Munster SHC Final – Tipperary v Waterford

Tipp retain Munster title

From the GAA.ie web site

Sunday, July 12

Tipperary retained their Munster title with a 4-14 to 2-16 win over Waterford in Thurles on Sunday. Tipp led 3-10 to 2-4 at the break after goals from Seamus Callanan, Eoin Kelly and Lar Corbett. Corbett netted his second after the break as Tipperary retained their provincial crown for the first time since 1988 despite a late Déise comeback.

John Mullane and Eoin Kelly managed 1-2 each for Waterford before the break. Tipperary failed to match the intensity they showed in the first half after the interval and conceded six scores in a row at the end of the game. John Mullane hit all six of those late scores, but the damage had been done earlier in the game. The Déise, who introduced Dan Shanahan as a sub in the first-half, were again exposed for not having enough top-quality scoring forwards.

Tipperary manager Liam Sheedy was forced to withdraw Eoin Kelly at the break due to his ongoing back problems, but it was thought to be a precaution and the ace attacker should be back for the remainder of the Championship.

Tipperary 4-14 Waterford 2-16

From the RTE.ie web site

Tipperary won back-to-back Munster SHC titles for the first time since 1988, holding the edge on Waterford at Semple Stadium this afternoon. 40,330 spectators were treated to a rip-roaring first half, with Waterford’s Eoin Kelly and John Mullane scoring 1-02 apiece and Seamus Callanan, Eoin Kelly and Lar Corbett netting for Tipperary. Tipp led by 3-10 to 2-04 at half-time and Corbett fired home their fourth goal, six minutes after the break.

The Mullane-inspired Déise hit the game’s final six points but the damage had been done, and Liam Sheedy’s men deservedly held on to march into the All-Ireland semi-final as provincial champions. The 2009 edition of the Munster hurling showpiece had many twists and turns, but the winning of the game for Tipperary came in a dominant 11-minute spell, before half-time, during which they hit 3-03.

When Lar Corbett pulled the trigger for goal number four, early in the second half, the margin was 11 points. Tipp’s ability to put teams to the sword has been questioned – both Cork and Clare came back at them in previous rounds – and again Sheedy’s charges failed to show a killer instinct, with Waterford mounting a late comeback that went from far-fetched to deadly serious in the space of six minutes.

Waterford manager Davy Fitzgerald will feed off his side’s efforts in the closing stages as he prepares them for the knock-out stages of the All-Ireland series, but the way in which they finished the game also serves to highlight the costly errors that led to Tipperary goals. Two mix-ups in the Déise defence and a turnover of possession in midfield preceded three of Tipp’s goals.

The 2007 champions certainly contributed to their own downfall, but Corbett and company took their chances well and if Tipp’s habit of winning and just doing enough gets them to the promised land of an All-Ireland title, they will not mind how they come by their goals. The National League final suggested Tipperary are getting closer to Kilkenny’s high standards. That will be the challenge for them as August approaches. The hunger and talent is there, they just need to show it in 70-minute performances.

Playing in their fifth Munster final of the decade, Waterford went full throttle from the start. Moving captain for the day Stephen Molumphy into the full-forward line, alongside John Mullane and Eoin Kelly, the rush was on for early scores. Mullane did the needful after just 17 seconds, swooping onto a through ball from Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh and scoring with ease from the right. Pat Kerwick ended a neat run with the levelling point, and it was evident that both defences would have their hands full. From the two rearguards, ‘Brick’ Walsh and Padraic Maher stood out for their sheer work-rate, positional play and number of clearances.

But the opening half was all about the forwards. Waterford’s Eoin Kelly could have had two goals before he sneaked a sixth-minute free under Cummins’ radar for the game’s opening goal. Before he had found the net, the Passage clubman sent a snapshot wide of the Tipperary goal in the second minute, knocked over a free and then forced a superb save from Tipp’s long-standing net minder with a driven shot from the left.

