Latest news with #JohnKiely
The 42
22-07-2025
- Sport
- The 42
The pain for Cork and the joy for Tipperary, this All-Ireland impact will be long-lasting
THE MIDDLE OF May brought two results which shaped the hurling landscape for the year ahead. On a Saturday night in Ennis, Clare came charging at Tipperary and drew level by the 63rd minute. Fuelled by the momentum of their second-half revival and emboldened by the presence of Shane O'Donnell on the pitch, the home team appeared poised to complete the job. The Tipperary response was as startling as it was impressive. They stood tall to outscore Clare by 0-4 to 0-1 in the remainder of the game. The consequences of the result were profound. Clare's defence of their All-Ireland title was over. Tipperary had earned a first Munster championship win since April 2023. It looked at the time like a victory that could propel them forward, it transpired to be something of far greater value – the catalyst towards becoming All-Ireland senior hurling champions two months later. Eight days after that encounter, Cork travelled to Limerick. They were walloped by 16 points on an afternoon where they never hit their stride. It reawakened memories of Cork's destruction at the hands of John Kiely's team in the 2021 final. Their recovery was admirable in qualifying for the Munster final, prevailing in an epic encounter after penalties against Limerick, and dismissing Dublin to reach a third decider in five campaigns. But the May game hinted that the capacity for collapse still lurked in Cork's system. On Sunday that manifested itself in an unprecedented fashion on All-Ireland final day. Advertisement Cork's Conor Lehane after the game Morgan Treacy / INPHO Morgan Treacy / INPHO / INPHO There is no comparable hurling final experience. Waterford were mowed down by Kilkenny in 2008 and Cork were crushed by Limerick in 2021, but both those games were one-sided from the off and the doubt over the outcome was removed by half-time. Waterford trailed by 17 points in 2008, Cork were behind by 13 points in 2021. On Sunday, Cork's six-point advantage looked a perfect springboard from which to attack the second half. Instead they wilted in stunning fashion. A complete systems failure made for a devastating defeat, coinciding with the pure hurling joy Tipperary experienced after a second-half display of staggering dominance. The ramifications of the 3-14 to 0-2 scoreline after the break will be deep and far-reaching. Two days on, it remains hard for either camp to properly comprehend, how good the winners were and how bad the losers were. A head-spinning half of play to draw the curtain down on the 2025 championship. It is one of the sweetest All-Ireland victories that Tipperary hurling will ever experience. Their greatest? That tag feels too subjective to firmly attach, yet it will enter that conversation. Six senior championship wins in succession since the Clare victory. They beat the defending All-Ireland champions, the beaten Leinster finalists, the current Leinster champions, and the current Munster and league champions. That's a significant set of scalps. From a traditional Tipperary viewpoint, to cap the season off with Croke Park victories over historic rivals Kilkenny and Cork, elevates this year to a higher tier. Liam Cahill completes a unique set of All-Ireland managerial triumphs – minor 2016, U21 2018, U20 2019, and senior 2025. The criticism that rained down upon him over the last couple seasons was ferocious in its intensity. His steadfast belief that he and his coaching staff could turns things around was rewarded. The underage accomplishments, three All-Ireland wins across minor and U20 since 2022, have begun to feed through to senior level, as evidenced by the rich contributions of Darragh McCarthy, Sam O'Farrell, and Oisin O'Donoghue. The older crew provided the necessary leadership and enhanced their legacies. Ronan Maher, Michael Breen, John McGrath, Jason Forde and Seamus Kennedy provided inputs in different meaningful ways to land their third All-Ireland senior medal. Noel McGrath landed his fourth to enshrine his greatness. