ON the day Tipperary played Dublin in the last round of the regular league, Tipp warmed up at the top end of Dr Morris Park, while Dublin went through their routine at the bottom end.
Dublin were still going through their drills when Tipp marched down past them, arms linked tightly together. Before they walked out the gate, they assembled in a huddle, well within earshot of the Dublin players.
It was obvious to Dublin how united Tipp were. They could read it in their body language and hear it in the tone of their conversation.
That day, Tipp were fighting for their lives. They needed to win by three points to stave off relegation at a time when their form had been disastrous. They suffered a 16-point turnaround against Kilkenny, conceding five goals in the process. In their following two defeats to Clare and Galway, their goal concession rate increased to 12 in three games.
Tipp finally found their feet. They were three points ahead in injury time when Dublin’s Niall McMorrow found himself inside the 45-metre line, well within scoring range range and furnished with the luxury of time and space. He was clearly thinking of the result, not the mathematical equations which would balance the outcome. He dropped the ball in to the square, the Tipp defence got it clear and the referee immediately blew the final whistle. Tipp were safe and their season had just turned on its head.
Tipp beat Cork and Clare to reach a league final, an epic match which they only lost by one point after extra-time against Kilkenny. They found form, stopped conceding so many goals and increased their own scoring rate.
They are going in to Sunday’s Munster semi-final full of confidence and belief but what shape would they be in if McMorrow had popped that ball over the bar? How would the experts be rating their chances then?
Even when Tipp were struggling during the spring, Eamon O’Shea repeatedly referred to how they battled through games, how their spirit never waned. That was a solid base from which to build but the most important aspect of their turnaround was how they rediscovered their confidence and regained their identity.
There is always a fine balance between experimentation in team selection and instability during the league and Tipp struggled to balance that equation. It is also difficult for new players to make an impression when the team is unstable. Yet once they got that win against Dublin, it was like as if the chains were cast aside and they could express themselves once more.
Young players got a chance to establish themselves in a less pressurised environment. The structure of the team has also become more stable. Clare showed last year how tactically flexible and fluid teams need to be in the modern game and Tipp evolved that part of their game as the league progressed.
They even looked a lot like Clare in the league semi-final. They played Brendan Maher as a sweeper, Seamus Callinan played mostly as a spearhead up top in space while the Tipp corner-forwards drew out their men and ran at the Clare defence to great effect.
Unlike last year, the management have also had greater access to their players prior to the Limerick game. They think they have learned from that defeat. They have to because they were almost trying to play a precise board game in the Gaelic Grounds. Once Limerick dialled up the intensity, they blew Tipp apart, restricting their highly vaunted attack to just ten plays in the last 20 minutes.
Limerick also experienced a critical moment during the league but it was completely different to Tipp’s turning point against Dublin. With their greater scoring difference to Cork, Limerick effectively blew promotion to Division 1A when they drew with Offaly. After they lost the league quarter-final to Galway, the county board made comments about the management which subsequently led to Donal O’Grady’s resignation.
It looked a massive blow for Limerick but they were struggling at that time anyway and, coming so close to the championship, the players had no choice but to drive on and try and turn their season around. There is no guarantee they have but Limerick are coming into this game quietly confident.
Twelve months on, Tipp are at home and they look ready. Are they? Have they turned a corner? Can they step up now and produce it against the Munster champions? Are they really as good as they, and everyone else, thinks they are?
We’ll soon find out.
Verdict: Tipperary