At the other end, teenager Noel McGrath had been hooked as he looked to pull the trigger on Cummins’ opposite number, Clinton Hennessy, but Kelly, just moments later, surprised everyone when he bounced a low-slung free in front of Cummins and the stinging shot thudded into the net. Tipp recovered well though, collecting points from their captain Conor O’Mahony, their own Eoin Kelly and three in a row from the McGraths, Shane and Noel.

Midfielder Shane burst through to score the point of the Championship so far, rising high to take down a Hennessy puck-out and dashing forward on a memorable solo run which ended with him flicking over off his right. As Tipp began to find their rhythm, moving 0-07 to 1-02 ahead, Kelly and Mullane kept Waterford afloat. Mullane made the most of a defensive error by Paul Curran when he broke onto the loose ball and scampered through on Cummins, finding the far right corner of the net with a superb shot under pressure.

But that score only served to ignite Tipperary into action. The Tipp half-backs began to clear out, Paddy Stapleton made a successful switch onto Mullane and Eoin Kelly and his young colleagues started making hay up front. John O’Brien levelled the sides for the third time (0-08 to 2-02) before the 20-year-old Seamus Callanan maintained his goal-a-game ratio. The rangy centre-forward took a hand-pass from Noel McGrath, turned onto his right and bounced a clever shot beyond the grasp of goalkeeper Hennessy for Tipp’s first goal. The mercurial Mullane rampaged through again for a point but his good work was undone by the Déise defence when they failed to clear their lines, Callanan muscled his way onto the ball and laid it off to his right for Kelly to bury it past Hennessy.

Dogged by a back problem, Kelly was beginning to thrive and he took his tally to 1-03 with a classy score off a shortened grip. His namesake tried his luck from a close-range free but Cummins did well to protect his goal, only for Kelly to register a point from a subsequent free after O’Mahony had been whistled up for a foul. That proved to be Waterford’s final score of the first half as Corbett took centre stage, hitting 1-01 in the space of three minutes.

Shane McGrath did some great foraging in the middle, forcing the ball free and delivering it into the danger area for Corbett to catch it cleanly, race into space and crack a pinpoint finish to the far left corner of the net. Nine points in arrears at half-time, Waterford needed a momentum-building start to the second period and wides from Eoin Kelly and Aidan Kearney only added to their growing problems.

Molumphy, joining Kelly and Mullane on the scoresheet, showed his team-mates how it is done with a well-taken point. But, once again, Waterford erred soon after in defence. A sideline ball which went askew left Hennessy out of position and Corbett confidently floated a point over from the right. Tipp had to withdraw Eoin Kelly at half-time due to injury and his namesake pointed a free for Waterford, before Corbett make it 4-11 to 2-06 with his second goal.

This time Declan Prendergast was the offender as he failed to clear a ball he would deal with nine times out of ten, and the Tipperary number 15 batted home off the ground. The defending champions had one hand on the trophy. But, as happened in their semi-final win over Clare, Tipp took their foot off the pedal and with ‘Brick’ Walsh, Tony Browne and Prendergast shoring up the defence as the half wore on, the Déise closed the gap significantly.

The intensity dropped and the Waterford full-forward line came back into play, with Dan Shanahan and his teenage brother Maurice adding their bulk to the attack. Tipp could only score three points over the remaining half-hour, through substitute Benny Dunne, Noel McGrath (free) and the long-limbed Callanan.

With James Woodlock and Pat Kerwick replaced, Tipp lost a bit of bite around the middle and the comfortable lead perhaps saw O’Mahony and his team-mates drop their guard a little. A bloodied and bruised Mullane continued to carry the fight. The De La Salle terrier ended the game with 1-05 from play and did not deserve to be on the losing side. But the likes of Padraic Maher stepped up to the mark as the Tipp defence came under increased pressure. He produced a very brave block as Maurice Shanahan went for goal around the hour mark.

