Do Galway have the hunger to drive on? – Tyrrell

NINE-time All-Ireland winning Kilkenny hurler Jackie Tyrrell believes Galway undoubtedly have the ability to blow anyone out of the water in the defence of their provincial and All-Ireland titles but says the fundamental question that needs to be answered is do they have the hunger?

Tyrrell – whose book ‘The Warrior’s Code’, co-written with Christy O’Connor, was a phenomenal success last year and is still doing the business in bookstores – concedes it is not the end of the world if Galway don’t defeat Kilkenny in their Leinster SHC round-robin fixture but notes it should give an insight into just where the Tribesmen are at mentally.

“The most important thing about the panel is the core group of guys from 23 to 27 or 28 (years of age). This is my experience from Kilkenny. They are the real guys who drive the thing on. They are the hungry guys.

“The young guys (in the squad) are relatively unknown and they are trying to find their feet while the guys heading into their 30s, or in their 30s, are just focusing on getting themselves right. So, it is the guys in the middle. The Joe Cannings, the Daithí Burkes, the Gearoid McInerneys, the David Burkes, they know they are going to be playing and their sole focus is to drive the whole thing forward.”

Consequently, he states Galway’s fortunes in the 2018 campaign will come down to how mature, how hungry and how ambitious those players are. “Do I think Galway have the ability and the potential? Absolutely,” he states. “But it is in their head now.

“Have they the mentality and the hunger to literally drive on because they do have the ability to blow anyone out of the water. They have the physicality, hurling, speed – five goals against Offaly! They tick all the boxes for me.

“However, it is still relatively unknown how hungry are that Galway team because looking at them in the league, they didn’t exactly strike me as a side that went after it. So, you would still have to question how cutthroat and ruthless this team is.”

On that basis, and the fact Kilkenny already have two wins under their belt, he argues it is more important Galway, as defending All-Ireland champions, lay down their marker in Sunday’s showdown.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.