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO Tipperary can bask in the glow of that range of achievements, both collective and individual. The sense of desolation in the Cork camp will be severe. A defeat like last year's final against Clare informs a team that they are close and on the right upward trajectory, a defeat like Sunday indicates a slide and the need for reset. The regrets will be plentiful. Withdrawing Eoin Downey in the 23rd minute against Limerick in May 2024 was a ruthless and strong-minded decision when he was on a yellow card, failing to make that change on Sunday in a similar scenario was a call that back-fired. In the modern game leaving an inside defender on when they have been booked is loaded with risk. Were the second-half substitutions too slow to take place? Four of the five changes occurred in the final quarter when the contest was done, once Darragh McCarthy smashed his penalty to the net. Cork could have been happy with the interval scoreboard position, while acknowledging their early display had flaws and some players looked off-colour. The warning signs grew in the third quarter that this game was moving away from them and change was required. The Tipperary curveball of Bryan O'Mara sweeping in the left pocket in front of his full-back line clearly unsettled Cork. At stages in the first half they coped as they worked stylish points for their best two forwards on the day in Shane Barrett and Diarmuid Healy, while Darragh Fitzgibbon was influential at times early on. But the delivery on other occasions was wayward and in the second half it malfunctioned drastically. Meltdowns on the pitch happen in sport, trying to correct them in-game is not easy. The pressure and expectation that has built up the longer Cork have gone without an All-Ireland title can hang over players and become overbearing. On Sunday afternoon they collapsed in the second half under the sheer weight of it all. The pain for Cork and the joy for Tipperary will remain for some time. The impact of this All-Ireland final will be long lasting. How will Cork treat this outcome as they aim to recover? It feels inevitable that this defeat will be scarring, the third time this group have come away empty-handed on All-Ireland senior final day, while it's the fourth occasion for a few older servants. Will there be turnover in the squad and to what extent? That will be key to observe. The emergence of Healy in the forward line and Cormac O'Brien in defence this year was welcome. The victorious U20 classes of 2020, 2021 and 2023, offer evidence that Cork have developing talents to call upon. Nurturing them to give the squad a fresh injection could help, particularly given the crushing nature of this loss. Will Pat Ryan be the man to oversee it? His three-year term has officially closed, but he has always stressed that he is not a fan of talking in such contractual terms and that the the ownership of the team is with the players and supporters of Cork. Ryan has also repeatedly shared his belief that plenty will want a go at the role of Cork boss, and that the key is to whether he is improving the side to then stay in charge. Two pieces of silverware this year constitued progress before the second half on Sunday rocked Cork back. The players respect and affection for Ryan is obvious. The scale of the potential change ahead for Cork is unclear and will be teased out in the weeks and months ahead. Related Reads Noel McGrath: 'To have my son there was one of the greatest things I could have done' 'We had a terrible game in-house': Tipperary turned it around to claim famous All-Ireland win 'We were walking down the street ducking and diving from people' For Tipperary the future looks promising, but then again it always has been when they have won the Liam MacCarthy Cup. Retaining that crown has eluded the county since 1965. When they halted Kilkenny's drive in 2010, they appeared on the cusp of widespread dominance given the profile of their talented squad, but it didn't materialise that they were on top again until 2016. And yet Liam Cahill has overseen a group that have showcased their resilience and intelligence and hurling class. The manner of Sunday's success and the journey they have taken this season, will fill the Tipperary group with rising confidence. Their hurling future looks inviting, Cork must find their way through the fog of this defeat before embarking on theirs. *****
The Irish Sun
05-07-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
I'd question John Kiely's approach to Munster and All-Ireland with Limerick – and whether he will be manager in 2026
