Paul Flynn Waterford Hurling Legend Retires

Waterford's Paul Flynn has retired from intercounty hurling at the age of 34. He was one of the greatest free takers of all time. He was the game's greatest goal scoring free taker since Christy Ring and Nicky Rackard. Along with DJ Carey, Flynn is the only player of the last 25 years to feature in the leading 20 goal scorers in championship hurling history.

The accuracy and power of his shooting whether from placed balls or from play struck terror into opposing defences. The key to his success was his wrist work. His striking was poetry in motion. It was sharp . It was crisp. His anticipation and quick thinking cost hurling defences dearly. Invariably if he decided to go for goal he succeeded. He was always on alert for the goal scoring opportunity.

Sadly he failed to win an All Ireland Senior Hurling medal with Waterford. However he won three Munster Senior Hurling titles, a National league title and an All Star. He also won an All Ireland under-21 medal and a Munster minor medal.


The 2004 wonder goal against Cork in the Munster Final can be viewed on youtube .This is only one of many.View the Paul Flynn profile here at hurlingstats .

Thanks to Paul for his monumental contribution to Waterford hurling. No doubt he will serve Ballygunner and Waterford in a selectorial or coaching capacity in the future. Undoubtedly he will impart his skills to juvenile hurlers in the Deise.
Ni bheidh a leitheid aris ann.

Superlative display by Kilkenny puts Waterford to the sword

This was arguably the greatest display ever by any Kilkenny hurling team in an All Ireland Senior Hurling final. The crushing of Waterford by 3-30 to 1-13 at Croke Park was accomplished by team work of the highest order. Kilkenny manager Brian Cody has honed the players skills to new levels. Their speed of striking, hooking, blocking, hunting in packs and execution of scores has reached a new level of competency. No team in Ireland could have withstood the Cats onslaught. Inded it is doubtful if a rest of Ireland team would stand a chance against the Black and Amber. This Kilkenny team is a hurling machine and is undoubtedly the most skilful ever to grace the hallowed turf of Croke Park. There were no weaknesses evident. The three in a row has been achieved. Cody will now go in search of the four in a row.

What of Waterford?
Quite simply the team froze on the big occasion. The excessive levels of hype and expectation in Waterford in the wake of the defeat of Tipperary in the semi-final certainly affected the team. Try as he could Davy Fitzgerald could not insulate the team. This was reminiscent of Limerick in 2007. Fitzgerald and the backroom team did everything possible to prepare the team for the final.
Interestingly Nicky Brennan president of the GAA made reference to the fact that President McAleese had noticed a degree of nervousness among Waterford players.

In addition several players have a high degree of mileage on the clock. This has begun to take its toll. Players such as Dan Shanahan and Seamus Prendergast appear to be burnt out and probably need a long rest. It is noticeable that both players have failed to rediscover their form in the wake of injury.

Major problems in defence have continued to dog the team. Efforts to protect the full backline place too much pressure on the players further out field. Kilkenny ruthlessly exploited Waterford's defensive frailties. It is highly unlikely that Waterford can win an All Ireland Senior Hurling title with such defensive weaknesses. However there is the nucleus of a good team with players such as John Mullane , Eoin Kelly , Michael Walsh and Stephen Molumphy still in their prime.

Waterford needs to play more ground hurling. Ground hurling can upset the rythm of teams such as Kilkenny. Players need to to strike the ball much quicker. Too much ball watching is also a weakness in defence. Defenders need to improve under the dropping ball. Overhead striking must be improved.

It is quite possible that players such as Tony Browne and Paul Flynn will retire. So it is now time for the rebuilding process to commence. Davy Fitzgerald and his backroom team must remain in place. The county hurling championships may hopefully throw up some new talent. The search should not be confined to senior clubs only but should extend to intermediate and junior also.

The National Hurling League campaign can be used for experimentation. It is best to risk relegation in an effort to unearth new talent.

Undoubtedly the players feel badly bruised. However time is is a great healer. Come January they will be champing at the bit to set the record straight.

Davy Fitzgerald should ignore sniping from critics such as Tony Considine. Incidentally Tony Considine failed dismally as manager of Clare hurlers.

Waterford is a great hurling county. Waterford supporters are resilient and will continue to support the team. Waterford will rise phoenix like from the ashes of defeat. To hell with the critics. We will drive on until we win the elusive All Ireland Senior Hurling title. Indeed this defeat will only increase the determination to bring this about. This is our burning ambition.

This team has won three Munster senior hurling championships and a National Hurling League title. We are justifiably proud of the players.

Finally thanks to Davy Fitzgerald, the selectors , backroom team and players for for all their hard work.

