Cahill appointment provides hope

By Shane Brophy

Liam Cahill was always going to manage Tipperary at senior level at some stage, the only question was when.

When the Ballingarry clubman turned down that opportunity last year, not even he would have thought he would be in the hot-seat twelve months later. Events transpired for that to happen, not just in Tipperary where the brief Colm Bonnar era just didn’t work out and there was no evidence or belief to suggest it would get any better in 2023 with him at the helm. In terms of Cahill and Waterford, at the start of the year they were widely tipped as the team best equipped to knock Limerick from their perch, yet come the end of the Munster Championship they were out on their ear, along with Tipperary.

It goes to show how quickly things can change in the modern game and why there can be optimistic glances that Tipperary can rise quickly next year. You only have to look at Waterford as an example, in 2019 they were the whipping boys of the Munster Championship, yet the following year, albeit December 2020, they were in an All-Ireland final, guided there by Liam Cahill and Michael Bevans. What Tipperary supporters wouldn’t give to be in that situation in twelve months’ time and it is entirely possible with a fully prepared and focused panel of players.

The confirmation of the appointment has given all prospective players an extra incentive to perform in the upcoming county championships and you know Cahill, Bevans and co. will get to as many matches as they can from senior to junior level if it can throw up a player that can do a job for Tipperary going forward.

The vast majority of players from his minor and under 20/21 winning teams should be hitting their prime over the next few years. However, physically, many aren’t at the level they should be for their age in comparison to Limerick, and that is what Cahill and Bevans will have to work on initially.

There are always players in Tipperary. This years under 20’s were very competitive and there will be players from there in John Campion, Paddy Creedon, and more who can go onto senior level, while last years under 20’s were also decent, it can be forgotten they dominant six points clear at half time against the subsequent All-Ireland champions Cork, with the likes of Max Hackett and Devon Ryan to the fore.

Then there are the players who have slipped off the scene for various reasons, including Jerome Cahill who decided that senior inter-county hurling wasn’t for him, but if there is one man who has the best chance to change his mind it is Cahill whom he worked under for four years at underage level.

As interesting as the new blood that comes in, will be whom he retains of the more experienced players. If it is a complete rebuild, all will go, but Cahill will be the first to know that Tipp have to win some championship games next year, so experience will be needed. Some will be retained in the likes of Ronan Maher, Cathal Barrett and Noel McGrath, the latter is playing too well to be told his services are no longer required and if he is only primed to play in the championship, so be it. Will there be room for Seamus Callanan and Patrick ‘Bonner’ Maher to sign off on better terms but in modern hurling there is no sentiment anymore? John McGrath and Barry Heffernan will be under pressure to be ready for next years championship following their long-term injuries. Will John O’Dwyer get an opportunity to come back?

Cahill’s appointment won’t be a quick fix, but it does provide hope for better things in 2023, which keeping Colm Bonnar on for a second year wasn’t going to bring. Expectation levels rise straight away but when it comes to Tipperary hurling, there should be a certain level of expectation every year as without it, we don’t have an identity.