COULD this be the end for John Kiely in Limerick? He has been there for the last eight years and has masterminded five All-Ireland wins between 2018 and 2023. Advertisement 2 John Kiely's Limerick were dumped out of the All-Ireland by Dublin Credit: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile 2 Babs Keating believes it could be the end of Kiely's tenure at the helm Credit: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile But the Treaty, that have scaled so many heights during their era of dominance, are now at the foot of the mountain following their The involvement of billionaire money wins you Liam MacCarthy Cups is nonsense in my view. Men like Kiely and his players are what lifts sides up the Hogan Stand steps . But many of those players may be approaching the twilight of their careers. Sometimes, you're just blessed to get a special bunch like that. Advertisement Read More on GAA I was lucky to be with a Tipperary gang that won five All-Irelands. We waited 18 years for another. Championship by drawing with Tipp in a very ordinary Munster game. Shane O'Brien's 0-4 pulled them through against next day — so to see him dropped for the final came as a shock. Other than a fourth-round romp against The Rebels learned their lessons and did a man-marking job on him in the decider and I'd have questions about how Kiely approached this campaign. Advertisement Most read in Sport It was names-out-of-a-hat stuff to decide a couple of the He hardly played any Palestine GAA players watch camogie match on laptop The performance against Limerick are starting at the same level as everybody else next year. It will be interesting to see if they can make it back to the summit — and if Kiely is the man to lead the trek. Advertisement
RTÉ News
04-07-2025
- Climate
- RTÉ News
All-Ireland SHC semi-finals: All you need to know
Saturday 5 July Cork v Dublin, Croke Park, 5pm Sunday 6 July Kilkenny v Tipperary, Croke Park, 4pm ONLINE Live blog on and the RTÉ News app. TV Live coverage of Cork v Dublin on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, coverage commencing at 2.15pm on Saturday, with Waterford v Clare in the All-Ireland camogie championship preceding the semi-final. Live coverage of Kilkenny v Tipperary on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, coverage commencing on 1.15pm on Saturday, with the meeting of the same counties in the All-Ireland camogie championship beforehand. Watch highlights on The Sunday Game from 10.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. RADIO Live commentaries and updates on Saturday Sport & Sunday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1 - and Spórt an tSathairn and Spórt an Lae on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta. WEATHER Saturday: Mostly cloudy on Saturday with patchy outbreaks of rain and drizzle. While a few bright spells will develop, it'll stay rather cloudy overall. Highest temperatures of 16 to 22 degrees, warmest in the south and east, where it will feel quite mild and humid. Sunday: Cloudy to begin. Brightening up through the afternoon and for the evening with sunny spells and scattered showers. Highest temperatures of 14 to 19 degrees. Semi close to sellout as hurling fever takes hold Tickets are thin on the ground for this weekend's first semi-final, either a further of sign of the expectancy and hype that has taken hold in Cork this year or an indication that hurling fever has finally swept the capital in the wake of the quarter-final triumph and the Dublin footballers' championship exit. Probably a bit of both. When Cork finally saw off Limerick after a penalty shootout on that June evening in the Gaelic Grounds, few would have foreseen that John Kiely's side would be gone from the championship the next time the newly crowned Munster champions took the field. The Dublin hurlers' shock defeat of Limerick in the quarter-final has been described as the greatest upset in the hurling championship in decades, possibly since Antrim's landmark win over Offaly in 1989 (Though Dublin's own humbling at the hands of Laois six years ago is also in the mix.) It was all the more stunning given that they played the majority of the game with 14 men, their celebrated half-back Chris Crummey being red carded for an elbow on Gearóid Hegarty in the first half, with his suspension upheld for this weekend's semi-final. Few beforehand had given Dublin much of a chance against Limerick, especially given their previous championship outing had been a fairly conclusive home defeat at the hands of a Galway team who weren't exactly pulling up trees themselves in 2025. The Dubs led 15-12 at the break following an impressive first half display. However, there was an assumption all the while that Limerick would eventually cut loose and the established order would remain in place. That script appeared to be playing out by the 51st minute, when they nudged 19-18 ahead. However, then Dublin plundered two goals in a minute and suddenly things all got very real. Big John Hetherton, creating chaos inside, fired the first goal on the swivel - a much cleaner strike than his similar-ish goal against Wexford. Then, he broke another high ball down for the excellent Cian O'Sullivan, who slammed home the second. From there, they held on for a famous win, one which possibly even surpasses their