Dan Shanahan and Mullane moved Waterford’s wides tally into double figures but they were admirably accurate in the dying minutes as successive scores from Kelly, Mullane and Molumphy hauled it back to a four-point game. That was as close as they got. Having looked set for a heavy defeat, it was a pride-restoring finish from Fitzgerald’s players but as the former Clare goalkeeper admitted afterwards, Tipperary are ‘worthy champions’ and remain the team most likely to pose the biggest challenge to All-Ireland kingpins Kilkenny.

Scorers – Tipperary: L Corbett 2-02, E Kelly 1-03 (0-02f), S Callanan 1-01, N McGrath 0-03 (0-01f), P Kerwick, C O’Mahony (0-01f), S McGrath, J O’Brien, B Dunne 0-01 each. Waterford: E Kelly 1-07 (1-07f), J Mullane 1-05, S Molumphy 0-02, D Shanahan, R Foley 0-01 each.

Tipperary: B Cummins; P Stapleton, P Curran, C O’Brien; D Fanning, C O’Mahony (capt), P Maher; J Woodlock, S McGrath; P Kerwick, S Callanan, J O’Brien; N McGrath, E Kelly, L Corbett
Subs: B Maher for Curran (35 mins), W Ryan for Kelly (half-time), B Dunne for Woodlock (46), H Maloney for Kerwick (56), M Webster for O’Brien (69).

Waterford: C Hennessy; E Murphy, D Prendergast, N Connors; T Browne, M Walsh, A Kearney; S O’Sullivan, K Moran; S Prendergast, S Molumphy (capt), J Nagle; J Mullane, E Kelly, J Kennedy
Subs: D Shanahan for Kennedy (27 mins), E McGrath for Nagle, R Foley for Moran (both 45), S Casey for Mullane (46-48, blood sub), M Shanahan for Mullane (53-54, blood sub), M Shanahan for S Prendergast (55).

Referee: John Sexton (Cork)

Scores aplenty but truly a final to forget

Tipperary 4-14 Waterford 2-16

By Diarmuid O’Flynn for the Irish Examiner newspaper

Monday, July 13, 2009

LOOKS like it was a classic, doesn’t it? Eighteen scores apiece, just four points separating them at the end, another in a long line of epic Munster senior hurling finals, yes?

Unfortunately, no.

To celebrate the 125th anniversary of the GAA, all the bunting and banners were in place for a day of old-fashioned pageantry, the Artane Band graced Semple Stadium with their own storied presence, down from Dublin for the day. Even the rain, which had fallen in buckets before the start of the minor game between the same two counties, held off. After a thunder-and-lightning start, however, the game soon blew itself out, eventually became just another damp squib; even if it wasn’t quite over at half-time, at which point Tipp led by nine points, 3-10 to 2-4, it was certainly over just six minutes after the restart, when Lar Corbett’s second goal (the result of another defensive blunder in a game peppered with them) put Tipp 11 points clear.

The final four-point margin? Deceptive, very deceptive, Tipperary surrendering six points to Waterford in the final 10 minutes of almost uncontested play. A pity, and for the thousands of loyal Waterford fans who again turned up with real hope, those hopes cruelly dashed.

It all began so brightly for the Déise. Within 20 seconds of the throw-in John Mullane – continuing the rich form he has shown this championship season – had them in front, a point drilled from wide right after a superb ball forward from centre-back Micheál ‘Brick’ Walsh. Fitting it was that those two should have been involved in the first Waterford score, because even as most of those around them in white-and-blue failed, it was their consistent brilliance that made this any kind of contest at all. All that disappointment was ahead of us, however; for the first 20 minutes or so the match was a real contest. Waterford raced into the lead, 1-2 to 0-1 after six minutes, Kelly with the goal from a 22m free, taking Brendan Cummins by surprise with a low blast. It could have been an even bigger lead for Waterford, and should have been, three clear goal chances going a-begging in those opening minutes, though Cummins did make a fine save to deny Kelly.

