Cork hurler and JOE columnist Seán Óg ó hAilpÃn has spoken of his surprise that Henry Shefflin was named in the Kilkenny team for the All-Ireland final against Tipperary.
Shefflin suffered a rupture of the cruciate ligament in his knee in the semi-final victory over Cork, yet after intensive treatment from renowned physiotherapist Ger Hartmann, he was deemed to have recovered sufficiently to take his place against the Premier County.
The decision to start Shefflin backfired, however, when the nine-time All-Star was forced to withdraw after only thirteen minutes with a recurrence of the injury.
Although Kilkenny were able to call on Michael Rice as a replacement for Shefflin, the Cats missed his leadership in attack and were eventually thwarted in their bid to become the first county to win five All-Ireland titles in a row.
And in his latest exclusive column for JOE, ó hAilpÃn said that although he understood Brian Cody’s decision to start Shefflin, he was ‘amazed’ that he was named to start against Tipp.
“Brian Cody’s decision to play Henry Shefflin didn’t work out,†said ó hAilpÃn.
“With an injury like that, I was amazed he was named in the team. It would have defied logic for him to play and be anywhere close to his best. You just can’t get away from science and biology. There was a tear there, and he just wasn’t going to be fully fit, and in an All-Ireland hurling final, if you’re not fully fit you’re going to be shown up.
“However, and it might seem strange to say this, but I can completely understand Brian Cody’s decision. Kilkenny are an exceptional team but Henry Shefflin is their main man. He gets them ticking. Without him, and with the possible exception of Richie Power, the forward line looks leaderless. So if there was half a chance Henry Shefflin would make it, I can understand why Brian Cody played him.
“There’s also a loyalty thing. Brian Cody has been coaching this team since 1999 and Henry Shefflin has been his main lieutenant since ’99. There was a bit of it in the ‘80s with Kerry, and Mick O’Dwyer was criticized for sticking with Pat Spillane and Ger Power and Bomber Liston.
“The Henry Shefflin situation is a different situation, but there’s definitely a loyalty there – whenever Kilkenny were in a tight spot, Shefflin was usually the man to get them out of it – so I can understand Brian Cody picking him. If this was Cody’s first or second year, I don’t think there’s much doubt that he would have made a different decision, but I can still fully understand where he was coming from.
“In any case, Kilkenny will have had a Plan B worked out all week. Michael Rice was very unfortunate not to make the team anyway, so it was clear that he was always going to be the man to come in if it didn’t work out for Henry Shefflin. So it was better to start with Henry and hope for the best. It would have been even worse for Kilkenny if they brought him on and had to take him off again.â€
To read the rest Sean Og’s column click here.
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