Leinster title victory in 2013. History corner - a fixture of woe for the Dubs Saturday will be the 19th meeting of Cork and Dublin in the hurling championship, the former leading 15-2 in the head-to-head, with a solitary draw - back in 1904, since you asked. The Dublin hurlers nominally have seven All-Ireland titles, however all of them dating from the pre-Second World War period when the team was comprised of migrants from hurling country, a disproportionate number of them members of an Garda Síochána. The Dublin team that last beat Cork in the championship in the 1927 All-Ireland final was about as Dublin as a plate of drisheen. The team included Pa McInerney, who previously won the 1914 All-Ireland with his native Clare, Dicksboro's Matty Power, who won four of his five All-Irelands with Kilkenny, and Ballinderreen's Mick Gill, previously part of the 1923 All-Ireland winning Galway team. Other members of the team included Garrett Howard (from Patrickswell), Tommy Daly (Tulla) and Jim 'Builder' Walsh (Mooncoin)... and so on. Cork won the four All-Ireland finals contested between the sides during their glory days of the 1940s and early 50s, aka, the Christy Ring era. The 1952 All-Ireland final was their last championship encounter until an inauspicious Parnell Park qualifier in 2007, just before the Dubs re-emerged as a respectable hurling force in the late 2000s. Cork are seven from seven in championship meetings between the pair in the 21st century. Aside from the '07 game, there have been no real blowouts, most Cork wins being of the arm's length variety - last year's drab, goalless quarter-final being fairly typical. By far the most notable game was the 2013 semi-final, when Anthony Daly's Dublin were serious contenders for an All-Ireland title and appeared to have the upper hand for most of the game until Ryan O'Dwyer's sending off midway through the second half. There was still only a point in it until Pat Horgan's late goal decisively turned the game in Cork's favour. Team news Cork stalwart Seamus Harnedy, a veteran of the 2013 clash, misses out due to a hamstring injury, while Cormac O'Brien is laid low with a quad issue. They're boosted by the return of Declan Dalton at wing-forward, while Rob Downey is able to start this time out. Niall O'Leary comes in for Damien Cahalane at corner back. The Dubs are without the suspended Crummey, though Conor Donohoe returns having served his penance after the CCCC's attention was drawn to his wild swing on John Fleming in the Galway game. Conor Burke slips back to centre-back, while in attack, Darragh Power starts at wing-forward with Diarmuid Ó Dulaing dropping out. Kilkenny and Tipperary meet again after lull in rivalry Time was when this was an annual meeting. The Tipp-Kilkenny match-up accounted for exactly half of all All-Ireland finals in the 2010s. However, the sides haven't collided in the championship since the 2019 decider, when Liam Sheedy's side devoured Kilkenny after Richie Hogan was sent off in the run in to half-time. Tipp, in particular, have been through a pretty savage transitional period, with the celebrated team of the 2010s drifting into retirement and their successors struggling to make the step up. Between 2022 and 2024, they won just one from 12 Munster SHC games. Last season, the Tipp hurling public made clear, by their absence, how little they thought of the current crop. Liam Cahill cut a disconsolate figure at the end of last season. But they've been rejuvenated under his management this year. People were reluctant to read much into their strong league campaign, given its unreliability as an indicator in the past. But this was backed up by a strong showing in Munster, with wins over Clare and Waterford guaranteeing at worst a third place spot. The All-Ireland winning U-20 team has provided an infusion of players, with Darragh McCarthy, Oisín O'Donoghue and Sam O'Farrell impressing throughout the season. Jake Morris and Andrew Ormond, both graduates from the 2019 U20 All-Ireland team, hit a combined 0-10 from play from the half-forward line against Galway in the quarters. The side still contains eight players who had some involvement in the 2019 senior final, though Noel McGrath and Seamus Kennedy were subs the last day, while Jake Morris and Willie Connors were subs six years ago. In total, there are seven survivors from the Kilkenny side in 2019 that played in last month's Leinster final - Eoin Murphy, Huw Lawlor, Paddy Deegan, John Donnelly, TJ Reid, Adrian Mullen and Billy Ryan. The Cats are seeking to bridge a 10-year gap to their last All-Ireland win - which already ties their longest drought since they won their first title in 1904. They may sniff an