Given the
struggles of the seniors to shake off a 54 year curse against Kilkenny, it is
noteworthy that the minors hold a one hundred per cent record in the company of
the Cats ahead of Sunday’s semi final. That said, the counties have only
crossed each other on two occasions. Waterford
last reached the minor summit in 1948 to take their second All Ireland with a
3-8 to 4-2 victory. 63 years later, the Déise dug out a result at Walsh Park
(0-15 to 0-9) in an All Ireland quarter final. There is no reason why the black
and amber should strike fear into the class of 2013.
They should
use the width of Croke
Park to their advantage
and aim to isolate their three pronged strike force. This won’t come as any
surprise to Kilkenny and they will prepare their match-ups accordingly. Few
teams can shut out all three however. While Limerick
held Patrick Curran to an acceptable total in the draw and replay, Stephen
Bennett couldn’t be extinguished. These two are the star attractions but
Michael Kearney is coming into a run of form. Positioned at midfield for the
latter part of the provincial championship, he appeared of out of his natural
habitat. He is at home in the full forward line. Kearney tore the Lismore defence apart in
Ballyduff’s recent championship success over their close rivals. He made sharp
bursts into dangerous areas to tap over points and also earn valuable frees. He
struck ten points in all. Other marquee names must bring their A game and the
drive from number six has propelled Waterford
forward in their big wins to date. Austin Gleeson was snuffed out of the
Munster final replay as Limerick attacked down the wings but he won’t settle
for another subdued sixty minutes.
In a
similar vein to their opponents, Kilkenny took a five game trip through the
provincial championship. After cruising past Laois by 17 points, they slipped
up at home to Wexford. It proved to be a soft landing however. They bounced
back to trounce Kildare and overcame 2012 All Ireland runners-up Dublin by four
points after retrieving a half time deficit. On the other side of the draw,
Wexford lost their way against Laois. A rematch with the O’Moore men in the Leinster final was a mere formality for the Cats and they
raced into a 1-11 to 0-5 half time lead. Alan Murphy scored ten points as they
ran out handsome victors (1-18 to 0-8). Hard to get a handle on their form
after all that. Murphy, brother of the Kilkenny senior stopper, is their main
sniper with 5-29 banked thus far. Outside of the Glenmore forward, there has
been a wide spread of scorers. Eight different players contributed against
Laois and also in the semi final win over Dublin.
Like their elders, they offer a strong aerial threat. Michael Harney is named
at number five and that may be because of his ability in the air. James Maher,
Jason Stanley and Darragh Joyce make up a sturdy half back line and they will
do battle with Adam Farrell, Colm Roche and DJ Foran.
On the
minus side, Wexford exposed some inconvenient truths in the Kilkenny full back
line during that surprise win at Nowlan
Park. A combination of
looseness and indecision allowed the Yellowbellies to capitalise. Full forward
Conor McDonald cleaned up and posted a personal tally of 3-4 with 2-2 coming
from play. For the first major, the goalkeeper failed to claim, McDonald was
fouled for a penalty to make it two and then after the break, he slipped in
behind the last line. The Waterford
full forward line must try and deepen those doubts.
Seán Power
and his management team also have a couple of issues of their own to settle.
Coughing up easy frees ranks high on the list. They are conceding around seven
or eight points per game from placed balls. A continuation of that indiscipline
will come with a severe penalty as Murphy compiles meaty totals. Getting out of
the traps will be vital to settle into unfamiliar surroundings. They managed to
overturn sluggish openings in the Munster
semi final and the final replay but it won’t always be as straightforward to
recover.
Waterford have approached all six games with
an abandon and willingness to attack. The players are not overloaded by systems
or tactics and this has led to a series of end to end clashes. While Kilkenny
may also relish this environment, sticking to their loose style of play should
bring the rewards in the form of goals and another significant points total.
They have hit an average of three goals per game and apart from dipping to
eight points in the Munster
final replay, their points haul has been consistently in the high teens. That’s
the sort of shooting that wins All Irelands. Two out of
three ain’t bad but three out of three is within Waterford’s grasp.
All Ireland Minor
Hurling Semi Final
Waterford v Kilkenny
1.30 at Croke Park
Referee:
Shane Hourigan (Limerick)
Odds: Waterford 11/10 Draw 10/1
Kilkenny 10/11
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