Waterford V Wexford All Ireland Senior Hurling Quarter Final-Reflections

Waterford defeated Wexford in this exciting game played at Semple Stadium today by 2-19 to 3-15.
The game had some excellent passages of hurling and in fairness Wexford probably deserved a draw.
Once more Eoin Kelly, Eoin McGrath and John Mullane were Waterfords outstanding forwards. Today we saw small glimpses of the Dan Shanahan of old. He scored 1-1 and was far more involved in the play. However he is not at full throttle yet.

The Waterford forward line is not functioning fully as a unit.
More combined play, ground hurling and diagonal balls are an essential prerequisite for the Semi Final against Tipperary. In addition the half forwards must continuously harry the Tipperary defenders who are clearing ball. This involves 70 minutes of concentration. As a Waterford forward carries the ball towards the Tipperary goal others must run off the ball and be prepared to take a pass a la Ben O’Connor, Gerry O’Connor or Cathal Naughton for Cork
Brick Walsh struck a lot of good ball at centre field. Jamie Nagle is improving from game to game and struck a beautiful point.

Unfortunately Waterford has major defensive problems. Ideally Ken McGrath is a centre back. However I think that Davy Fitzgerald has no option but to play Ken at full back.
The Waterford defence plays too much loose hurling. Backs are too prone to ball watching. They must man mark. It was noticeable today that Wexford forwards continuously roamed the field without being picked up. Each back is responsible for the man he is marking. His function is to prevent the forward from scoring.
Today the Waterford backs were caught flat-footed by diagonal balls. Loose Wexford forwards picked up soft scores. Each defender must pick up an opposing forward and mark tightly. Once more this demands concentration.
Players such as Rory Jacob and Stephen Doyle got too much room today and nearly snatched the game for Wexford.
The looseness was not confined to the full back line. It also extended to the half back line.
This problem has dogged Waterford for the last five years and has probably cost the county an All Ireland.
Failure of the backs to tighten up will result in a hammering by Tipperary. Tipperary forwards play with blinding speed and skill. Backs should not be afraid to use the shoulder once it is not into the opponent’s chest. Each back must continuously ask himself the question: Where is the player I am supposed to be marking?

Tipperary followers-after Waterford’s performance today- are now speaking in terms of their opponents in the All Ireland final. They fancy themselves against either Cork or Kilkenny.
Davy Fitzgerald and his backroom staff have done well to revive this Waterford team which had a poor National League campaign and which performed very poorly against Clare in the Munster Championship.
Notwithstanding Waterford’s sluggishness the team is now in the semi-finals. After the debacle against Clare few supporters could have hoped for as much.

Senior Hurling Qualifier: Waterford V Offaly

Waterford’s defeat of Offaly in this All Ireland Senior Hurling Qualifier was not too surprising. The game played at Semple Stadium Thurles featured some quality hurling from both sides.
Offaly backboned by u-21s is a team on the rise. Offaly players in general displayed high skill levels with excellent blocking, hooking and some deft flicks. They tackled furiously and at times knocked Waterford players out of their stride. However some needless frees were conceded. Nevertheless J Bergin, D Currams, S Dooley, D Molloy and D Kenny amongst others are players for the future. Offaly manager Joe Dooley has put in place firm foundations.

What of Waterford? The performance was like the curate's egg good in places and bad in places.
Looking at it positively the full back line did not concede any goals. However the half back line has its problems. In general the back line is not watertight enough and tighter marking is required. Loose Offaly players were noticeable throughout the game.

There were stellar performances from Eoin Kelly and John Mullane in the forward line. Eoin Kelly contributed 2-13 (0-9 from placed balls). The forward line is not functioning as a unit. Seamus Prendergast and Dan Shanahan may not be fully fit. Both had injury problems. Movement off the ball and support play is not as it should be for an effective forward line. To a certain extent some players are inclined to overplay the ball. On drier grounds more ground hurling is essential against teams such-as Wexford-which favour continuous picking of the ball. In addition it speeds up the game.

It was noticeable that on a couple of occasions the Offaly goalkeeper caught the Waterford forwards off guard and took a short puck out to a defender.
Some Waterford players need to speed up their striking. They are too easily hooked and blocked down.

Wexford will enter the quarter-final game against Waterford as firm favourites. I suspect that Waterford Manager Davy Fitzgerald will not be too unhappy with this state of affairs.

