Morris has developed into a leader of men

By Shane Brophy

There are two ways to react when a red card is issued, one is to challenge the referee and lose focus, the other is to just get on with the game.

For Tipperary, it was the latter in the aftermath of Darragh McCarthy’s red card in the 58th minute of the All-Ireland semi-final against Kilkenny, led by Jake Morris.

The vice-captain was first on the scene, and his reaction was to tell Darragh to get off the pitch; more or less saying, we have a job to do.

It’s another example of the steely mentality that has developed within this Tipperary team this year, that no challenge is beyond them.

“There was no point in us going in and complaining to the ref, he had made his decision and the refs decision is final,” Morris recalled.

“So, it was really about switching back on and getting the lads set up well with the two (forwards) inside and everyone else back out the field and getting your shape again because we didn’t have time to feel sorry for ourselves in the moment.”

The Nenagh Eire Og clubman said the proliferation of red cards in recent seasons has made all teams used to having to compete a man down, with Tipperary’s ability to rotate players into different positions helping them overcome a numerical disadvantage.

“Definitely, in this team, but historically Tipperary have always had forwards rotating,” he explained.

“It’s really what you have to do because it is easier to get a handle on a fella when you stay in one position all game. Moving around and taking a lad into different positions, you find yourself on ball in different places.

“It makes our team tick a little better when we are rotating especially with Darragh going out to take frees, we like to make sure we set up well, so someone slips into the full-forward line to cover him.

He added: “It will bring the group on a massive amount to get through that battle with fourteen men. It was really satisfying but that is down to the hard work the group has put in all year long, how honest it is.

“We have been doing that all year, even when we went down to fourteen men in Cork, we still stayed trying and stayed playing to the final whistle.

“That is something we were conscious of since the start of the year that no matter how a game is going, we stay hurling to the final whistle. It is a good trait for a team to have.”

This Sunday will be Jake’s second All-Ireland final having come on as a sub in the 2019 victory over Kilkenny. While this is largely a new group of players, they contain a lot of similar traits from that All-Ireland winning team, particularly in terms of belief.

“I was on the periphery then, coming on and learning my trade whereas now this team is one I have been playing with a lot of lads I came up along with from minor and under 20 which feels nicer, especially being part of the leadership group of the team, taking more of an onus on yourself,” he said.

“We have lost a lot of leaders since then and it is a really good feeling to be with this team.”

“We have full belief in our group and management team. We know we have top hurlers in the county, with the 20’s winning the All-Ireland, and the minors winning the All-Ireland last year, there are serious hurlers in Tipperary.

“It was really about getting the hard work done in the winter months and coming in under the radar, taking it game by game through the league, picking up a bit of momentum, and it’s really important what a few wins can do for a team and the morale of the whole county, the people are getting back behind us.

“The support at the semi-final was absolutely phenomenal. Coming up on the bus we knew we would have massive support, three or four to one I’d say easily, and that definitely spurred us on in the last twelve minutes.”

Crossroads

Right from day one of this campaign and the league win away to Galway, Tipperary have been building step by step, but there comes a time when a statement needs to be made to instil the belief within the group that they are good enough to compete with the best, and for Jake, that came in the first game of the Munster Championship against Limerick.

“The league was the league. We had a good league. We went after what we wanted to go after, and got a good bank of fitness in,” he recalls.

“You would have to look at the Limerick game in the championship, you get a point there, it was really important to get at least a point early.

“Then to go toe to toe with Limerick, so that was a good starting point for us, and for the supporters as well.

“Also, the way we responded in Cork with fourteen men was a tough task was another reference point.

“Then going to Ennis and knocking the All-Ireland champions out on their home patch was the one where the belief really came up from that game in the county.”

Now 26 years of age, Morris is in his eighth year on the senior panel, coming straight in out of minor, making an immediate impact in his first season with the equalising point in his championship debut as a substitute against Cork in Thurles.

Jake admits it has been an up and down ride since but feels this year has been his most consistent run of form, contributing on average over three points per game in the championship so far, while is role in the attack has also been modified.

“It has probably been my most consistent year,” he admitted.

“There were a couple of tough years, there is no point saying otherwise, and I did in particular.

“It has helped in the way that the team is performing, it’s not focused on any individual, it is the collective with everyone chipping in.

“Predominantly, I have been playing inside since I came on the scene. After a chat with the management, they said I’d be deployed a bit further away from goal, and that has helped my game anyway. I am enjoying it out there, but also being able to go back inside, as well. There is a bit more freedom to get on the ball and use your legs a bit more than inside where you could be waiting five or ten minutes for a ball to come in and you have to make hay with it. Just being involved in the game more is helping my game.

“I am enjoying it. It’s a really good team to be playing in, we work really hard for each other with different lads chipping in all the time and a bench that is making a serious impact when they are needed to.”

Jake has also developed into a real leader, retained as vice-captain for the second year in a row, and he feels the honour and responsibility has helped him become a more rounded player.

“Being vice-captain is a huge honour,” he said.

“I was given it last year when I was 24. Liam (Cahill) put a lot of faith in me, and I have worked with him a long time as well, so we probably know each other’s work.

“Over the years in Tipperary, the good captains that I have played under like Padraic (Maher), Seamie (Callanan), Brendan (Maher), Noel (McGrath) and now Ronan, none of them are for banging their hurleys off the table in the dressing room. They just lead by their hurling.

“But we still have Noel (McGrath), Seamus Kennedy, and these fellas in the dressing room. It is not a massive onus to be different, but you are conscious of showing good leadership on the field.”