WHEN THEY TRAILED Tipperary by 10 points at half-time in the Munster hurling final, even the most ardent Limerick supporters would have admitted hauling the Premier back was a long shot.
And yet by the midway point of the second period, they led by two points after the most spectacular comeback. The All-Ireland champions outscored Tipp by 1-10 to 0-1 in the third quarter and by the final whistle they were five ahead.
Even for a side with the undoubted greatness that Limerick possess, the 15-point turnaround and nature of their second-half performance was otherworldly.
Clare All-Ireland winner Colin Ryan joined host Maurice Brosnan and The42′s Kevin O’Brien to discuss Limerick’s victory on the latest episode of The42 GAA Weekly.
Assessing where Tipperary got joy in the opening 35 minutes, Ryan explained: “Liam Sheedy targetted the Limerick full-back line, they got joy out of it and got two goals. That gave them a pep in their step.
“I thought they worked extremely hard in the middle third of the field. Limerick were carrying the ball in there and getting overturned, they had a couple of really sloppy passages of play in the first-half which is very unusual for them.
“They kind of had this performance in them, Limerick. That first-half performance has kind of been coming, I thought. But my God, Tipperary have awoken the beast.”
The mistakes made by Limerick in the opening period were cut out and they quickly found their rhythm after the restart.
“Limerick came out in the second-half and they ran with more intensity, they worked the ball really well, created width in the field. What they were doing in the second-half compared to the first is they were working the ball into areas where they were delivering it without being under pressure.
He continued: “That’s when Peter Casey comes in because he’s making darting runs left and right. Seamus Flanagan, Gearoid Hegarty, they worked hard and turned over the ball for Aaron Gillane’s shot. They probably got fortunate too, Gillane’s shot was saved and the ball just fell to Seamus Flanagan.
“But then to have an athlete like Kyle Hayes go up the field, personnel comes into play but Limerick are extraordinarily fit. We had this argument going into the game about Tipperary, whether they could hold them and did they have the pace?
“With the weather conditions and the effort that Tipp put into the first-half, they just wore themselves down and Limerick just went into another gear in the second-half. Their fitness levels showed, their athleticism showed, they just got a bit more composed.”
Ryan also felt Limerick coach Paul Kinnerk, who he worked with for the Banner’s 2013 All-Ireland success, had a major influence behind the scenes.
“They did get a bit lucky but the way Limerick worked Tipp out and worked around that, I think that shows the importance of Paul Kinnerk.
“His ability to do in-game analysis and to work teams out…to have that 15 minutes at half-time he would have really changed up how they were playing and found out what they were doing wrong and explained it to them. They just came out and did exactly what he told them in the second-half.”
To listen to the full episode, go to members.the42.ie.
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