TONY KELLY SAYS the Clare U21 players that find themselves on the verge of hurling history are literally a band of brothers after spending so long together.
Last year’s senior Hurler of the Year is in his final year at U21 level and closing in on a remarkable third Bord Gais Energy All-Ireland title success on the trot.
The holders face Antrim on Saturday in the semi-finals, a repeat of last year’s final which Clare won by 22 points.
Presuming they win that game, they will face Galway or Wexford in the final when many of the all conquering U21s hope to sign off on the grade with a landmark win.
Along the way, many of the players have also achieved All-Ireland senior success with the Davy Fitzgerald managed team of 2013.
“Since 2010 or 2011 we have spent an awful lot of time together,” said Kelly. “A lot of us went to the same schools. There was maybe 15 of us in St Flannan’s and the other 15 probably went to Caimin’s.
“We’d all have played against each other in club championship as well but there is a great bond there with the lads really over the last four or five years.”
The high point was MacCarthy Cup success last September though Kelly admitted it was a hugely difficult task attempting to defend the title this year. They were eventually knocked out by Wexford in the All-Ireland qualifiers.
“There’s no doubt it (last year’s celebrations) did take a bit out of us,” said Kelly. “It’s something we can learn from. Kilkenny are doing it 10 years and they have no bother coming back year after year.
“We are a young team and we can learn from this and what we did wrong this year and hopefully put it right in the future. But, yeah, there is no doubt that it does take a bit out of you, mentally more than physically.”
Entering the U21 history books with three consecutive All-Ireland titles would be considerable consolation for Kelly and his senior colleagues.
“From a group point of view, no-one is really talking about three-in-a-row,” maintained Kelly. “Inside the county, no-one is really talking about it. Even the media haven’t been building this three-in-a-row thing up.
“Last year too, there was no great talk of two-in-a-row. It was game by game and then when you got to the final, then you could start thinking about winning an All-Ireland.”