opportunity with Limerick unexpectedly taken out of the equation, Kilkenny having lost the 2022 and 2023 finals before being caught in a late Clare surge in last year's semi-final. The current crop seem suffused with the same dogged spirit as previous Kilkenny teams and have achieved something of note with a six-in-a-row in Leinster, a milestone which has almost crept up on people. Eoin Cody, absent for the Leinster final, is back available and provides them with a potent goal threat. Mossy Keoghan, their designated point-scorer from play during the cold winter months in the league, has been in superb form this year and opportunistically plundered 2-02 against Galway. Their middle third was especially dominant the last day, with Cian Kenny and Adrian Mullen buzzing around and hitting 0-06 from play combined. While Reid, now 37, was as magisterial as ever. History corner Six years feels like a lifetime without a Kilkenny-Tipperary meeting in the context of the last two decades but the rivalry has gone through longer lulls before. The 1991 All-Ireland final, decided by Pat Fox's brilliance, was their only championship meeting in the last quarter of the 20th century. Prior to this century, Tipperary were unquestionably Kilkenny's bogey team, the Cats regularly suffering in Hell's Kitchen in the 1950s and 60s. The relationship flipped in the Brian Cody era, Kilkenny winning seven from eight between 2002 and 2014 (not including drawn 2014 final). The 2009-11 trilogy of All-Ireland finals is recalled these days as a traditionalists' nirvana, while the drawn 2014 match has gone down as perhaps as the greatest decider of them all - though Cody himself thought the defending was far too loose. The last two finals swung decisively in Tipp's direction, however. Seamus Callanan delivered a bravura performance in the 2016 decider before Bubbles O'Dwyer delivered an expletive-laden interview. Three years later, they had 14 points to spare in Liam Sheedy's first year back in the job, their forwards ruthlessly exploiting their numerical advantage in the second half after Richie Hogan's sending off for an elbow on Cathal Barrett. As it stands, Tipp still hold a 15-12 lead in the guard of honour.
Irish Examiner
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Letters to the Editor: All-Ireland victory cannot be bought
In 2018, Limerick surprised the hurling world when they won the Liam McCarthy Cup after a lapse of 45 years. Over the next five years the Treaty men assembled an outstanding hurling team, or group as John Kiely calls it, and garnered some unprecedented success. What surprised me was so many sports journalists, including some in the Irish Examiner, continued to attribute this success to the 'genius' of Paul Kinnerk on the sideline and the substantial financial input of JP McManus. Last year when Cork overturned Limerick in one of the greatest ever hurling matches in Páirc Uí Chaoimh those same journalists were quick out of the traps to predict that this would not happen again. The overwhelming consensus was when Limerick got Cork into their happy stomping ground of Croke Park that the 'brains trust' of Kinnerk and Kiely would ensure that the Páirc Uí Chaoimh result was a flash in the pan. They did not, however, reckon with the fact that Cork also had a few people on their sideline that knew a small bit about hurling and the Rebels prevailed once again. Fast forward to 2025 when Limerick had stumbled through their league campaign and their opening championship game. We were all assured, however, that Limerick had earmarked May 18 when they would be welcoming Cork to the Gaelic Grounds. Legendary Limerick hurler Ciarán Carey stated the intention was Limerick, in their own patch, would 'put manners on this Cork team'. For whatever reason, Cork did not show up for this game and were beaten out of sight. Once again Carey could not contain himself and proclaimed that the 'green machine' was back on the move and every other county were shaking in their boots. Three weeks later, when Cork once again went into the lion's den for the Munster final, the players and management had not read the script and, after another epic battle, the Mick Mackey cup went home on the Cork team's bus. When Cork recorded a big win over Tipperary in the round robin game at Páirc Uí Chaoimh the hurling 'experts' claimed the victory had no value as they had played the entire game with an extra man. In view of the events in Croke Park on last Saturday week maybe the Cork management could have got some credit for giving a lesson in how to use the extra man. Including injury time, Limerick played for 62 minutes with an extra player and the much vaunted Limerick backroom