Gradually, however, Tipp’s scoring machine began to crank into gear; driven on by a dominant half-back line of Declan Fanning, Conor O’Mahony and Paraic Maher, with Shane McGrath ruling in midfield, they stormed forward and the points began to roll. Six in a row, two from the rejuvenated Eoin Kelly (Tipp version), operating at full-forward, two from youngster Noel McGrath in the corner, one each from Shane McGrath and O’Mahony (a massive free from his own 50m), had Tipp in front, 0-7 to 1-2, when we had the second Waterford goal. Mullane this time, pounced on an error by full-back Paul Curran, took off, gave Cummins no chance – Waterford back in the lead, and how their fans roared. It was their last time in full voice on, however; three goals in the next 10 minutes, one each from centre-forward Seamus Callanan, Eoin Kelly and the magnificent Lar Corbett, saw Tipp surge into that nine-point half-time lead, and even with 35 minutes to go, this game was teetering on the brink. The one hope Waterford fans had that this game could be salvaged, was the recent Tipp habit of losing big leads. Eight points up against Kilkenny in the league final at the beginning of May, lost it in extra-time; five points up on Cork into the second half of the Munster championship first round, almost lost it; nine points up well into the second half against Clare in the Munster semi-final and again, hanging on at the end. Given that recent Tipp record, and given the potential still in that Waterford attack while Mullane is in form, there was hope for the Déise, albeit just a glimmer. Six minutes into the second half, however, the second Lar Corbett goal, all hope was gone, and from there the match just petered out.

In an effort to try and recover what was now a lost cause, Waterford made changes, a raft of changes, youngster Maurice Shanahan joining big brother Dan on the pitch for the first time in championship and making a reasonable impression. All to no avail. Though Mullane continued to do damage, three second half points, and Brick Walsh was joined by Stephen Molumphy in his efforts to pick up the slack outfield for Waterford, every score now was merely academic, putting a gloss on a very poor final. Youngster Noel Connors did well for Waterford, as did veteran Tony Browne, but Tipperary were a vastly superior force yesterday.

Of real concern to manager Liam Sheedy, however, has to be the manner in which they again conceded the field to their opponents, having built up their substantial lead. “You’re not going to dominate a team like Waterford for the full 70 minutes,” he said, and of course you’re not, but when you do dominate, and to the extent that Tipperary did, then you should put them out of sight. “We’re making the simple things complicated,” Liam continued, and they are, several players guilty of trying to gild the lily with ornate passing and intricate moves when further scores were there for the taking.

They got away with it yesterday, but what would happen against a more complete team? And as for Waterford, one shudders to think of where they would have been yesterday without Brick Walsh at the back and John Mullane up front. Only two weeks to prepare for the winners of Cork/Galway (assuming Limerick beat Laois, who then can’t meet Waterford again), they have some ground to make up.

Scorers for Tipperary: L. Corbett 2-2; E. Kelly 1-3 (0-2 frees); S. Callanan 1-1; N. McGrath 0-3 (0-1 free); S. McGrath, P. Kerwick, J. O’Brien, B. Dunne, C. O’Mahony (free), 0-1 each.

Waterford: E. Kelly 1-7 (all frees); J. Mullane 1-5; S. Molumphy 0-2; D. Shanahan, R. Foley, 0-1 each.

Tipperary subs: B. Maher (P Curran 34); W. Ryan (E Kelly 35); B. Dunne (J Woodlock 46); H. Moloney (P Kerwick 56); M. Webster (J O’Brien 69).

Waterford subs: D. Shanahan (for J Kennedy 27); E. McGrath (for K Moran 45); R. Foley (S Nagle 45); M. Shanahan (S. Prendergast 55).

Blood sub: S. Casey (Mullane 45-47 mins).

Referee: J. Sexton (Cork)

Classy Corbett Tipps the scales

From the Irish Independent newspaper

Tipperary 4-14 Waterford 2-16

Munster SH final in Thurles

Monday July 13 2009

TIPPERARY secured Munster for a second successive season but whether they are any better equipped to extend their dominance to the rest of the hurling world remains to be seen.

