Brendan Maher departs as a Tipp legend
By Shane Brophy
3 years a minor, 4 years as an under 21, 13 years as a senior.
Brendan Maher could nearly drive blind-folded to training at Dr. Morris Park in Thurles such has been his service for over half of his life.
Well, he’ll be swapping the training field for a seat in the stand after calling time on his amazing career with the Tipperary jersey, topped off by captaining the Premier County to All-Ireland senior glory in 2016.
Maher turned 32 last January and while there are older players than him still playing at the highest level, the Borris-Ileigh man has contributed so much to the Tipperary cause since he was a fifteen year old that he can step away knowing he gave it his all, and leaves still playing at the highest level.
“Going into this season I was thinking about having one last go here,” he said of his decision.
“The last few years coming back from the injury, the toll that took mentally and physically, I could see the end coming. The niggly injuries were coming, and it was harder to stay going training.
“Then there are other things that happen in life when you are getting older, thinking about getting married and have different responsibilities, so you come to a stage where it is very hard to stay giving the commitment you know is needed.
“I was content enough to look back and say that’s it, I’ve done my best and it’s time to hang them up now.”
Maher first joined the senior panel in late 2008, and it feels like his career has gone by so quickly that we are now seeing one of the greats of Tipperary hurling calling it a day.
“When I was writing out the statement, I had to work out how many years I had done,” Maher added.
“When you say thirteen it doesn’t feel like thirteen years but it is in a good way. There has been lots of ups and downs but in the fairness, the success we have had over the last decade or so has been more ups than downs.
“It really has flown by, particularly since 2016 which only feels like last year, after that win and the celebrations after it in Borris. Things like that are still fresh in the memory, which is good but obviously, all good things must come to an end.”
Great players contribute in different ways, some are flashy, some are hard nosed, but Maher was a bit of everything which is what made him such a favourite among the supporters. He was incredibly consistent and never phased by anything that was thrown at him, helped he feels by having to grow up quickly on teams he was very young for.
“I remember my mother saying that to me after a parent-teacher meeting in secondary school that it was one of the things they noticed in me,” he said of his maturity.
“I was used to that pressure of needing to perform from a young age because coming from a club that we wouldn’t be flooded with numbers, I started under 10 when I was five or six, and under 12 when I was seven, so I was always young starting everything, so it was something that was built into me so I never really feared anything. Growing up with three older brothers as well was good for me as well so there are a few little things that help build you up to become the man you are.
“I had a consistent approach that I always wanted to look back and say you gave one hundred percent regardless of how well or how poorly you played, I always concentrated on my preparation, my approach, and my attitude and once I had those boxes ticked, I could say I was happy with what I had done and given it my all.”
Maher was fortunate also to come along with what is described as Tipp’s best golden generation since the 50’s and 60’s with such a strong number of players from the 2006 and 2007 minor teams going onto to under 21 and senior glory over the last fifteen years or so and the Borris-Ileigh man is keen not to forget some of the players, unfortunately lost along the way.
“We lost a few lads along the way, the likes of Seamus Hennessy, Thomas Stapleton, Pa Bourke, there was a right crop of us there from minor in 06 through 07,” he said.
“It was special to experience so much with those lads, I don’t think at the time we felt we were this golden crop, we felt there was a group of us here that have been hurling together all the time and it was just a normal thing, it was a funny way to come into a set-up with a group like that.
“We were lucky to be able to push on and fulfil our potential.
“I can remember the Monday morning after the 2010 senior All-Ireland and going for a pool session with the group of us, there must have been close to ten of us on the panel at that stage who were under 21.
“That week just flowed and I can remember after ten minutes we had three goals popped in against Galway and it felt like the story was written. It was an unbelievable six days that probably won’t happen again with the way the fixtures are changing.”
That All-Ireland double in the space of six days in September 2010 saw excitement build to unrealistic levels in the county, looking towards another period of Tipperary dominance at senior level since the 1960’s, but it never happened for one reason or another.
It took another six years for Tipperary to get their hands on the Liam MacCarthy Cup once more, this time with Brendan Maher as captain as he became the fourth Borris-Ileigh man to have that honour, joining the great Paddy Kenny, Jimmy Finn and Bobby Ryan.
“That was a special time,” he recalls.
“With the history there is in Borris, it was nice to be able to add to that. The community here have been so supportive through thick and thin over the years so it was nice to have that moment to bring the Cup back to them. I’ll never forget turning the corner on the bus on the Monday night, it was spine-tingling stuff.”
From the highs of 2010 and 2016, came the low of June 2018 when Maher went down in a crumpled heap on the sod at Semple Stadium in the process of trying to prevent a Clare goal which ultimately knocked Tipperary out of the championship.
