Brendan Cummins: 'We understand in Tipp, it's never as good or as bad as you think'

Irish Examiner

a day ago

Bank Holiday Monday afternoon on the mountain and Brendan Cummins is back among familiar faces.
He spent years coming to the Cooley Peninsula, often smack bang in the middle of All-Ireland campaigns with Tipperary, with one goal in mind - to chase down Ger Cunningham's record of seven All-Ireland Poc Fada titles.
Cummins equalled Cunningham in 2013, stretched it out to eight and then nine titles before competing for a final time in 2019.
That was until Monday when, after an invite from Martin Donnelly, in his 30th year as competition sponsor, Cummins agreed to do battle with the 5km course again. For a 15th time in total, he reckons.
He finished a creditable seventh of the dozen competitors, three places ahead of Louth's Darren Geoghegan.
"Would you believe he (Geoghegan) used to be carrying the flags for me and watching where the balls were landing when I was coming up here competing years ago," smiled Cummins.
The fire still burns brightly in the former Tipp goalie who was frustrated that half the 5km Annaverna Mountain course was deemed unplayable due to high winds. He had a figure in mind for total pucks that he wanted to beat.
Kilkenny hurler Fionan Mackessy - whom Cummins previously coached when both were involved with Kerry - recognised that the Tipp man meant business and declined to tap him up for advice beforehand, as he had done before winning in 2023 and 2024.
As for taking the title, and beating the likes of Mackessy, or eventual winner Colin Ryan, an All-Ireland SHC medallist with Limerick in 2018, Cummins hadn't quite carried that level of ambition with him up the M1.
"If a 50-year-old starts beating 25 and 26-year-olds in a Poc Fada competition, they'd want to have a look at themselves," he said, referencing his landmark 50th birthday at the start of the summer.
Brendan Cummins competing in the Senior Hurling competition during the M. Donnelly GAA Poc Fada All-Ireland Finals at Annaverna Mountain in the Cooley Peninsula, Ravensdale, Louth. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
Around 300 were in attendance in Ravensdale for the annual competition and Cummins broke about even in the request-for-a-selfie count with former world boxing champion Bernard Dunne, a regular attendee and close pal of sponsor Donnelly.
It has been the best of years for him and Tipp, with two All-Ireland hurling titles tucked away, one of those thanks in a large part to Cummins.
He continued as U-20s manager and, just like 2019, the underage side managed to match the seniors by winning the All-Ireland.
Keeping both teams at the top now, is the next challenge.
"There's no doubt that when you have a sweet spot there with fellas going well and the young brigade coming through, that you have to make the most of it," said Cummins.
"And that's what we'll try to do again. It might work again for us next year, and it mightn't. But we'll keep going, next year and the year after and the year after. And we'll win again, at some stage, but there's no guarantees when it'll happen.
"Like, you couldn't say that the Tipp hurlers and the Tipp U-20s are guaranteed to even get out of Munster next year. You couldn't say that. And that's what fuels us all to get going again."
Cummins, just in off the punishing mountain course with its giant peaks, valleys and ravines, knows more than most about how quickly sporting fortunes can rise and fall.
"We understand the situation in Tipp, that it's never as good as you think it is, and never as bad as you think," he said.
"Go back to Thurles last year and Tipp were beaten handily by Cork and everyone thought, 'This thing has blown up altogether'. They turned it around. I was delighted for Liam Cahill because he got wicked stick last year.
"And that's the way it works as a manager, he understands that, we all do. But to turn it around, I'm delighted for him."
Darragh McCarthy, Oisin O'Donoghue and Sam O'Farrell, key figures for Cummins' U-20s this year, all made significant contributions to the senior success.
Cummins, U-20 manager since the end of 2021, has monitored their development closely. He sees more young phenoms potentially following their lead.
"I can see right down through the food chain, as we'd call it, and there's lots of potential there," he said.
"But we have to develop them and bring them on and accelerate that progress as quick as we can by using our experience as management, that's the trick."