ALL YEAR, THOSE around, within and over the Limerick team have been guarding against any praise, pushing the paranoia through the roof.
“It’s a softening up exercise,” said manager John Kiely after their opening round of the Munster championship, a win against Waterford when the fate of that game wasn’t entirely in their hands.
Any hint of complacency has been mercilessly stamped out among the panel. At the end of May, reigning hurler of the year Diarmuid Byrnes laid out his own views when he stated, “People talk, the media talk, they need their reference points, they need something to talk about, they need their likes and shares on Twitter and Instagram. That’s their own thing.
“The pundits have to come up with something to write about, and unfortunately it’s us.”
Well, here we are. Limerick are heading into the All-Ireland final bidding to become the first team outside of the Big Three of Tipperary, Kilkenny and Cork to achieve four consecutive All-Ireland titles.
Standing in their way is Kilkenny, the only county to have managed such a feat in what might be termed the modern era.
It has only been done one other time, by Cork in the years 1941-44.
What binds those two achievements together is the names of a few people centrally involved.
In an era before such a role was officially recognised, the redoubtable figure of Jim ‘Tough’ Barry was the Cork trainer.
On the pitch, he had Christy Ring in his first few seasons as a Cork hurler.
The Kilkenny triumph featured Henry Shefflin in his prime, with Brian Cody on the line.
If Limerick can do it, the credit would feel a lot more universal, with it spread through management figures such as Paul Kinnerk and Caroline Currid, while the playing ranks has a more even look while retaining genuine superstars in the likes of Byrnes, Kyle Hayes, Cian Lynch, Gearoid Hegarty and Aaron Gillane.
Here, we look at the teams that did four-in-a-row, and those that missed out.
Kilkenny 2006-2009
Nothing motivates like the success of others. And for Kilkenny, watching Cork go back-to-back in 2004 and 2005 stirred something in them.
It was a fascinating clash of styles and personalities between the two teams. Kilkenny had beaten Cork in 2003 to prompt a Rebel resurgence, with both sides meeting each other three times in the next four finals.
Kilkenny polished off a medley of Munster teams in these finals; Cork (2006), Limerick (2007), before the high point of that team in annihilating Waterford 3-30 to 1-13 in 2008.
The win over Tipperary in 2009 was a tight run affair, and it took a Lar Corbett hat-trick of goals in 2010 to end the run. Only temporarily, as they came back in 2011 to win again, with more triumphs on the way in 2012, 2014 and 2015.
Cork 1941-44
Without an All-Ireland title since 1931, the previous decade had been a bewildering period as Limerick and Kilkenny dominated.
They caught a break. Foot and Mouth ravaged a good portion of the country and Tipperary and Kilkenny suffered more than most, being excluded from the competition with Cork and Dublin being put forward for the decider.
Cork won by 20 points. The following year, the same pairing met and this time it was seven points.
Antrim became the first Ulster team to reach the final come 1943 but it was a mismatch with 27 points separating them.
The toughest of the four wins was 1944, but only because of what happened in their own province. Meeting Limerick in the final, Mick Mackey was in his 16th season playing for the Treatymen and in inspired form. A late point from Dick Stokes brought it to a reply.
In a time of war and rationing of petrol, thousands went to Thurles by all sorts of means for the replay. A 65-year-old man, Peter Ryan, walked 40 miles from Lisnagry to Thurles.
Trailing going down the stretch, Christy Ring magicked up a goal to win it. They beat Dublin 2-13 to 1-2 in the final.
The following year they fell hard with a 2-13 to 3-2 defeat to Tipp in the Munster semi-final.
What of the other teams that reached three-in-a-row?
Cork 1892-1894
Although there had been moves to change the nature of the All-Ireland championship, this was the era in which club representatives were still fighting it out.
Cork clubs were reluctant early adapters but Aghabullogue got them off to a fine start with a win in 1890.
By 1892, Redmonds of Cork beat Dublin side Faughs-Davitts, 2-4 to 1-1 in Clonturk Park, Drumcondra.
The year after, it was the turn of the famous Blackrock club, facing Kilkenny’s Confederation at the Phoenix park. ‘Cork’ ran away with it, 6-8 to 0-2.
The final part of the trio was a back-to-back for Blackrock, beating Rapparees of Dublin in Clonturk Park, 5-20 to 2-0.
How did it all end? Well, Cork didn’t field a team in the 1896 championship, in protest at the GAA awarding the 1893 All-Ireland football championship – played in 1895 – to Dublin.
