Borrisoleigh are punching above their age
By Kevin Egan
The match programmes for Saturday’s All-Ireland Post Primary Schools Senior ‘C’ Hurling semi-final between St. Joseph’s College Borrisoleigh and Clonfert College featured the teams for all 12 schools that were involved in Senior ‘B’, C’ & ‘D’ semi-finals played across the weekend.
But as St. Joseph’s principal and hurling coach Michael Collins confirmed afterwards, it’s doubtful that there was any of the other eleven sides listed with as young of a starting team.
“We started that game in a senior All-Ireland semi-final with only one sixth year on the field,” he revealed.
“Our other two sixth years who came on, Billy O'Brien and Cathal Kennedy, both picked up injuries in the Munster final. So as a team they're very talented but young.
“They might be young but there's two or three of them county minors in 2026, two or three more are win with the Celtic Challenge and we had county minors last year.
“So, they're a talented bunch, we just wouldn't have the same volume of hurlers in maybe the bigger schools. But just the same, if you go back, I know it seems a long time ago now but not in our minds, 20 years ago Seamus Callanan and Brendan Maher were on a similar team and they were young, that’s two All-Ireland winning captains there.
“There are some very talented players there that are just 16, 17 years of age. And I think that even amplifies how hardy they are to take on a very physical, mature Galway champions and Connacht champions. They're just a great bunch of tough lads from tough clubs. Templederry, Toome, Borris-Ileigh, it’s built on solid stuff.”
There was a decent crowd in Banagher, unsurprisingly given the lack of rain and a relatively handy venue for both teams, and the same is likely again for a final against Coláiste Naomh Cormac from Kilcormac, just 40 miles up the road. Whether it’s Birr, Nenagh, or perhaps across in Portlaoise, Collins is confident that from their side at least, it’ll be a mass migration from the school’s hinterland.
“We'll make sure now most, if not all of our school are there, and the rest of all the parishes,” he beamed.
“With everything mad that's going on in the world and locally, and everyone busy with life, it's great to have these positive things. It's been a while coming but just the atmosphere around the place is brilliant and everyone is getting a great kick out of it.
“It lifts everyone and a big shout out to the two coaches (Willie Ryan and Michael Halpin) and everyone else in the school that's making this possible”.