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His life was football but Dempsey now thinks hurling is the greatest
HIS ROOTS, his background may have been totally immersed in football, but Kilkenny selector/trainer, Michael Dempsey has been won over, absolutely. Hurling is a game without equal in the world, he insisted.
"I didn't have much contact with hurling before I came to Kilkenny, but now I think it is the best game in the world," was the somewhat surprising summary from the former Laois football star when he spoke with the 'People before Sunday's final.
Dempsey played the big ball game for nearly 20 years with his native county, and he won a National League medal in 1987. Later he managed the county at senior and under-21 level, and later again he was coach to the Irish under-17 Compromise Rules team (2003).
When he moved to Kilkenny over 10 years ago he was invited into the hurling fold first by the St Martin's club. Impressive work there and with football teams locally earned him a call in the under-21 set-up in Kilkenny before senior manager Brian Cody invited him on to the senior management team.
History
The rest as they say is history. Michael Dempsey is a key man in the Kilkenny set-up now.
"Getting him involved in hurling in Kilkenny was one of the best pieces of business we ever did," was the verdict from County Board secretary, Ned Quinn.
Dempsey, it is believed, was a bit sceptical about how he might be received at first. However, he has earned respect, and now he is regarded as one of the shrewdest people behind the scenes in Kilkenny.
"In terms of skill, in terms of endeavour, in terms of bravery hurling has absolutely everything," Mr Dempsey continued when asked to expand on his earlier comment. "The likes of rugby, Gaelic football and so on can be very tactical.
"Hurling can only be played one way, and that is skilful, fast and furious. Really that is the only way it can be played. It allows for such creativity and individual skill, instinctive skill, it is off the cuff and at the same time you have the huge commitment in terms of winning the ball. It is an incredible sport."
He admitted that he was a casual observer of the game before and he didn't really appreciate it. Watching it on TV and so on didn't allow one get a real feel for hurling.
"We are a neighbouring county with Kilkenny, and I am from the football end, and I would always have supported Kilkenny," he continued. "I remember the likes of Liam 'Chunkey' O' Brien and I can remember his skill, the long solo runs and the brilliant scores. He was absolutely fantastic."
Love to have played
He said that when you actually see the players up close – it was the same with the likes of Tipperary and Cork – and the sheer physicality of the matches, plus the skill, it would leave you in awe.
"I would love to have played the game," he admitted. "I would love to have been a good hurler. I was born in a football part of Laois and we didn't want to see hurling around the place at all.
"We felt it would interfere with the football. It was like in parts of Kilkenny where they don't want to see football because it would interfere with hurling."
He admitted his introduction in Kilkenny was very different because he was working with "an absolutely brilliant bunch of players who do everything asked of them". That attitude reassured me after he joined the camp.
Fellow selectors, Brian Cody and Martin Fogarty and everyone else in the system were also very supportive, so he settled in quickly.
He hasn't turned his back on football. He still loves the games. He was in Croke Park recently for the Dublin versus Cork All-Ireland semi-finals and he classed it one of the best games he was at in the long time.
"Football has changed," he offered when asked for his view on the game now. "Hurling is more physical now than football. The rules have changed in football and it is being refereed differently.
"It is now very much a possession game. Before you can tackle someone the ball is gone. The kick outs are much more measured and everything. There isn't as much contesting of the ball.
Football changed
"If there is, it is about who gets the breaks and it is a possession game until the ball is kicked for a score or wide. Gaelic football has changed. I think there is less contact in it."
He said he doesn't know whether it was nostalgia, old age or whatever, but he preferred the more thunderous approach of a few years ago. The thunder of Dublin/Meath games and all of that was gone.
"But the Cork/Dublin match was brilliant and some of the other games have been very good too," he added.
He said it could be frustrating looking at packed defences and hand-passing the ball sideways and backwards.
"I don't think we should compare football to hurling," he replied when asked to do so. "While they are all part of the GAA family they are completely different games."
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Weather for Kilkenny
Tuesday 07 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 4 C to 8 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Light rain
Temperature: 4 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: South
