No safety net
The four remaining teams, Waterford versus Dublin and Galway versus Cork will do battle this weekend in a Semple Stadium showdown which will see two teams progress to meet the Provincial winners Kilkenny and Tipperary. The opening game of the double header will feature the Deise up against a Dublin side who thus far in both their league and championship campaigns have shown that on a going day the men from the Capital are capable of competing with the best. A quick look through their 2015 form reveals that they have a potent forward division where in both the Allianz National League and the Leinster/All-Ireland qualifier games they did make the scorekeeper earn his/her pay. Dublin, competing in Division One of the Allianz League beat Tipperary 2-20 to 0-14 before accounting for Kilkenny 0-25 to 3-11. They also posted a win over Galway 0-26 to 2-14 which confirms their shooting radar was "on" at this time. They also went down to both Cork 0-34 to 1-20 and Clare 2-22 to 2-20 before beating Limerick 1-25 to 0-16 in the knockout stages and then going down to Cork 1-27 to 2-23 in Nowlan Park on the same day that Waterford qualified for the Allianz National League final. Indeed most observers on that day were convinced that Dublin were the better team, comprehensively leading against the Rebels only to lose their way late on, whether through over confidence or running out of steam we will never know. Waterford on the other hand had a hugely successful league campaign. Fair to say above all expectations. Dropping just a point, to Limerick in the opening game of their Division One B outings, the Deise beat Galway 0-20 to 0-12 and Tipperary 1-19 to 2-15 in the knockout stage to reach the final. In that Thurles decider Waterford totally outmanoevered Cork to win 1-24 to 0-17 and were faced a few weeks later with a meeting against the Leesiders in the Provincial semi-final. Again it was the Derek McGrath managed outfit who came through 3-19 to 1-21 and this saw them face Tipperary in the final. Unfortunately the Premier had five points to spare at the end 0-21 to 0-16 although many felt the wide count (15) from the Waterford attack was a contributory factor.
In the Leinster championship the Dubs opened their campaign with a draw against Galway 0-20 to 1-17 in the quarter final. The replay was a game to forget for the Ger Cunningham managed outfit as they leaked goals and came out at the wrong end of a 5-19 to 1-18 scoreline.
Since coming through the qualifiers Dublin have disposed of Laois 4-17 to 0-19 and Limerick 1-17 to 1-16. The winners failed to sparkle in both games and some pundits see it as a loss of their early season form. Me, well I see it very much as a case of beating what is in front of you. Does it matter if it is by one or ten points if you keep winning. Maybe that is the message that Ger Cunningham is telling his Dublin troops. Forget the performance, get the result. Another tough day waits for the Deise but really, on form, and that is all we can go on, I expect Waterford to get through with a few points to spare.
If both managers remain close to their opening fifteen of the past few weeks then there are some mouthwatering match ups to look at. Waterford and Dublin will have Stephen O'Keeffe and Gary Maguire as their netminders. The Deise full back line of Shane Fives, Barry Coughlan and Noel Connors will face a formidable front three from Dublin in freescoring Paul Ryan, the robust Conal Keaney and the hardworking Mark Schutte. The half line has been the launchpad for Deise attacks and I believe that will not change, Tadgh de Burca, Austin Gleeson and Philip Mahony have been majestic in the campaigns for Waterford. They will have to be ever mindful that the Dubs half forward division have plenty of pace and know all about scoring. Eamon Dillon, Ryan O'Dwyer and Danny Sutcliffe will more than likely man that line although David "Dotsy" O'Callaghan who carries a lot of experience could well get the nod.
I expect that Waterford will shade the midfield engine room. Team captain Kevin Moran and Jamie Barron have been a hugely successful partnership and if they can overcome the challenge of Daire Plunkett and Johnny McCaffrey, then the Waterford attack are well capable of keeping the scoreboard ticking along. Up front, in the continued absence of centre forward Pauric Mahony, the front six will see Maurice Shanahn at full forward with Colin Dunford and Jake Dillon in the corners. Michael Walsh will lead the attack with Stephen and Shane Bennett along with Brian O'Halloran, Tom Devine and Patrick Curran all looking to get the nod. No doubt the substitutes play a big part in the game and in this respect I do believe Waterford have as good a bench as any team in the competition.
Dublin will rely on an outer defensive line of Niall Corcoran and Shane Durkin flanking Liam Rushe while the full back line of Paul Schutte, Chris Crummey and Shane Barrett will be hoping to put the "shackles" on what is a lethal Waterford inside line.
All said I do believe that Waterford will come through and so line us up against Kilkenny in a Croke Park semi-final showdown. Before that of course we must beat the Dubs. There is now no safety net.
UNDER 21'S BOW OUT
There was huge disappointment in hurling circles last week as Waterford lost out to Clare 0-23 to 1-18 in the Munster under 21 semi-final at Cusack Park in Ennis. A hugely impressive performance against Cork in the opening round had put Waterford to the forefront of the betting stakes at both Provincial and National level. However on the night a fired up Clare turned on the heat in their bid to reach a fourth consecutive Provincial final in the grade and in so doing dashed the hopes of the Deise. Leading 0-11 to 0-10 at the break Waterford got a tonic goal from Patrick Curran midway through the second period but Ian Galvin and Bobby Duggan were unerring in their point taking for the Banner and they just about deserved the win. Clare now go forward to meet neighbours Limerick in the final and I doubt many will write them off at this stage. One thing did strike me after the game. Perhaps the exertions of the Munster Final just three days earlier had taken a toll on the players involved bearing in mind that Tipperary also had only a limited time for recovery before going down to the lads from the Treatystone. Begs the question about amateur players having to play two huge games within three days of each other. Just wondering.