Tipperary 1898-1900
Tipperary crested the new century of 1898 to 1900 as champions.
This run was part of five titles in six years with further wins in 1895 and 1896.
The years of any of these triumphs are not to be read into literally. The 1898 final was held on March 25, 1900. Tipp were represented by Tubberadora, while Kilkenny had Three Castles fielding. Tipp won 7-13 to 3-10.
For the 1899 championship, Moycarkey got the business done against Blackwater of Wexford, 3-12 to 1-4, the game played on March 24, 1901.
The 1900 championship was notable in that Tipp beat Galway 6-13 to 1-5 in the ‘home’ final, played in Terenure on September 21, 1902, with the ‘final’ then taking place a month later with Tipp beating London, 2-5 to 0-6.
Meeting Cork in the Munster championship semi-final the following season, five Tipperary players did not turn up in time for the game. Some 45 minutes after the allotted throw-in time, Cork appealed to the referee, Mr TF O’Sullivan, to order a walkover. He complied.
Kilkenny 1911-1913
GAA officialdom and chaos being what it was in this period, Kilkenny were actually meant to be facing Limerick in the 1911 final (fixed in 1912 on 18 February), but it was postponed, owing to the state of the pitch in the Cork Athletic Grounds.
It was then moved to Thurles, but against Limerick’s wishes, so they boycotted. Tipperary stepped up and were beaten, 3-3 to 1-1 in Fraher Field, Dungarvan.
The 1912 final featured Tullaroan against Cork’s Blackrock. Mercifully, this was the game that got the GAA back onto a calendar year footing, Tullaroan winning 2-1 to 1-3.
It was the turn of Mooncoin in 1913, who beat Toomevara of Tipperary 2-4 to 1-2.
The following year, Laois took Leinster and were beaten by Clare in the All-Ireland final.
Tipperary 1949-51
The Premier county took their 14th title in 1949, with the final now taking place on the first Sunday of September. By now, all teams were representative of their counties and Tipp beat Laois (captained by the exotic name of Paddy Ruschitzko) in the final, 3-11 to 0-3.
Kilkenny provided the opposition the next year and Tipp prevailed by a point. Jimmy Kennedy topped the scoring charts that year and helped himself to a 3-6 haul out of their overall 4-8 against Limerick in Munster.
In an era of Nickey Rackard and Christy Ring, this edition of Tipperary players were renowned for their ability to win games by slender margins, but the final win of 1951 was an example of them cutting loose, running up 7-7 to 3-9 against Wexford.
Cork put an end to their gallop in the following year’s Munster final by two points, going on to achieve their own three-in-a-row.
Cork 1952-54
Captained by Paddy Barry in 1952, everyone really felt that this was Christy Ring’s Cork and he assumed the metaphorical armband the following year, leading the Rebels to two more Liam MacCarthy titles.
In truth, even though Ring would play on until 1962 with Cork, this was the high-water mark, his peak as a player before Tipperary, Wexford and Waterford began carving up the titles for the next dozen seasons.
They stopped the Tipperary side coming off the back of three All-Irelands themselves in the Munster final and won the 1952 final against Dublin, 2-14 to 0-7.
The following year’s final was shrouded in controversy. Ring was being well looked after in the final against Galway before a blow took his marker, Mickey Burke, out of proceedings. Cork went on to win 3-3 to 0-8, but it led to a tussle between some Galway players and Ring that had the Cork captain stumbling down the stairs of the Gresham Hotel that night.
1954 was Ring’s final All-Ireland title. They beat Wexford 1-9 to 1-6 in the final. That was only the start of the Yellowbellies as they would go on to win the next two All-Irelands.
Cork suffered a shock defeat in the first round of the Munster championship to Clare, 3-8 to 2-10 in Thurles.
Cork 1976-78
Arguably the most stylish of all the Cork teams, with the likes of Ray Cummins, Tom Cashman, Seanie O’Leary, Jimmy Barry Murphy and Gerald McCarthy.
They beat Wexford in the first two deciders, 2-21 to 4-11 in 1976 and 1-17 to 3-8 in ’77.
Charlie McCarthy captained their three in a row team in 1978, when they put Kilkenny to the sword in the final, 1-15 to 2-8.
The following year, a one-point win over Tipperary and a thumping 2-14 to 0-9 win over Limerick in the Munster final was a sure sign Cork were as good as ever.
However, they found themselves completely blindsided by Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final. They would have to wait until the Centenary year of the GAA in 1984 before they would land the Holy Grail again.
