pick up on this, as it’s an interesting point.

The issue I have with OCP is its length rather than the width, but anyways. Logic would suggest that the shorter/narrower pitch would keep the scoreline down, as it would aid packed defences.

I hadn’t thought of it seriously until I saw the winning scorelines posted by Lone Shark but it appears the shorter pitch serves to bring the half back lines into scoring range, bypassing the mass defences. I remember Limerick, in particular, horsing scores over the bar from long range.

LS, are those four matches Laois ’04 & ’07, Limerick ’06 and Dublin this year?

O’Connor Park in Tullamore, due to it’s relatively narrow playing area, tends to facilitate quite high scoring hurling encounters as most teams will generate as many as 30 shots on goal if not more. (The last four intercounty championship matches in the venue have been won with scores of 2-25, 1-26, 2-29 and 2-23 respectively). Even allowing for the winter conditions, it is common for both sides to get a lot of chances, and one feels that in this environment Birr will have to show a level of accuracy that has not been seen in any of their games so far. The combination of Birr’s lack of penetration in the full forward line and the top quality defending of Cathal Ryan and club captain Stephen Perkins in direct opposition mean that Birr goals will be hard come by. Likewise the Ballyboden half back line of Stephen Hiney, Tim Sweeney and Wexford star Malachy Travers have all been in fine form, so Birr will find themselves shooting under pressure when chances do present themselves. In this regard, accuracy will be crucial. Birr’s win over Ballyhale was notable for their refusal to panic, and always looking to work the ball into a good scoring position rather than shooting from range. The larger Nowlan Park pitch facilitated this, but in the marginally tighter confines of Tullamore and on a sod that has had two more weeks to absorb the rain, it becomes even tougher to move the ball in such a fashion.

[Lone Shark]

They are - and I will accept that in fairness they were all quite lopsided games. However in defence to that, on most of those occasions the losing team also scored a respectable amount (2-19, 2-13, 1-15 and admittedly 0-10). Teams that score in that range usually don't end up getting hammered, suggesting that even well matched games can see a lot of scores. Even club games in OCP have been relatively high scoring events in comparison to Rath, Birr, Banagher etc.

My own impression - though in mitigation I haven't been able to study it - is exactly that which you pointed out. Around 2/3 of the playing area appears to be "scoring zone" in Tullamore, which gives a huge advantage to the side which is comfortable shooting from relatively long range. For the purposes of this weekend, my gut feeling is that Birr is not that team.

[The Magpie]

Has anybody got the figures? How long/wide is OCP and what are the dimensions of other 'hurling' pitches?

This is an interesting one. It didn't seem to hold true for the County Final !

[Plain of the Herbs]

Best way to estimate the lenght of a GAA pitch is the see how far apart the two 65 metre lines are. It's difficult to estimate the width.

The minimum length of a GAA pitch is 130 metres (where there is one 65m line which doubles as the halfway line). The maximum is 150 metres, where there is twenty metres between the two 65m lines. In this case, there is the same distance between the two 65m lines as there is between a 65m line and a 45m line. Thurles would be the full length, I imagine, as would Pairc Uí Chaoimh and Limerick. I've never been to Walsh Park in Waterford but on TV it appears to be in excess of the maximum length!

Tullamore looks to have roughly six to eight yards between the two 65's. Birr is about ten yards. Some club grounds are quite short, chiefly Rath and Banagher.

Has anybody got the figures? How long/wide is OCP and what are the dimensions of other 'hurling' pitches?

This is an interesting one. It didn't seem to hold true for the County Final !

[Lone Shark]

Has anybody got the figures? How long/wide is OCP and what are the dimensions of other 'hurling' pitches?

This is an interesting one. It didn't seem to hold true for the County Final !

True, but I came out of that match thinking that both sets of backs were well on top, and that Birr won the game because one or two of their front six broke even or in Sid's case had the upper hand, while no Kilcormac forward could say the same thing. Play that same game again on another pitch and it was the kind of match that could have finished 0-11 to 0-8.

It did hold true though that the points/goals ratio is more skewed than most on that pitch.


I've no idea where I got the notion that OCP is not very wide, I think I heard it a good while back and it has just struck me. Possibly it's the angles or whatever, but I've always felt that even out on the sideline a player is still not that far from the posts. For example a sideline ball on the 21 always seems a lot tighter in other grounds than it does in Tullamore.

All that said, I must find out about it now.

[Plain of the Herbs]

I
We’ve been down this road already this year. An Offaly team beat the hosts in Nowlan Park to qualify to meet a Dublin side in the final. This time it’s the respective Offaly and Dublin county champions going head to head. Birr are aiming to go into the outright lead in the Leinster club hurling roll of honour – currently their six titles place them joint top with Rathnure, with Ballyhale one behind. This is also the first Leinster club hurling final to take place at an Offaly venue. A pity for Birr that their own St. Brendan’s Park is unavailable to them given the rare home venue.

In the aftermath of Birr’s semi final win over Ballyhale, Pat Joe Whelahan remarked that this would lift Offaly hurling. While this is debatable, there’s no doubt Offaly hurling badly needs a win over a Dublin side to stop a rot and to reassert itself over an emerging force.

II
I watched Ballyboden win their first ever Dublin county final with a good win over St. Vincent’s some weeks ago. They are a formidable side with several names which jump off the team sheet: - Gary Maguire, Stephen Perkins, Stephen Hiney, Darragh Spain, Malachy Travers, David Sweeney, Emmet Carroll and Conal Keaney have all worn their county jersies and are seasoned campaigners. They could afford to start the county final without David Curtin (who has since reclaimed his place), Simon Daly and Shane Durkin. They certainly are a star-studded outfit.

