FROM THE ARCHIVES:The All-Ireland hurling final between the experienced Tipperary and a younger Kilkenny in 1967 was mainly about one man, Paddy Downey reported in advance of the game (won by Kilkenny by a goal and a point). – JOE JOYCE
ONE MAN’S quest for sporting immortality overshadows all other issues in tomorrow’s All-Ireland hurling final between Tipperary and Kilkenny at Croke Park. John Doyle, seeking a record-making ninth medal, is the central figure, the focal point of all attention and he will occupy that position until success or failure determines the place he will hold in hurling history when the match ends.
It would be a mistake to assume that the veteran right full back’s opportunity to pass the record total of eight which he now holds jointly with Christy Ring, of Cork, is just a colourful sidelight which intensifies the atmosphere of the occasion.
Primarily, it affects Tipperary’s approach because if John Doyle succeeds in his quest, the record will also belong to the county and they will have passed Cork, their arch-rivals in the south, for whom Ring accomplished the distinction of individual leadership in 1954.
This, as I discovered during a visit to Tipperary last week, has fired the team with a degree of determination that I have not known them to possess at any time since the nucleus of the present combination was formed in 1958.
It affects Kilkenny because they are conscious, almost to the point of obsession, of the incentive which Doyle’s opportunity provides for the opposition. The Leinster champions’ mental approach to what may be called the “Doyle Factor” is, therefore, of the greatest importance. Travelling through the county last week, I formed the impression that among followers and some officials, it was defeatist; but I may have been wrong.
If my impression was correct Kilkenny are beaten before they start. But should they be able, for their own reasons, to match Tipperary’s almost fanatical zeal, then all the other normal factors of the game come into play.
These must be examined. In addition to the incentive of Doyle’s impending record, Tipperary are determined to show that, though they have eight players aged between 30 and 37, they are not yet too old to win another title. Five or six of the older group are due to retire and to kick off the boots in a final blaze of glory must have an overpowering appeal even for men already loaded down with honours.
After a relaxed winter and a heavy defeat by Kilkenny in a League match in March, they came back refreshed in the Munster championship and scored impressive victories over Waterford and Clare. It still worries their supporters, however, that their best hurling in each of those games was confined to one half.
The important point, I think, is that Kilkenny proved last March that they can now adapt their style to meet what used to be the insurmountable challenge of Tipperary’s vigorous play.
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