They did enough for an hour in Semple Stadium yesterday to suggest they had put together a far more cohesive case than in 2008 — but some of the evidence didn’t stand up to Waterford’s tough cross-examination over the final 10 minutes. Tipperary weren’t hanging on at the finish but they were certainly growing edgy as Waterford clawed their way back, point by point.

Waterford scored six unanswered points but still came up four short, after trailing with an hour gone by 4-14 to 2-10. More specifically, their problem period extended from the 24th to the 61st minutes when they were out-scored by 4-6 to 0-8.

Goals by Lar Corbett (34th and 41st min), Seamus Callanan (24) and Eoin Kelly (26), decorated a golden spell for Tipperary in which they out-classed and out-fought Waterford across many sectors.

The goals were derived from a mixture of Tipperary excellence and Waterford sloppiness with the latter a contributory factor which understandably left manager, Davy Fitzgerald, frustrated afterwards. “Some of those goals should never have been given away. We’ll have to look at how and why it happened,” he said.

The irony was that Waterford had some excellent goal chances themselves early on but only converted one when Eoin Kelly sent an angled 20-metre free skidding to the net in the sixth minute. Earlier, Kelly had driven a good chance wide before being denied by a superb save from Brendan Cummins.

“We could have been a few goals up very early on. In the end, that was one of the main differences. Tipperary took their goal chances and we didn’t,” said Fitzgerald.

That’s a raw, clinical analysis of the trend and while it certainly has an element of truth there were other factors too which contributed to Tipperary’s dominance and Waterford’s difficulties. Waterford were relying almost exclusively on Kelly (from frees) and John Mullane from open play for their scores — Tipperary’s gold rush was coming from a variety of sources.

Seven Tipperary players had scored by the 25th minute whereas only Kelly and Mullane had hit the target for Waterford. They had deposited 1-1 each, with Mullane driving in his goal in the 22nd minute. Callanan responded with Tipp’s first goal in the 24th minute, followed two minutes later by another from Eoin Kelly, and Corbett finished out the half with a third just before the break to leave Tipperary leading by 3-10 to 2-4.

It was a commanding lead and left Waterford with a massive challenge. Given what happened them against Kilkenny in last year’s All-Ireland final there must have been concerns that another humiliation was a possibility, but it didn’t turn out that way.

Far from it, in fact. Even when Corbett drilled in Tipperary’s fourth goal in the 41st minute to extend the lead to 11 points, Waterford refused to accept they were facing a lost cause. With captain Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh turning in an excellent performance at centre-back, Waterford began to assert themselves in a manner which hadn’t been seen earlier on.

Tipperary matched them point for point until just after the hour mark when Waterford really took control and dominated with considerable style from there to the finish. Mullane tormented the Tipperary defence while Kelly kept the scoreboard ticking along from frees as they pinned the defending champions into their own half.

“Waterford came roaring back at us but then you’re never going to dominate a team like that for the full 70 minutes. We got away from doing the simple things and took the wrong options at times but having said that we had put together some lovely passages of hurling earlier,” said Tipperary manager, Liam Sheedy. Nonetheless, he will be worried by Tipp’s tendency to fade out of games after establishing big leads. Indeed, were it not for a great block from wing-back, Padraic Maher from sub Maurice Shanahan in the 56th minute, Waterford might well have registered their third goal and made a final charge.

Maher was outstanding all through while Conor O’Mahony and Declan Fanning also hurled well in the half-back line. The full-back line was less secure but then Mullane is such a powerful presence that it’s difficult to contain him when he’s in the mood.

He scored 1-5 — all from play — and looked as if he could double it if he got the right supply. Unfortunately for him the half-forwards didn’t really function, while the introduction of Dan Shanahan made no difference. Big Dan isn’t the threat of old and never looked like getting in for a goal which Waterford so badly needed.

The injured Ken McGrath was badly missed, especially in the crucial area of ball-winning. Still, Waterford will take plenty of encouragement from their brave fightback as they look ahead to an All-Ireland quarter-finals.