team did not seem to have any idea how to utilise their numerical advantage. Whichever of the remaining teams manage to win this year's All-Ireland hurling title will do so because they are the best team guided by an astute backroom team. It will not be necessary to have a 'hurling guru' on the side line or to have huge financial backing. Matt Aherne, Passage West, Co Cork Noble Nobel prize winners The suggestion that Donald Trump should win a Nobel peace prize, much less several as he believes, is unsound and offensive. A subjective assessment of the list of peace prize winners, and other Nobel categories, shows people who have contributed so much for so long and made improvements to our lives and our knowledge. How can Donald Trump claim this? His 'complete and total' ceasefire was, like many ceasefires in the Middle East, over before it started and didn't resolve any issues. Pick a noble person for the Nobel prize. Dennis Fitzgerald, Melbourne, Australia What's your view on this issue? You can tell us here Domestic violence A new report by the Women's Aid shows that last year the organisation was contacted circa 32,000 times about incidences of domestic abuse, which is an increase of 12%. The Women's Aid annual impact report for 2024 revealed that abuse is at its highest level in 50 years. Disclosures of sexual abuse rose by 30% and pornography and the manosphere is especially a big concern. Ostensibly there has been 17% more calls to this organisation's free phone helpline for domestic abuse. One would have to say that those figures are staggeringly high, but most experts would state that is this is just the tip of the iceberg. One must remember that most victim survivors of domestic abuse don't contact a speciality service and I find this to be very concerning. Sadly domestic violence remains endemic in our society. It's alarming to learn that 35% of women will suffer domestic violence and will suffer from this abuse over the courses of their lives. By continually highlighting this emotive issue, one would hope that it will encourage more people to reach out for the help that they need. It's startling to also learn that there's a rise in the number of disclosures in relation to former abusive partners. There can sometimes be a misconception that once somebody leaves, and the relationship ends, that the abuse ends. Sadly that's not the case. More than 33% of women last year that Women's Aid supported through their services were experiencing post-separation abuse. It's important to understand that this can can be an exceptionally high risk time because when an abusive partner has worked very hard to gain power and control over their partner, one worries that this can result in serious abuse with murder coming into play too. Pornography is the elephant in the room as it's impacting on how young people view relationships. It is giving sexual scripts to children before they ever embark out on their adult journey. Women's Aid has stated that strangulation has to be now legislated for as well pornography. As a sexual addiction clinician, I have seen the rise in pornography addiction amongst men which is most distressing. We need a multifaceted approach to this problem. When there's a good practice response from the guards , the results of these abuse cases can be transformative. I think it's essential that our education systems are encouraged to support and nurture healthy relationships. John O'Brien, Clonmel, Co Tipperary Civil war in Sudan As the horrors of war in the middle east dominate the headlines, it is important that we do not forget the apocalyptic suffering of the Sudanese people in the midst of 'the world's largest humanitarian crisis', according to the UN. Sudanese armed forces chief General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, centre. The force has been accused of war crimes. Picture: AP Tens of thousands of people have died as a result of the civil war which began in 2023, and more than 12m people have been displaced. There is heinous violence and famine plaguing the African nation. According to the World Food Programme, 24.6m people face food insecurity, while 637,000 face 'catastrophic levels of hunger'. Children have suffered greatly with 15m needing humanitarian aid according to Unicef. The Biden administration determined earlier this year that genocide was being perpetrated by the Rapid Support Forces, one of the warring parties. Their opponents, The Sudanese armed forces have also been accused of totally reprehensible acts and war crimes, including indiscriminate bombing, and attacks on hospitals. There have been attempts to end the conflict including by the US and Saudi Arabia and our own government has rightly provided over €10m in humanitarian support. Unfortunately, this horrendous war continues. Just this week, the World Health Organization stated that 40 civilians were killed in an attack on a hospital in one of the Southern regions. It is imperative that world leaders give this the same attention as the humanitarian disaster in Gaza and the devastating war in Ukraine. A ceasefire, a surge of humanitarian aid and a palatable diplomatic settlement for both sides are essential. Tadhg Mulvey, Trim, Co Meath Read More Letters to the Editor: Ireland does not need a president
