
All-Ireland hurling final: Nicky English's Tipperary player profiles
Age
: 24
Club
: Moycarkey-Borris
SHC debut
: 2023 v Limerick
READ MORE
Shelly has reclaimed the number-one spot after the early-season rotation. He has been very solid and like the team, is improving. Getting more confident in his puckouts and their range were seen to particularly good effect against Kilkenny. Shot stopping is also reliable.
2. Robert Doyle
Age
: 22
Club
: Clonoulty-Rossmore
SHC debut
: 2025 v Limerick
At this stage, he's in the running for Young Hurler of the Year. Consistently outstanding, very tight, quite wiry, strong and not afraid to play from the front. He has also used the ball very well in possession. Vital intervention at the end of the semi-final spared the GAA's blushes, bearing in mind the scoreboard controversy.
Robert Doyle (left) during the All-Ireland semi-final against Kilkenny. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho
3. Eoghan Conolly
Age
: 25
Club
: Cashel King Cormacs
SHC debut
: 2023 v Limerick
Nominally a three but can play anywhere (he was a midfielder last year) and was outstanding at wing back against Kilkenny. Not particularly effective at full back on Alan Connolly earlier in the season, although he still scored his usual quota of impressive, long-range points. Cork came pretty hard through the middle that day.
4. Michael Breen
Age
: 31
Club
: Ballina
SHC debut
: 2015 v Limerick
Very experienced, strong and fast, he often picks up the opposition danger man. Has already marked Conor Whelan and Brian Hayes. Maybe his only flaw is that he over-commits in the first challenge and as a result has been rounded easily on a few occasions. Key defender for Tipp.
5. Craig Morgan
Age
: 26
Club
: Kilruane McDonaghs
SHC debut
: 2022 v Waterford
Versatile and dependable, he's been used at midfield during this year's league and was a corner back at underage level. Morgan is primarily a defender and a very good one. Strong and powerful, he can be a bit understated because he's not spectacular, but does a really good job. A very good player.
6. Ronan Maher
Age
: 29
Club
: Thurles Sarsfields
SHC debut
: 2014 v Galway
Outstanding for many years even when battling in isolation, but now well supported by younger players. Evolution into man-marking rather than stand-up central defence suits him better. Marking TJ Reid, Peter Duggan and potentially Brian Hayes appears a better fit than the pace of Darragh Fitzgibbon. Best long-distance sideline cutter around.
Tipperary captain Ronan Maher taking instructions from manager Liam Cahill. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho
7. Bryan O'Mara
Age
: 25
Club
: Holycross Ballycahill
SHC debut
: 2023 v Clare
Since his UL Fitzgibbon days, I've been a big admirer of O'Mara. I say this even though, at times, he's left me scratching my head a bit. Recently though, he's found his feet and against Kilkenny, was outstanding in defence. Now emerging as the leader he always looked destined to become.
8. Willie Connors
Age
: 28
Club
: Kiladangan
SHC debut
: 2018 v Limerick
Has emerged as a key midfielder in a year of rotating partners. A very neat hurler, able to pick off scores when he gets a chance. Sometimes he is over-inclined to shoot, but he can be very happy with his year. Does his bit for 50 minutes and holds his own in most games.
9. Conor Stakelum
Age
: 26
Club
: Thurles Sarsfields
SHC debut
: 2022 v Waterford
Vying for second midfield position with three or four others, including his brother Darragh. They are all good players – energetic, able to tackle and compete very hard. Stakelum scored three points in a big contribution against Kilkenny when Tipp looked out of it. Has had plenty of hurling and also strengthened up.
10. Jake Morris
Age
: 26
Club
: Nenagh Éire Óg
SHC debut
: 2018 v Cork
If Tipp take the All-Ireland, Morris is likely to be Player of the Year as they'll hardly win without a big game from him. Beautiful touch. Outstanding even in the defeat against Cork when he carried the fight with Tipp down to 14. Has grown not just physically, but also into a major leadership role.
When Jake Morris is at his best, Tipperary are generally in with a good chance of winning. Photograph: John McVitty/Inpho
11. Andrew Ormond
Age
: 26
Club
: JK Brackens
SHC debut
: 2024 v Limerick
Injury and bad luck delayed the fast blossoming I had expected. Returned as sub against Cork and had a real go. A fixture since and brilliant against Clare. An absolute dynamo, playing hard and thinking cleverly. Had big moments against Kilkenny, when he won hard ball and vital frees. Game changer.
12. Sam O'Farrell
Age
: 20
Club
: Nenagh Éire Óg
SHC debut
: 2025 v Limerick
Beautiful hurler and captained the victorious under-20s. Another versatile player who is probably suffering for it. Exceptional number seven, which is where his future probably lies, but doing a fine job at wing forward. Not at his best against Kilkenny but a significant contributor during what's been a long year for him.