“We could have folded our tents after what happened 10 minutes either side of half-time but we didn’t. The lads kept battling and were back in the mix at the end. We have to work out why we conceded so many goals but we’re still mighty positive about things,” said Fitzgerald.

There’s even more positive feeling in Tipperary, who succeeded in retaining the Munster title for the first time since 1988. They had to beat Cork, Clare and Waterford to achieve that but passed all three tests after running up big scores every time.

“It’s never easy to win Munster titles especially when it takes three games. Winning back-to-back titles here in Thurles makes it that bit more special,” said Sheedy, who now has almost five weeks to plan for the All-Ireland semi-final. He will do so from a position of huge strength as there’s no doubt that Tipperary have an awful lot going for them when they’re in full flow.

Noel McGrath continues to improve with every outing, while Eoin Kelly looked to be returning to his very best before retiring at half-time due to a hamstring pull. However, Sheedy said that it wasn’t too serious and Kelly should be okay in a week or two.

The only real issue the manager must address is why Tipperary aren’t putting teams away when they have the chance. They survived spirited revivals by both Clare and Waterford but as the stakes get higher, there will be less room for error. Losing the final 10 minutes by 0-6 to 0-0 didn’t cost them yesterday — but it did show a fault line which must be sorted if Tipp are to give themselves a chance of winning a first All-Ireland title since 2001.

Scorers — Tipperary: L Corbett 2-2, E Kelly 1-3 (0-2f), S Callanan 1-1, N McGrath 0-3 (1f), P Kerwick, C O’Mahony (f), S McGrath, J O’Brien, B Dunne 0-1 each. Waterford: E Kelly 1-7 (all frees), J Mullane 1-5, S Molumphy 0-2, D Shanahan, R Foley 0-1 each.

Tipperary — B Cummins 7; P Stapleton 5, P Curran 5, C O’Brien 6; D Fanning 7, C O’Mahony 7, P Maher 9; J Woodlock 6, S McGrath 7; P Kerwick 6, S Callanan 7, J O’Brien 7; N McGrath 8, E Kelly 8, L Corbett 9. Subs: B Maher 7 for Curran (34), W Ryan 5 for Kelly (h-t), B Dunne 7 for Woodlock (46), H Maloney 5 for Kerwick (56), M Webster for O’Brien (69).

Waterford — C Hennessy 5; E Murphy 6, D Prendergast 6, N Connors 6; T Browne 6, M Walsh 9, A Kearney 6; K Moran 5, S O’Sullivan 5; J Nagle 5, S Prendergast 5, J Kennedy 5; J Mullane 9, S Molumphy 6, E Kelly 7. Subs: D Shanahan 5 for Kennedy (27), E McGrath 6 for O’Sullivan (45), R Foley 6 for Nagle (45), M Shanahan 6 for S Prendergast (55).

Ref — J Sexton (Cork)

Roll of Honour

Munster Senior Hurling Championship Roll of Honour

Team News

Tipperary – Liam Sheedy has named the same 15 that started against Clare in the semi-final to play Waterford in the Munster Senior Hurling final on Sunday next. There are a number of positional switches in the forwards which see John O’Brien named at left half forward, Eoin Kelly at full forward and Noel McGrath and Lar Corbett in the corners.

Tipperary (SH v Waterford): B Cummins; P Stapleton, P Curran, C O’Brien; D Fanning, C O’Mahony, P Maher; J Woodlock, S McGrath; P Kerwick, S Callanan, J O’Brien; N McGrath, E Kelly, L Corbett.

