Drom & Inch GAA Club

Westside’s View of County Final

Last Updated on Thursday, 13 October 2011 10:19 Written by trevorhassett Tuesday, 11 October 2011 01:08

A novel county final pairing should add freshness to the hurling showpiece on Sunday as West and North vie for distinction in a year of inter-county disappointment. Drom, still chasing a first title, have shown commendable persistence as they face their fourth decider in six years. For the West side the number four is important too as they seek to add to titles won in 1997, 1989 and that far-off one from 1888. A fascinating final then in prospect with Drom the marginal fancy to finally make the breakthrough.
The O’Riain Cup final is also a West/Mid affair with Kickhams and Moycarkey seeking consolation for disappointing seasons in the top flight. Elsewhere the relegation issue took a turn during the week with Cashel’s appeal rejected by the management committee; where the affair goes now seems unclear. And summer 2012 may seem far off but already we know the line up with Tipp facing a tricky schedule in defence of their Munster crown.
So, a championship that started out with thirty-two entrants last spring has been whittled down to the last two. Without the foresight of one of those Old Testament prophets not too many would have anticipated this pairing at the start of the campaign. They’d have been in the top band of clubs alright but probably behind such as Sarsfields, Toomevara and Loughmore in the pecking order.
There’s no doubt both sides will see this as a case of opportunity knocks. Drom have lived in the shadow of Sarsfields and Loughmore on previous visits to the final so in The Ragg this will be seen as a window of opportunity, one not to be missed. For Clonoulty too the prevailing wisdom will see this as a chance that may not reappear so handily again. All to play for both sides then in a game that has fascinating potential.
On these occasions one is immediately searching for previous clashes between the sides as some sort of indicator of events to come. Well, they met at quarter-final stage in ’07. The game was played at Cashel where Clonoulty were eventually pipped by two points in a goal-less affair, 0-15 to 0-13. The West champions had led by two at half time. Interestingly Seamus Callanan had to take over the free-taking that day from Seamus Butler and he ended with a tally of 0-10. Clonoulty will be hoping to avoid a repeat on Sunday.
That game was played just four years ago but it’s interesting to note the changes in personnel in the interim especially on the Drom side. Only Eamon Buckley survives from Drom’s ’07 defence – he played full back that day. James Woodlock was midfield but Johnny Ryan was in the forwards beside Callanan and Seamus Butler. Including Damien Young in goal I reckon only six of Drom’s ’07 starting team will line up on Sunday. That’s quite a hefty turnover in personnel.
By contrast I reckon Clonoulty will start with about nine or ten of their ’07 side. Most of the defensive end is intact in front of Declan O’Dwyer. Tom Butler was midfield in ’07 beside Paudie White and John O’Keeffe was in attack. A seventeen year-old John O’Neill came in as a second half sub and was unlucky to miss a crucial chance in the tight finish. Timmy Hammersley was top scorer on 0-8.

So the core of the Clonoulty side has remained since ’07, the year which started their five-in-a-row sequence in the West. It’s the newcomers who will probably attract most interest on Sunday because they were the surprise package in the semi-final. Sean O’Connor was back from injury the last day and the fortnight since then should help his preparation. Otherwise it seems Clonoulty will again be without their injured contingent, Thomas Butler, Paudie White, Jason Forrestal and Conor Hammersley. It’s a heavy drain on a club side to be missing so many regulars but they made light of the losses in the semi-final.
The real success story surrounding Clonoulty in both the quarter and semi-final games was the impact of the youngsters who were called upon to step up to the plate. Sean Maher, Kieran Quirke and Jamie Moloney all played important roles in the side’s shock win over Sarsfields. Repeating that impact is now the challenge for Sunday.
There’s no doubt defensively Clonoulty are well set up, especially with John O’Keeffe likely to play in that zone once again. What will be watched with interest is who picks up Seamus Callanan. John Devane is seen as a leader in that defence but not the type of close, man-marker who will be required to shadow Callanan who tends to drift into position. The Callanan job presumably will fall to either John O’Keeffe or Joey O’Keeffe – brothers, of course, but vastly different in hurling temperament.
I’ve no doubt Clonoulty will see Callanan as the fulcrum around which that Drom attack functions and will put careful plans in place to counteract his influence. They wouldn’t want to ignore the other Drom forwards either. David Butler is an improving player who looked very impressive in the first half especially against Mullinahone. David Collins and Seamus Butler can score too so while Callanan is the key man the others deserve respect also.
A major worry for Clonoulty must be the fact that they’re likely to have such a young, inexperienced element in the forward line. It worked well in the semi-final but finals can be more challenging. In that regard they’ll hope for big games by the likes of John O’Neill and Timmy Hammersley to ease the pressure on the youngsters. The Drom defence is marshalled by Eamon Buckley at centre and Mike Costello has been catching the eye on the inside line.
On known form Drom will expect to have an edge at midfield where Johnny Ryan is having a great season beside James Woodlock. Ryan is one of the slickest strikers around and regularly chips in with three or four points, so he’ll require careful watching. Tom Butler and Sean O’Connor could have an important role to play here for Clonoulty.
Overall it’s viewed as an intriguing tie, one that’s too close to call for many pundits. The betting odds see Drom as slight favourites. The difficulty for Clonoulty is to try and reproduce the heroics of the Sarsfields’ match though I’m sure Drom will worry too about their past experiences in finals; they lost in ’09 and ’07 by nine points on what were let-down occasions. This year’s Mid final was yet another setback for the team. They’ve been inconsistent but I’m sure they’ll feel on balance they’re due a good final. At full strength I’d fancy Clonoulty to do it but those injuries alter the scene significantly. Maybe the bookies have it right?