Irish Examiner
23-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
TJ Ryan: 'They had a minute's silence for Limerick hurling. We have to take it all on the chin'
TJ Ryan summed up Limerick hurling's aftershock in his inimitable, self-effacing way. "We've had a brilliant time. Up to 2018, we were kind of used to this. As someone reminded me coming out of Croke Park, 'Jesus, Limerick haven't been that bad since you were in charge'." Trademark modesty - Ryan's first season as Limerick boss brought the county to an All-Ireland semi-final with Kilkenny they were unfortunate to lose. But since his successor John Kiely's second year in charge, their hurling followers have known little but glory. Even last year's disappointment brought semi-final involvement. Not this season, after Dublin's stunning victory on Saturday. Speaking on Dalo's Hurling Show Monday, Ryan was braced to take all the slagging on the chin. "I heard they had a minute's silence for Limerick hurling in a pub across the border from us in Tipp. But we'd be the same ourselves if it went the other way, so we have to take it now. "It's different not being involved in an All-Ireland semi-final. But in all walks, there's a changing of the guard. I'm not saying that some of these players will need to be changed. It's just for whatever reason, maybe we've an awful lot of the same players playing an awful lot of the same positions for a long period of time. "And there might be a little bit of surgery required in some parts of the team and some new energy required. "I think our 2025 record will show we won two league games and we won two championship games, when you look at the bigger picture. "Against Cork for some reason, Cork were off that day and Limerick looked awesome and looked like they were at the peak of their powers. "Did that mask maybe the overall season? There were bits of the league, down against Kilkenny in Nowlan Park, we looked very ordinary at times. I know we wouldn't have had a full team out. Even the last round against Wexford. Against Clare in the Championship. I know we had a good few changes, but you still would have expected better." Limerick manager John Kiely during the defeat by Dublin. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile TJ wasn't citing staleness, having liked the look of how John Kiely and Paul Kinnerk were remodelling the machine while in transit. "I thought a new-look Limerick team with Kyle (Hayes) at six and Cian (Lynch) at 11 and Shane O'Brien (at 14) was going in the right direction. I liked Barry Nash going to wing back. it's easy to give out and say you should have done this and this with hindsight, but I thought they were heading in the right direction. "I thought we could have won the Munster final in extra time. If you win that, you'll be sitting in the semi-final. "To be fair to John and Paul, with some of the options they had, they stuck by the guys who had been very good to them and soldiered hard for them and they would have been right to do that. "I just think it'll be time for reflection from them now. They've signed up for two years, so I'm sure that they'll be there again in 2026. They'll have a look at it over the next couple of months and see where they go from here." Read More Anthony Daly: Legacy is secure but this is a crossroads for Limerick and Kiely Hurling, TJ accepts, is a beneficiary of Saturday's shock. As might his pocket if a long odds fancy for the Dubs early in the year comes in. "At the start of the year, this wouldn't have been a major surprise to me, but what was a surprise to me was the poorness of Dublin's form in some parts of the Leinster Championship. Against Galway, you couldn't give them a chance on that performance, but they resurrected something. "It's going to give other teams a shot across their bow to say, you know what, we need to go away and we need to stop whinging and giving out about structures or giving out about other people. We need to fix our own house, get ourselves ready and go and try and win these matches. "I think that's probably what it's done for the hurling championship."