Waterford (SH v Tipperary): C Hennessy; E Murphy, D Prendergast, N Connors; T Browne, M Walsh, A Kearney; S O’Sullivan, K Moran; S Prendergast, S Molumphy, J Nagle; J Mullane, E Kelly, J Kennedy

Paths to the Final

Tipperary 1-19 Cork 0-19

Tipperary 3-18 Clare 1-22

Tipperary scorers: N McGrath 0-10 (0-1 sideline, 0-1 lineball), S Callanan 2-3, E Kelly 0-8 (0-4 frees), L Corbett 1-4, J O’Brien 1-3, P Kerwick 0-3, B Dunne 0-2, S McGrath 0-2 ( 0-1 line ball), J Woodlock 0-1, D Fanning 0-1.

Waterford 0-11 Limerick 1-8 (draw)

Waterford 0-25 Limerick 0-17 (Replay)

Waterford scorers: E Kelly 0-18 (0-15 frees, 0-1 ‘65’), J Mullane 0-10, S Prendergast 0-5, S O’Sullivan 0-1, S Molumphy 0-1, J Kennedy 0-1.

Previous Championship Meetings

Played 37, Tipperary won 26. Waterford won 10 and the one draw was in 1933. Waterford won the replay, at Carrick on Suir. Tipperary also received 3 walk overs – 1889, 1895 and 1922.

Last ten meetings

Previous Munster Final Meetings

6 previous meetings – Tipperary won 4 and Waterford won 2.

1925 at Dungarvan Tipperary 6-6 Waterford 1-2

1958 at Thurles Tipperary 4-12 Waterford 1-5

1962 at Limerick Tipperary 5-14 Waterford 2-3

1963 at Limerick Waterford 0-11 Tipperary 0-8

1989 at Pairc Ui Chaoimh Tipperary 0-26 Waterford 2-8

2002 at Pairc Ui Chaoimh Waterford 2-23 Tipperary 3-12

Last Munster SH Final Meeting June 30th 2002

Waterford 2-23 Tipperary 3-12

WATERFORD: S. Brenner; B. Flannery, T. Feeney, B. Greene; E. Murphy, F. Hartley (capt.), P. Queally; T. Browne, J. Murray; E. Kelly, S. Prendergast, P. Flynn; J. Mullane, K. McGrath, E. McGrath.

Subs: D. Bennett for Flannery (53rd minute); M. White for Flynn (61st); A. Moloney for Prendergast and D. Shanahan for E. McGrath (69th).

TIPPERARY: B. Cummins; T. Costelloe, P. Maher, D. Fahey; E. Corcoran, D. Kennedy, P. Kelly; T. Dunne (capt.), N. Morris; B. O’Meara, C. Gleeson, B. Dunne; E. Kelly, J. Carroll, L. Corbett.

Subs: E. Enright for Morris (43rd minute); P. Ormond for Kennedy (55th); M. O’Leary for Costelloe (58th); P. O’Brien for Gleeson (injured, 62nd).

Scorers: Waterford – P. Flynn 1-6 (1-5 frees); K. McGrath 0-7; J. Mullane 0-4; T. Browne 1-0; E. Kelly 0-3; D. Bennett, E. McGrath and S. Prendergast 0-1 each.

Tipperary: B. Dunne 2-2; E. Kelly 1-4 (1-3 frees); T. Dunne 0-2 (0-1 free); L. Corbett, C. Gleeson, J. Carroll and B. O’Meara 0-1 each.

Referee: A. MacSuibhne (Dublin).

Last Tipp v Waterford Munster Final and Munster Championship games in Thurles:

Tipp and Waterford last played in a Munster Final, at Thurles, on July 6th 1958. In front of a 41,384 attendance Tipp dethroned the Munster champions by 4-12 to 1-5.

The only championship meeting between the counties at Thurles since then was on May 20th 1973, when Tipperary survived an early Waterford scoring burst to win a first round game by 1-16 to 2-8. Jimmy Doyle played in goal for Tipperary on that occasion (his last championship appearance for Tipp) and the respective captains were Francis Loughnane ( Roscrea) and Stephen Greene (Mount Sion).

Snippets

Appearances in 09

Paul Curran is the only played who has started all 10 games Tipperary have played in League and Championship this year. Benny Dunne, John O’Brien and James Woodlock have played in all 10 games either starting or coming on as a substitute.

