All Ireland Hurling Semi-Finals

Formosa

looder wrote: »

Here's the way I see it going:


Tipperary vs Kilkenny: TIPPERARY
Over the past 10 years it's being said that Kilkenny's toughest match each year is against their own second string in training. Whatever truth was in that previously certainly ain't in it now. There's nothing between the first 15 of Tipp and Kilkenny but Tipperary have a stronger bench to pick from and for this reason I think they'll win by 5 or 6. Corbett should now be reaching peak fitness, Noel McGrath is back showing a bit of form, Pa Bourke has something to prove, and add the disappointment of last September and I can see nothing only a Tipp win. The only concern I have is the right hand side of the Tipp defence. Shefflin usually starts on whoever Cody thinks is the weakest of the opposition backs so I've a feeling he'll be put on Foxy O' Brien or Tom Stapleton. If either of them can keep him quiet/stop him dictating the play and Bonner Maher does a job on Tommy Walsh, Kilkenny will struggle. I'm hoping it'll be a repeat of 2002 (only the opposite way round). KK lose their province to an unfancied side (Waterford blew Tipp out of the water in 2002) and then in the Semi KK annihilated Tipp in the second half (hopefully Tipp do the same to the Cats next week).

I think you're mixing up your years there, 2002 went to the wire, one of the best hurling matches of the last 30 years.

It was 2003 where KK went on the rampage in the second half.

jacool

Btr wrote: »

for what its worth - Cork v Galway - CORK win - people are hyping up this Galway team despite only one impressive victory in 2012 - a big scalp but only one. Look at what Westmeath scored against them in championship and as for the league................ Still a serious over-reliance on one player. Rumour has it that they're being smug on the banks of the Corrib, that's not good and rubs off on players.

You clearly haven't been near the Corrib then!
Nobody in Gaillimh is cocky about this one at all. Also, this year the forwards have all chipped in, not just Joe Canning. Cyril Donnellan scored 5 from play against Kilkenny so his injury is a huge blow, and has dampened down any optimism. No, it'll be close, and the JBM factor cannot be under-played. He has players exceeding themselves and has Cork further down the road than many thought they would be. At least its not a final, because that could have only had one outcome!

MrJoeSoap

Cork Team:

1 Anthony Nash (Kanturk),

2 Shane O’Neill (Bishopstown), 3 Stephen McDonnell (Glen Rovers), 4 Brian Murphy (Bride Rovers),

5 Tom Kenny (Grenagh), 6 Eoin Cadogan (Douglas), 7 Seán Óg Ó hAilpín (Na Piarsaigh),

8 Pa Cronin (Bishopstown), 9 Lorcán McLoughlin (Kanturk),

10 Conor Lehane (Midleton), 11 Cian McCarthy (Sarsfields), 12 Jamie Coughlan (Newtownshandrum),

13 Paudie O’Sullivan (Cloyne), 14 Luke O’Farrell (Midleton), 15 Patrick Horgan (Glen Rovers)

Subs: Darren McCarthy, Ballymartle; Damien Cahalane, St Finbarr’s; Conor O'Sullivan, Sarsfields; William Egan, Kilbrin; John Gardiner, Na Piarsaigh; Christopher Joyce, Na Piarsaigh; Darren Sweetnam, Dohenys; Daniel Kearney, Sarsfields; Cathal Naughton, Newtownshandrum; Niall McCarthy, Carrigtwohill; Stephen Moylan, Douglas.

The Galway team will be announced at 8.30pm this evening.

tatoo

I think Cunningham has brought a much greater teamwork ethic to Galway this year, and this along with their greater physicality will prove decisive against Cork.

MrJoeSoap

Galway team:

1. James Skehill

2. David Collins 3. Kevin Hynes 4. Fergal Moore

5. Niall Donoghue 6. Tony Og Regan 7. Johnny Coen

8. Iarlaith Tannian 9. Andy Smyth

10. David Burke 11. Niall Burke 12. Cyril Donnellan

13. Conor Cooney 14. Joe Canning 15. Damien Hayes

teednab-el

tatoo wrote: »

I think Cunningham has brought a much greater teamwork ethic to Galway this year, and this along with their greater physicality will prove decisive against Cork.

We will find out Sunday.

VexhallVaulox

Btr wrote: »

for what its worth - Cork v Galway - CORK win - people are hyping up this Galway team despite only one impressive victory in 2012 - a big scalp but only one. Look at what Westmeath scored against them in championship and as for the league................ Still a serious over-reliance on one player. Rumour has it that they're being smug on the banks of the Corrib, that's not good and rubs off on players.

You wouldn't be a Kilkenny man by any chance, would ya?

For the first year since Canning has come into the Galway setup, The Tribes haven't been over reliant on the man himself.. that's common knowledge. Around him players such as Hayes, the two Burkes and Donnellan have been doing there bit, as you would have seen during the Leinster final.

As for the smugness.. We have nothing to be smug about. We bet Kilkenny in July, so what. We all know it's going to be a tough game on Sunday and with our history, nothing's a certainty when Galway are involved in Championship hurling.

dastardly00

Any team news/injuries to report from the KK and Tipp camps?

Brian Hogan burst a blood vessel in the calf muscle of his right leg a few weeks ago, and hasn't recovered to full fitness yet. He was a huge loss to KK in the '09 final against Tipp, and would be again if he doesn't play this Sunday.

premierstone

dastardly00 wrote: »

Any team news/injuries to report from the KK and Tipp camps?

Brian Hogan burst a blood vessel in the calf muscle of his right leg a few weeks ago, and hasn't recovered to full fitness yet. He was a huge loss to KK in the '09 final against Tipp, and would be again if he doesn't play this Sunday.

Would be a massivs loss as I dont think Cody would want to tackle Tipp with two relative rookies in the HB line especially with Bonner Maher being the Tipp CF, Hogan would be a huge loss just for he's experience alone, he does alot of unseen work and it is no coincednce that he's wing backs invariably play better when he is in situ. He also does a great job covering the FB, he prolonged Noel Hickey's career by about 2 years.

adrian522

Apparently Hogan will be ok to start on Sunday, very important player for Kilkenny as noted above.

randd1

dastardly00 wrote: »

He was a huge loss to KK in the '09 final against Tipp, and would be again if he doesn't play this Sunday.

Hogan missed most of the year in 2009 with a broken collar bone after taking a fairly hefty (but very legitimate) shoulder from one of the Tipp forwards (Callinane I think) in that years epic league final (God have we been blessed by the Kilkenny/Tipp games in recent years). Kilkenny went on to win the the League, Leinster and Liam that year so I don't think they missed him that much that year.

He was missed badly in 2010 alright, he was in great form that year with Kilkenny and the club in the run up to the AI.

As for Sunday, I hear he's fully fit and likely to start.

dastardly00

randd1 wrote: »

Hogan missed most of the year in 2009 with a broken collar bone after taking a fairly hefty (but very legitimate) shoulder from one of the Tipp forwards (Callinane I think) in that years epic league final (God have we been blessed by the Kilkenny/Tipp games in recent years). Kilkenny went on to win the the League, Leinster and Liam that year so I don't think they missed him that much that year.

He was missed badly in 2010 alright, he was in great form that year with Kilkenny and the club in the run up to the AI.

As for Sunday, I hear he's fully fit and likely to start.

yeah, thankfully he has been passed fit: Link