They went a goal behind early on in that final and took a while to get into their stride. They got level around the twentieth minute and led 0-7 to 1-2 at the break. They scored two goals early in the second half and there was no doubt the title was heading to Knocklyon by the three-quarter mark.

Like all Dublin teams they are strong, fit and mobile. They also give the ball carrier the option of a handpass at all times. Unlike a lot of Dublin teams they hurl direct, withdrawing the half forward line to leave plenty of room for the full forward line. They deliver long ball from the half back line – no unnecessary solo running. The hallmark of an Offaly native in charge. I certainly wasn’t surprised they accounted for Oulart-The Ballagh in the Leinster championship.

III
Birr were in superb form in that semi final win over Ballyhale. They grew in to the game and their work rate and the quality of their hurling was sublime. There’s no doubt Ballyhale were severely hampered by the loss of their two leaders but Birr still had to go out and take the game to the reigning All Ireland champions. The Kilkennymen also played their part in a classic with the quality of their hurling. Four frees were awarded in the entire second half – an amazing statistic given the closeness of the exchanges!

The move of Paul Cleary to centre back and Niall Claffey to full back was an inspired move. They do tend to break a lot of high ball though, which will suit the hungrier team as they will be first to latch onto the loose ball.

Birr tightened up their defence even more in the second half by bringing their midfield back to support the half back line with the half forward line playing along the half way line. It was this move that cut out the space for TJ Reid who had been rampant for long periods.

This also left plenty of space for the Birr full forward line, who could have contributed more but will benefit from the experience gained in the Nowlan Park win. They will be opposed by the wiry Stephen Perkins on Sunday. With Ballyboden’s penchant for similar plans we could see a congested middle third on Sunday.

Birr were aided by the boost of an early goal, which gave them a big boost at a critical time. Around this time they were energised by Simon Whelahan’s introduction following the unfortunate Stephen Brown’s injury. I would be inclined to start Brown on Sunday. I feel his strength will be needed as will Simon’s experience. I also feel Birr would be better served if they had Sean Ryan and Michael Dwane in reserve to introduce as the game progresses.

Again, Brian Whelahan will be a marked man and the onus will be on the other attackers to make a match winning contribution on Sunday.

IV
Birr had a point to prove the last day but now it’s different and the real test of a team is how it performs the match after a great one. Pat Joe Whelahan deserves credit for reinventing Birr. We do sometimes ignore the fact that Birr have been consistently successful at underage with a steady stream of talent. It’s a great experience for a young hurler to come through the Birr ranks, be exposed to training alongside the legends and under Pat Joe’s watchful eye, then hurling at Intermediate level with some semi-retired heroes before the progression to senior.

It was also refreshing to hear of an Offaly team’s fitness being lauded as it was in the post match reaction. Another example of Birr’s reinvention.

What was also noticeable was that when faced with the option of a hook or a block, the Birrmen opted for the hook. I feel this is less difficult to effect, especially if the defender is behind the would-be ball-striker. Some teams try the block and in over-reaching, lean in and commit the foul.

As I said earlier, Birr’s work rate was top class. Now it’s easier to go the extra inch to effect the hook on an opponent when there is a point to prove, as Birr had that day. It’s different now against Ballyboden as it’s the Dublin champions who will carry the aces, motivational wise. Birr’s workrate will have to be at the same high standard. They will need to restrict Ballyboden to the minimum score possible, as their style doesn’t yield high scores.

V
This could be the start of a (not so) beautiful friendship! Ballyboden have made the breakthrough in Dublin and will likely add to their tally in the coming years, while Birr’s dominance in Offaly looks set to continue for some time yet. Like Birr and Castletown, they may well meet regularly over the next few year in the Leinster championship.

There have been two Birr teams over the last decade or more. One is the classy outfit which has waltzed their way through the Offaly county championships. The other is a ‘grinding’ team which has harvested six Leinster club titles, each won on November sods. Wind and rain is promised on Sunday. Expect a tight, low scoring encounter, not dissimilar to those Birr – Castletown clashes. Sunday will be a day for the trenches and whoever has the promised wind in the first half had better build up a lead. I think Birr will grind out a narrow win, something like twelve scores to ten.

[Sydthebeat]

I
I think Birr will grind out a narrow win, something like twelve scores to ten.

very well foreseen there POTH......

[Offalys Future]

A good win for Birr
maybe a slight lucky in the end but they showed their experience.
Brian Whelehan done fantastic for the goal.
well done

[Bord na Mona man]

Well done to Birr, as Sid said yesterday no-one would have thought they'd be lifting the trophy this year after the Ballyhale game last year. Ballyboden deserve great credit for a rivetting encounter despite the conditions. They played with great determination and no little skill and the game was theirs for the taking.

About 10 minutes into the second half, when Boden had knocked 5 points off Birr's 9 point half time lead, they looked favourites to power on and win in it. However Birr dug in hard and managed to slow down their scoring rate. It was some relief when Birr got the two break out scores, when they had been reeled back to a one point lead.

Ballyboden were naive in the first half in not slowing down the game more. Birr didn't take full advantage of the wind despite the scoreboard, as they had only hurled well in patches. Also boden could crowded their backs better early on. It took Keaney too long to start sweeping behind the half back line.

Some good performances for Birr from Paul O'Meara in the first half, though he got a dunt in the head and didn't seem as lively in the second. Simon Whelahan rolled back the years with a hard working performance. Rory Hanniffy also covered huge yards, made mistakes but still keep hounding. Niall Claffey also looks at home at full back and Verney looks a good prospect for Offaly seniors.
Ultimately Sid's setting up of the goal was the difference between the sides. A 6 point half time lead would have wiped out within 10 minutes with the gale that was blowing.

What was the replay of the '65' that wasn't given at the very end like?