“I remember the disappointment of losing the game outweighed the injury,” Maher recalls.
“It was a funny week and then getting the news on the Wednesday and the call from Brendan Murphy that things weren’t good. He’ll kill me for saying this, but he rang me almost laughing, saying ‘Brendan, it’s a bit of a mess’ which was the last thing I wanted to be hearing.
“There was a lot of damage (knee) done but I was really lucky to have great support around me, the likes of Brendan Murphy, Paddy O’Brien, Cairbre O Ceareallain, the work they did with on a one-to-one basis to get me right, plus a really good surgeon in Ray Moran so I got the best of support which is something not everyone is lucky enough to find themselves in such a situation.
“It meant 2019 was a big year, just to be able to come back and reach the level of performance that I did, that was something I am really proud of.
“There were times when I went through a period where I had a set-up in my brothers shed and was going to do sessions and I was failing to finish them, the motivation, everything, was gone; I was after hitting a wall.
“So, I started training a bit with Seamie Callanan, and that helped, and then started getting in amongst the group again and when that happened it took off. Cairbre O Ceareallain was a massive help as I would meet him before work to do a session two or three mornings a week, and then we’d do the group stuff in the evenings, so I was literally doing nine sessions a week between everything, so it was full on, but it was enjoyable as I knew I was doing everything right and it helped me mentally in that I knew I had everything done and when I got back hurling I didn’t have those mental challenges that some players would experience when they aren’t sure if the knee is strong enough and would worry the injury would happen again but I didn’t have that.”
What we saw from Brendan Maher in 2019 was simple incredible, not only to come back from a serious injury, but to play to such a consistently high level which saw him win his third All-Star.
From his superb high catch and point in the first game against Cork, Maher was back and in that campaign was the go-to defender for Liam Sheedy in terms of marking the oppositions most dangerous forward, from Clare’s Tony Kelly, Limerick’s Aaron Gillane, Wexford’s Rory O’Connor and finally Kilkenny’s TJ Reid in the All-Ireland Final.
“I took it as a compliment, that I was trusted to do that,” he said of his man marking duties.
“You are always trying to do your bit, and if the team wins everyone wins. It was always a mindset I had that if I was asked to play somewhere I played there and did my best.
“I always put a lot of trust in management and selectors to pick me wherever was best for me and that is just what I always have been; I have never felt like dictating or should be playing here or there; it was always I’ll do my best and trust they know me and are watching what I am doing, and put me in the best position they feel will get the most out of me.
“There were negatives to it sometimes where your versatility can go against you because it is hard to settle as you are getting moved around, you almost become a problem-fixer. It just has been something that has been a part of my hurling journey from a young age, playing in different positions, and even still while I play centre back for Borris a lot of the time, I am still played midfield and in the forwards at times so I am well used to it.”
That 2019 success was also a validation of sorts for many of that Tipperary team that had done so much hurling since 2009 that three All-Ireland titles was the least they deserved to show for their efforts.
Maher said: “You’d always think about that, we came up against the greatest team every in those 09, 10 & 11 finals, and 14 they were coming towards the end, but 2019 was one of those ones of deep satisfaction that we had done something that sets us apart a little bit, that justifies the performances we have given consistently over the years. It was definitely a sweet one of get the third one and be a part of a select group. In Tipperary we are not littered with three or four All-Ireland’s in a decade.”
Having been invested in Tipperary hurling for so much of his life, Brendan Maher is comfortable with his decision to step away and is looking forward to tasting life as a supporter in 2022.
“When I was injured, it was a different mindset as you are still very much in the circle and thinking as one of the players, but I am looking forward to being a supporter next year and going to the matches.
“Being able to go with the lads, and the family, and have a drink after the matches and enjoy the whole experience, I actually can’t wait for it.
“I can go knowing I have done my bit, given it my all, done my time, and have no regrets. There will be times I will feel I’d like to be still be inside the white lines but everything has to come to an end so I am happy with what I have done.”
Tipperary Roll of Honour
3 All-Ireland Senior – 2010, 2016 (Captain), 2019
1 All-Ireland Under 21 – 2010
2 All-Ireland Minor – 2006, 2007 (Captain)
3 All-Stars: 2010 (No. 9 & Young Hurler of the Year), 2014 (No. 5), 2019 (No. 5)
5 Munster Senior – 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016
2 Munster Under 21 – 2008, 2010
1 Munster Minor – 2007 (Captain)
Senior Championship appearances: 58
Senior Championship scores: 0-28
Senior Championship debut: 2009 v Cork (sub), first start – 2009 v Limerick (All-Ireland semi-final)