13. Darragh McCarthy
Age
: 19
Club
: Toomevara
SHC debut
: 2025 v Limerick
An underage star and outstanding since his senior call-up in the league. McCarthy has built on that since: really good against Limerick and played well against Kilkenny, regardless of missed frees. Issue is his carelessness with the hurley. Needs to find a different way to tackle, as he can't keep putting referees in that position.
14. John McGrath
Age
: 30
Club
: Loughmore-Castleiney
SHC debut
: 2016 v Cork
Outstanding club hurler – and footballer – who has battled injury, especially to the Achilles tendon. McGrath's intercounty career looked done against Cork in Thurles last year. He regained confidence with the club and now, back to his best, is scoring goals. He is even creating uncertainty for Huw Lawlor, the best full back in the game.
15. Jason Forde
Age
: 31
Club
: Silvermines
SHC debut
: 2013 v Kilkenny
A different animal to the one missing frees in last year's league semi-final. Bright prospect and a top Fitzgibbon player with UL, but struggled at times to deliver on reputation. Excelled against Kilkenny when he took over frees from Darragh McCarthy and nailed vital ones, having scored a marvellous goal.
Replacements
: The midfield cover - Darragh Stakelum, Alan Tynan and Peter McGarry - is nearly interchangeable with the starters. As a result, they have been impactful and energetic. Noel McGrath brings guile and a steady hand, while Oisín O'Donoghue has brought menace up front.
Management
: Liam Cahill, Michael Bevans, Declan Laffan, TJ Ryan. For someone under such pressure last year, Liam Cahill couldn't have scripted this better. Most of the youngsters he introduced in the league are still there. Getting out of Munster was the main target, getting to a league final and All-Ireland semi-final has been bonus territory. This, however, is off the charts.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Irish Daily Mirror
14 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Tipperary All-Ireland triumph over Cork breaks RTE online record
The TV audience for Sunday's dramatic All-Ireland hurling final peaked at a huge 1,119,000 towards the end of the game as Tipperary surged clear of Cork. The Premier's shock victory at Croke Park drew an average audience of 980,000 viewers to RTÉ2's coverage on The Sunday Game Live with 78% of the available audience tuning-in as Joanne Cantwell presented live coverage. The audience peaked at 5.10pm as Tipperary powered on to Liam MacCarthy Cup glory. In a sign of the times, The Sunday Game Live (including Sunday Game Beo) had 400,645 streams on RTÉ Player yesterday. That makes it the highest online audience for a GAA football or hurling final on RTÉ Player to date. The Sunday Game on the night of the final, presented by Cork native Jacqui Hurley, was watched by an average of 244,000 with a share of 29% while there were 39,000 streams on RTÉ Player. RTE's hurling weekend began on Saturday night as some 316,000 watched Up For The Match on RTÉ One. That show had 58,000 streams on RTÉ Player. Fans were also heavily engaged with "The Sunday Game" across RTÉ's social media platforms with video views reaching 6.19 million with over 668,000 engagements.


Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Ashamed to be seen in public just one year ago, Tipperary's redemption story defies belief
After Cork eviscerated Tipperary by 18 points in last year's Munster championship, Liam Cahill fronted up to reporters, as he always does. He ended his press conference by saying Tipperary were 'officially going into a real rebuild job.' Limerick beat them by 15 points three weeks earlier, so by a process of humiliation, they had arrived at ground zero. Cahill also said that he might be laying a foundation for whoever succeeded him and that was a reasonable forecast. Nobody had any grasp of a timeline for Tipp's rehabilitation, though everyone accepted that it would involve pain and patience. Everybody was thinking about worst-case scenarios. As Tipp know from the 1970s and 1980s, time can disappear into a black hole. For Tipp to win an All-Ireland 14 months after that demolition by Cork in Thurles has no precedent in the modern history of the championship. When they won the 2019 All-Ireland, it was only a year after they had failed to win a match in Munster. However, that 2019 team included nine players who had started the 2016 final, which Tipp won. When Liam Sheedy came back for his second stint as manager for the 2019 season, he faced a refurbishment job. To start again, Cahill had to knock down walls and rewire the place. Dermot Bannon might have taken it on, but he'd have blown the budget and fallen out with everyone on site. READ MORE During the off-season, there were 16 changes to the panel, which was more churn than any other elite team. Between the match-day 26 for the Cork game in the round-robin series last summer and the All-Ireland final on Sunday, there were 10 changes to the squad, including seven changes to the starting team. Tipperary's Conor Stakelum savours the moment at the end of Sunday's All-Ireland SHC final. Photograph: Morgan Treacy/Inpho That was an extraordinary through-put of players in such a short space of time. Even between the first round this year against Limerick and the final on Sunday, there were four changes in personnel and a change at goalkeeper, full back, centre back, centre field and centre forward. Andrew Ormond didn't play a minute against Limerick, neither did Willie Connors. Michael Breen spoke after the match about how 'intense' training had been in January and February. Cahill finished last year listening to complaints that Tipp had trained too hard in the first part of the season and had nothing left for the championship. A similar charge had been levelled at him in his final season with Waterford. Cahill accepted that they had made mistakes in their conditioning programme last year but that didn't mean they were going to ease up. In January, nine days before their first league game against Galway, Tipp played Sarsfields in a challenge match in Riverstown. Sarsfields were building up to the All-Ireland club final and expected to get a hiding, but in the event, they didn't lose by much. Tipperary hurling captain Ronan Maher with Oisín Crowe during the All-Ireland champions' visit to Children's Health Ireland at Crumlin today. