AS THE CLOCK wound towards the final 10 minutes of the 2013 Munster minor hurling final, Waterford looked to be on course for provincial glory.
The young Déise side were leading Limerick 2-18 to 0-16 with a seemingly inevitable outcome on the way. With 48 minutes on the clock, Limerick had released Tom Morrissey off the bench. But now, with the deficit standing at eight points in Waterford’s favour, Morrissey’s — and Limerick’s — mission looked a lot more perilous.
A quick burst saw Limerick survive to salvage a draw, outscoring Waterford by 2-3 to 0-1 in the final moments. Morrissey squeezed out every second of his substitute appearance to devastating effect as he picked off 1-1 in that sequence. His goal was the crucial score in the game, coming in the final minute to rescue Limerick: a sniper’s effort from a tight angle to announce his name on a major stage. That draw paved the way for Limerick to eventually prevail after a replay, and send these boys down a road that was paved with riches.
“It was a cracker of a goal,” then Limerick minor manager Brian Ryan remembers in conversation with The 42, ”and he knew that a point wouldn’t be enough. In fairness to Morrissey, he knew what had to be done. He got the ball in a good position and had the confidence to go for it.
“There was about 30,000 people in the stadium at that stage [of the game] because Limerick were playing Cork in the senior final the same afternoon, so it was a big ask for a young 17-year-old.
“He’s a physically strong player, and he’s hard to shake off. He had those attributes as a young minor. Obviously now with the strength and conditioning, and the whole programme and senior inter-county level, he has benefitted hugely from that, both on and off the field.”
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Morrissey has been a mainstay on the Limerick senior team since their incredible breakthrough in 2018. But it is this year that he has evolved into a leader of the team. When John Kiely’s side were looking off colour in the early rounds of the Munster SHC series, Morrissey emerged to help them trudge through the mud.
He has 12 points to his name as they approach the Munster final against Clare on Sunday, and his contribution away from the scoreboard is equally impressive. The Ahane forward excels in winning primary possession and his general play is best characterised by his monstrous workrate.
Those qualities have always been in Morrissey’s locker. Ryan identified all of them during his two years in charge of the minors in 2013 and 2014 when they completed back-to-back successes in Munster after replays against Waterford in both years.
“The one thing that caught me with Tom during those early years is that he’s a great man to win his own ball. So what we were trying to coach was the bigger picture stuff like moving on to senior and giving them the basic tools that they need to survive. He was one fella that has definitely progressed and probably hasn’t gotten the fair credit that he’s done over the years.
“When Limerick weren’t playing well, Tom Morrissey was always to the fore.”
The formation of Morrissey’s talent can be traced back even further to his underage days with Ahane. Along with his twin brother Paddy and his other sibling Dan — who tends to occupy the number three jersey for Limerick — Tom has learned how to win in almost every grade.
Seán Óg Herbert coached him as he was climbing the juvenile grades, and the ability was apparent from early doors.
“He was always a standout player at a very young age. He was always a leader on the pitch with every Ahane team that he played on. And he brought that great form and potential right through to the underage county squads.
“I was involved with Limerick U16 development squads. And I was also involved with Tom in 2014 when Ahane won the Premier minor hurling title for the first time in years, and Tom played a leading role in that win.
“He’s very skillful and his workrate was top class.”
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At the outset of his appointment as the minor manager, Ryan considered his job to be one that leaned heavily on developing his players for the steep challenges that awaited them in the older grades. His philosophy is born from the function of the Limerick GAA academy. Two Munster titles and an All-Ireland final appearance against Kilkenny were the sum of his efforts, but Ryan always looked at his mentoring role in the context of the bigger picture. There was historical significance behind those feats too.
The 2013 Munster final and 2014 All-Ireland was Limerick’s first time to reach those points in the competition since 2005. Carving out a place for yourself in the county’s Mount Rushmore adds to the confidence for any up and comer.
So, by the time Morrissey and his comrades were charging into Croke Park to collect Liam MacCarthy in 2018, they had already banked a few appearances at GAA Headquarters.
“The set-up with the academy,” Ryan continues, “brought in strength and conditioning, good coaching and that whole focus was on development of young players. They were a talented bunch, there’s no doubt about that. And the minor campaigns were exceptionally good to them. They had two Munster finals in both years, which was four Munster finals those fellas played in [including replays]. All games down to the wire and tough campaigns in both years.