Waterford's six goals against Antrim and interview with Davy Fitzgerald

Embedded from RTE.IE

This video from RTE's Sunday Game shows interviews with Davy Fitzgerald, Sambo McNaughton, Eoin Murphy, Eoin McGrath and Dominic McKinley. It also shows Waterford's six goals scored against Antrim in the All Ireland qualifier played at Walsh Park on Saturday last. The interviewer was Marty Morrissey.

Ireland-Church of Ireland bishop lashes failure to introduce abortion legislation

The Church of Ireland Bishop of Ossory, Right Rev Michael Burrows has attacked the "the systemic spinelessness" of politicians in failing to enact abortion legislation in the wake of the X case. Thankfully FG and FF strongly oppose such legislation. There is not one word from the Bishop about the right to life of the unborn child. Therein lies the problem for the world wide Anglican Communion. Increasingly Anglicans have sought to trim their Christian beliefs to accommodate the increasing secularism in Western Society. This path will lead to the destruction of Anglicanism.

There can be no accommodation between Liberalism and Christianity on the abortion issue.The systemic spinelessness-in relation to abortion-lies within some elements of the Anglican Communion not within the political system in Ireland. The vitality of the Anglican Church is being sapped by an insidious liberalism which ensures the church incapable of taking a firm stand on the abortion issue.

Dr Audrey Dillon of the Pro-Life Campaign said:"there is nothing 'hypocritical and ostrich- like' about seeking as a society to respect the dignity and humanity of the unborn child while at the same time putting supports in place to assist women in crisis pregnancy".
Any attempt to introduce limited abortion in Ireland would be the thin edge of the wedge. It must be firmly resisted.

Rugby Union World Cup-Argentina shocks France

The defeat of France by the Pumas last night was quite a shock. Bernard Laporte erred grieviously in team selection. Since his appointment he has been dogged by criticism. The hype in France probably got to the team also. In addition the French probably underestimated Argentina.

There is an assumption amongst many Irish supporters that Les Blues are there for the taking. This is unlikely to be the case. Unfortunately Ireland may suffer a French backlash. Errors in team selection will be corrected. Generally the French can defeat Ireland on home soil. France may destroy Ireland in the scrums. French players will know that defeat to Ireland will result in an ignominious exit from the competition. Ireland can expect a torrid encounter. France will probably make a whirlwind start and attempt to destroy Ireland in the first twenty-five minutes.

Some analysts on the various channels were unwilling to give Argentina too much credit. The Pumas have problems in the line out. Also they resorted quite a lot to the garryowen. Panellists were of the opinion that overuse of the garrowen-against Ireland-would play into Girvan Dempsey’s hands.
The Argentinean front row is superior to Ireland's. They will probably pummel us in the scrums. Their confidence will be at an all time high. There is an assumption that the Irish team is stronger than it actually is. In several key positions there is a lack of adequate cover. There must be doubts about the fitness of Shane Horgan and David Wallace. Ireland can secure an advantage in the line –out. Also the Irish back division is superior on paper. Hopefully Ireland can eke out a win. It will not be pretty.

Hurling-Limerick hype could be costly

According to Limericktoday Early bird shoppers at Brown Thomas on O'Connell Street could have mistakenly believed that they had walked in on a male fashion show on Saturday morning when they were greeted with the sight of the twenty strapping young men parading through the store.

On closer inspection—after one or two double-takes by the ladies—they realised that the familiar faces were those of the Limerick hurling squad who were trying out their new designer suits for size.Brown Thomas have fitted the entire panel with finely tailored Hugo Boss three-buttoned single breasted navy suits to ensure the team not only look the business on the pitch this weekend but off the pitch also......


Also in Limericktoday The next ten days or so could prove to be very crucial for the long term benefit of Gaelic Games in Limerick.
We are all thrilled and overwhelmed with our senior hurling team booking a place in the All-Ireland final on September 2. The emotions of supporters is at an all time high and that is natural particularly in a county that has been starved of success and it is their right to hope for victory over Kilkenny in what we all hope will be a truly great final.History tells us that we have lost more All-Irelands than we have won in the last 66 years so it is fair to say that when it comes to the pain and disappointment of losing finals we are right up there with the likes of the Mayo footballers......


Will hype derail the Limerick juggernaut? The best dressed team to win an All Ireland Hurling Final? The best dressed team to lose an All Ireland Hurling Final?
Limerick supporters are supremely confident that their team can out muscle Kilkenny. Confidence is at an all time high. Much is made of the fact that the Shannonsiders got the better of Waterford in the physical stakes. However this was a physically drained Decies side.
The Cats are themselves a physically powerful side with greater skill levels than Limerick. Any attempt by Limerick to over engage in the physical will result in disaster.
The Cats- freed from the burden of too much hype- will fancy their chances.