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho Cahill was so exasperated by the performance that when the game was over, the Tipp players were made to do a block of running before they left the field. By that stage, they had already lost a challenge match against Dublin. Nobody had them tagged as dark horses. Before the quarter-finals, when there were only six teams remaining, they were still 10/1 shots for the All-Ireland with the bookies. 'I remember meeting Jake Morris a couple of weeks after [Tipp were eliminated in Munster last year] and you're nearly ashamed going around to show your face because the manner in which we went out,' said Jason Forde. 'And we said as a group all year, there's nobody going to come and save us. We had to go back and put in the work and drag ourselves up out of it and thank God we did.' Much has been made of the contribution of Darragh McCarthy , Sam O'Farrell and Oisín O'Donoghue from the Tipp under-20s squad. It flew in the face of all modern trends for players of that age to make such an impactful breakthrough at senior level. On the biggest day of all, McCarthy had his best game of the season. But just as critical was the reinvigoration of Jason Forde and John McGrath. At the end of last season, there was no guarantee that either of them would carry on. Forde met Cahill for a conversation during the off-season and maybe he didn't know which way it would go. Tipperary's Ronan Maher and Bryan O'Mara were both on hand to collect after Cork's Brian Hayes failed to block the sliotar during the All-Ireland SHC final. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho 'He wasn't talking me around anyway,' said Forde. 'It was a very honest conversation. After the season finished, you were meeting people and they were saying were you going to bother going back, nearly writing you off that you were finished. When I met Liam, I just said we couldn't leave things like that, the year that we had. Having played for Tipp for 13 seasons and winning All-Irelands and things like that, to leave it on that note, it just wouldn't have felt right.' Forde, though, had been a regular starter on the team last year. McGrath had appeared just twice in the championship for a combined total of 40 minutes. The last time he had started a championship game for Tipp was in 2022; the last time he had started and finished a championship match was in 2020. Injuries played a part in that, but form was a greater reason. This year, McGrath was reborn. He finished the championship with 7-16, making him the joint top scorer from play alongside Dublin's Cian O'Sullivan. Nobody else scored seven goals. Not only that, but all his goals were consequential: two against Limerick, two against Clare, one against Kilkenny when Tipp were bailing water, and two in the All-Ireland final, when he plunged the dagger into Cork. In 14 months, their world had gone from night to day. In the second half in Thurles last year, Cork outscored them by 3-15 to 0-7; on Sunday, Tipp won the second half by 3-14 to 0-2. Redemption can never have tasted so sweet.


The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Cork hurlers ‘request' no homecoming after heartbreaking All-Ireland final defeat against Tipperary
CORK'S senior hurlers have decided against holding a homecoming event following their All-Ireland SHC final defeat to Tipperary on Sunday. It marks a second successive loss in the decider for the Rebels, having been narrowly beaten by Clare in 2024. 2 Cork will skip a homecoming after a heavy defeat in the All-Ireland final 2 Tipperary players and staff celebrate with the Liam MacCarthy cup after their side's victory in the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship final Last year, a crowd still gathered at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh to welcome the team home in defeat. But there will be no similar event this time around after their collapse against the Premier. Boss Pat Ryan Yet they capitulated in the second half of their bid to end the county's 20-year wait for a Liam MacCarthy Cup. read more on gaa A statement from Cork GAA confirmed the team did NOT want any sort of homecoming but they tanked their fans for the support throughout the season. It read: "At the request of the team and management, there is no event planned for the return of the Cork hurlers this evening. "They would again like to thank all the entire county for their unwavering support throughout the year." Cork led by six points at half-time in Croke Park but were outclassed in the second half. Most read in GAA Hurling Pat Ryan's side managed just two more points as they slumped to a 3-27 to 1-18 loss. Meanwhile, Tipperary supporters are set to welcome their All-Ireland champions home to Thurles later today. RTE GAA pundit embrace Tipperary captain Ronan Maher after his epic display toppled Cork in All-Ireland final Tipperary PRO Jonathan Cullen told RTÉ's Morning Ireland that celebrations will begin at Semple Stadium around 4.30pm. The team are expected to arrive – Liam MacCarthy Cup in hand – at approximately 7.30pm. A large crowd is anticipated is expected after their first All-Ireland triumph .