”They gained a huge amount of experience. As minors, they had three or four runs out in Croke Park and that’s what Limerick players had been lacking for years. By the time they played in their first senior All-Ireland in 2018, they had been in Croke Park four or five times as minors. That was a huge benefit.
“You had solid young fellas who fully bought into it.”
Morrissey’s Limerick minors were cruelly denied a spot in the 2013 All-Ireland final after losing out to Galway after extra-time in the semi-final. There was three points between the sides in the end, but in regular time, Limerick were undone by HawkEye technology which had been newly introduced into Gaelic Games.
Barry Nash, who was a forward in those days before going on to flourish as a defender with the seniors, scored a point which a HawkEye glitch ruled as a wide. Appeals were launched at the various levels while the team continued to train in the hope that justice would prevail, but the DRA eventually ruled that the result should stand.
The Limerick starlets were understandably crushed. However, in hindsight, it seems like they were emboldened by that experience as that crop went on to win All-Ireland U21 titles in 2015, and again in 2017 with Morrissey as captain. Morrissey had even been added to the senior panel in 2015, demonstrating his willingness to drive on from that setback.
“Victory at such a young age is fantastic but sometimes there is more learning in defeat,” says Ryan looking back on that semi-final against Galway.
“We took Tom off early in the second half but we introduced him again with about 10 minutes to go. So, he started in the team, was taken off, but we had such confidence in him that he could come up with the goods that we introduced him again.
”It was bitterly disappointing at the time but it was a huge learning curve for those young players.”
Ryan didn’t manage to win an All-Ireland with that group, but he more than fulfilled his brief of blooding these boys for the senior step-up. A quick glance through that 2014 minor team throws up a few familiar faces that are illuminating the senior inter-county game now.
Seán Finn is in there as is Cian Lynch, Barry Nash, Séamus Flanagan, Peter Casey and Morrissey. And then once you add in the U21 winners from the 2017 squad, you have Kyle Hayes and Aaron Gillane to add into the potent mix. And other recognisable faces have popped up in that period too. They’re all now the backbone of Kiely’s team, churning out buckets of silverware under his watch.
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The area of Ahane is situated just outside Limerick city in the townland of Lisnagry. It’s a place of rich hurling tradition, and home to the great Mick Mackey. In more recent times, Ahane produced the famous Moran brothers of Niall, Ollie and James. Niall and Ollie were part of the 2007 Limerick panel who reached the All-Ireland final, while, interestingly, James will be a selector with the Clare team who are plotting Limerick’s downfall this weekend.
Tom and Dan Morrissey are following the example set by the Ahane heroes that went before them now, while Ciarán Barry is another club man who is part of the current Limerick squad.
Ahane managed to avoid relegation from the Limerick senior championship last year after playing out a draw against Na Piarsaigh as part of a campaign where Morrissey ended up as the top scorer.
“Tom was just outstanding with Ahane last year,” says a proud Herbert. “He was nearly player of the championship and he was the top scorer.
“Tom would always help out in any way he can. So does Dan and Ciarán, they’re all fantastic. They always come down and talk to players and go through a few different things to put them on the right road.
“They’re fantastic role models for the club players.
“James is a great guy. He’s been involved with Clare for the last couple of years. He’s a great Limerick man and Ahane to the core.”
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At the centre of it all though is Morrissey’s solid character. Both Ryan and Herbert return to that point many times during their summaries of the talented forward. He has two All-Stars so far, and the 2023 campaign will surely end in another one for him should he manage to sustain his form. But aside from his obvious ability, there’s a grounded man beneath the helmet.
“We were very conscious of their academic careers,” says Ryan, “and they were at a critical time with their Leaving Certs and getting into college.
“We used to send lads home from training or tell them not to come on a Friday night because they had enough done. You’d hear these outlandish stories of managers training the night before the Leaving Cert and we wouldn’t have bought into any of that stuff.
“We were very unfortunate as well in that the academy was moved to the UL north campus. So, you had very good dressing rooms, very good meeting rooms and there were parents coming from West Limerick dropping kids to training. The parents could go for a swim in the University swimming pool, a coffee in the pavilion, a walk around the front, or they could do their shopping.
“It was just a very positive, healthy environment for both the players, the coaches and the parents. They were all very solid young fellas who loved their hurling.”
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