'We absolutely adore that pressure' - Kilkenny's Eoin Cody on public expectation

Kilkenny forward Eoin Cody is determined that the team builds its own identity in the seasons ahead, and not by living off the county's glittering record, which includes 36 All-Ireland titles.

The Shamrocks clubman also acknowledged that All-Ireland titles remain the only true measure of success in Kilkenny, while admitting the challenge of achieving them is immense.

"We’re a new team and we have to write our own story. We can’t keep living on the history of any team," Cody vowed while speaking at the launch of the Leinster Championship.

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"To be a Kilkenny hurler is something I grew up wanting to do. It’s the biggest privilege you’ll have in your life and pressure comes with privilege.

"When things aren’t going well, it does weigh you down a bit. Kilkenny’s such a small place so you hear it.

"But we all love it. We love training, we love being involved in it. Weighed up, there are certain things that come with that.

"In Kilkenny, hurling is everything," he said. "When you’re going about your day-to-day life, people are nearly trying to take you down. We absolutely adore that pressure, we adore that privilege of wearing a Kilkenny jersey and trying to do it proud, and the only way you can do a Kilkenny jersey proud is by winning the All-Ireland. And look, they don’t come around too easy. It’s fierce easy to say you want to win All-Ireland, but it’s not easy to do it," he added.

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