Magnificent Limerick show mettle of champions in epic showdown

Inside Track with John McIntyre

THIS was their crowning glory. For all Limerick hurlers have achieved over the past five years, they still needed one more thing on their CV – beating Kilkenny in an All-Ireland final. And the fact that achievement coincided with completing the three-in-a-row at Croke Park on Sunday confirms their reputation as an exceptional team.

True, Limerick had taken out the Cats in an epic championship quarter-final in Thurles on their way to long-awaited glory All-Ireland glory that same year, but they were turned over by Kilkenny in the 2019 semi-final and hadn’t encountered Brian Cody’s charges during their 15-match unbeaten run since.

But Sunday’s triumph after an enthralling battle was the final validation of Limerick’s greatness. The fact that they had to survive an unrelenting challenge from the Leinster champions makes it more memorable on a day Gearóid Hegarty delivered one of the truly outstanding displays ever seen on hurling’s biggest occasion.

This was a compelling, physical and hugely committed struggle for supremacy. Some of the point-taking was out of this world – for the first time ever all six half-backs scored from play in a final – and though Limerick forced the pace for long periods, they could never quite shake off the tenacious Kilkenny men. The Cats just don’t know how to give up.

The occasion was electrified by Hegarty’s brilliant early goal – his shot whizzing past Eoin Murphy from a tight angle into the roof of the net. The towering Limerick half-forward went on to pick off some wonderful points, and with Kyle Hayes, Seamus Flanagan and Aaron Gillane also quick to find the range, it left Kilkenny living off scraps.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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