Championship Scorers in 09

Noel McGrath is the top scorer for Tipperary after their first two championship games with 0-10. He is followed in the scoring stakes by Seamus Callanan (2-3), Eoin Kelly (0-8), Lar Corbett (1-4) and John O’Brien (1-3).

Championship Debutants under Liam Sheedy

Liam Sheedy has given 9 players championship debuts in his 2 seasons as Tipp SH Manager: Seamus Callanan, Darren Gleeson, Pat Kerwick, Brendan Maher, Padraic Maher, Noel McGrath, Conor O’Brien, Gearoid Ryan and Paddy Stapleton.

Regulars

Tipperary have appeared in 62 Munster Finals and won 37.There have been many memorable occasions over the years, but for those who were there it would be hard to match the emotion of Killarney on July 19th 1987 – the day the Tipperary captain and current Dublin selector Richard Stakelum proudly declared ‘’The famine is over’’.

Early Starter

In the GAA Centenary year (1984) there was a tremendous Munster Final played at Semple Stadium, when Tipp were pipped by Cork. The Tipperary goalkeeper on that occasion was John Sheedy, whose young brother Liam, now the Tipp Manager, was the sub goalkeeper for the North Tipp team, which beat Cork City South in the first game of the day – the Munster Under 16 Final.

First strike

Lar Corbett, who came on as a substitute, scored his first Championship goal against Waterford in their 2006 Munster semi final meeting at Pairc Ui Chaoimh. Lar has faced The Decies on four occasions in the Championship and scored a total of 1-4 against them. Overall he has played in 34 championship games for Tipp – started 26 and came on as a substitute in 8 – and scored a total of 8 goals and 40 points.

Cummins Debut

Brendan Cummins made his senior championship debut v. Waterford in the first round game at Pairc Ui Chaoimh, on May 21st 1995. Tipp had an easy win on that occasion. Overall Brendan has played against Waterford on nine occasions in the championship, winning four times and losing five. He kept a clean sheet in the 1998 and 2000 clashes at Páirc Ui Chaoimh. If selected for the Munster Final, he will make his 54th championship appearance for Tipperary, which will equal the record number of appearances for Tipperary held by John Doyle of Holycross-Ballycahill, who is Tipperary’s most successful hurler with 8 All Ireland medals, 10 Munster SH championship medal and 11 National Hurling League medals in a 19 season inter-county career from 1949 to 1967.

Attendances

The attendance at the 2002 Munster final between Tipp and Waterford at Páirc Ui Chaoimh was 40,276. Their previous final meeting in 1989 also at Páirc Ui Chaoimh drew a crowd of only 30,241. While that was the 100th Munster Final and Waterford had beaten Clare and Cork to qualify, the ‘live’ television broadcast kept many people at home. It was a scrappy game and after five bookings and two sendings off, the Tipp Captain Bobby Ryan received the Munster Cup from Provincial Chairman Michael Maher. He was the first Tipp captain to lift the cup in Cork since his uncle Pat Stakelum RIP had done so, forty years earlier.

Record

Last year’s All Ireland Semi final meeting at Croke Park produced a record championship crowd of 53,635 for a Tipperary v. Waterford fixture.

Defensive quartet

When Tipp lined out against Waterford in the 1998 Munster Semi Final at Páirc Ui Chaoimh, their inner defence comprised Brendan Cummins in goal, Michael Ryan at full back and Liam Sheedy at left corner back. The odd man out (who is not involved with the team this year) was Paul Shelly from Killenaule, who played at right corner back. Paul was an All Star the previous year so it was a tight defence! Even if it wasn’t a latter day ‘’Hell’s Kitchen’’ it succeeded in keeping the net intact, but Waterford’s ability to shoot points from out the field, along with Paul Flynn’s accuracy from play and frees, helped them to a three point win 0-21 to 2-12 .In his four championship games against Waterford, this was Michael Ryan’s only loss.