Reeling in the Years: Gallant Kilkenny go down fighting (1973)

Probably for the first time ever in Croke Park, hurling enthusiasts swarmed on to the pitch five minutes before the end of the hurling final.

Exultant Limerick supporters could not contain their enthusiasm. They had anticipated victory long before the end and when referee Mick Slattery (Clare) signalled the end of the game all of the pent-up enthusiasm of the Shannonside followers was let loose. They had beaten Kilkenny in the All-Ireland.

They had waited a long time for this day - 33 years in fact - and it was natural that victory should be hailed with an enthusiasm hardly ever before seen. The pitch was a mass of green and white as Limerick’s hurling stars were carried shoulder-high around the pitch.

In winning on Sunday the Shannonsiders foiled Kilkenny’s bid to win two consecutive All-Ireland titles - a feat not accomplished since 1932-33. When Kilkenny and Limerick met in 1940, Limerick won.

While it will not rank among the classics, this was a splendid final. Conditions were treacherous and though the rain which fell fairly incessantly during the minor game eased off, it was raining heavily again at the end.

Limerick came to Croke Park on a giant-killing mission. All the prematch commentaries, with the exception of one, had Kilkenny odds-on favourites. Kilkenny never like to find themselves in this position. They rarely succeed when they are favourites.

How Kilkenny could justify favouritism is hard to understand.

Hardly ever before has a team had to face such difficulties. No team can lose four top class players and retain its full efficiency.

And Kilkenny were far from efficient on Sunday.

Limerick had the greater incentive. They had been down for 33 years and had some frustrating defeats over this period. They had the reigning All-Ireland champions as their opponents and a win would, subsequently, be all the sweeter.

It would have been a different game if Kilkenny had been able to line out the side that beat Wexford in the Leinster final. The type of hurling we saw on Sunday would suit Eamon Morrissey down to the ground; Jim Treacy’s covering off when danger loomed would have been valuable and the smooth working machine in attack that worked so efficiently against Wexford would surely have meant some difference if Eddie Keher and Kieran Purcell had been in the whole of their health.

Kilkenny’s Mick Crotty, with team mate Jim Lynch on the extreme right, has his shot blocked by Limerick’s Éamonn Cregan and Pat Hartigan during the 1973 All-Ireland final in Croke Park. Picture: Connolly Collection/Sportsfile

Pat Delaney was in bed with flu up to a few days before the game and Frank Cummins had been so seriously troubled about his shoulder injury - so much so he had to call it a day a quarter of an hour before the end.

Thus, faced with adversity on an almost calamitous scale Kilkenny could hardly fail to have been effected, to some extent at least, and their confidence must have been shaken.

Limerick had no worries. Everything went smoothly for them and they went about their preparation happy in the knowledge that they were meeting Kilkenny on much more favourable terms, even though they were making their first appearance in an All-Ireland final.

Limerick mastered the conditions better than Kilkenny and their striking was magnificent. But they never really clicked until the last quarter and there were times when they had good reason to feel worried.

It was the urging of the huge crowd of Limerick supporters which inspired them and once they saw victory was within their grasp they hurled their hearts out.

Defeat in an All-Ireland final always poses questions and a wide variety of reasons for failure are advanced. One question about Sunday’s final that can be answered emphatically is that on the run of play Kilkenny could not have won. It would be more difficult to be emphatic were Kilkenny were at full strength.

Hasty analysis made in the heat of the moment can be far from accurate. For instance a great many people were inclined to lay a disproportionate amount of blame on the shoulders of Nicky Orr. But Limerick got only one goal and that was scored by half-forward Moss Dowling.

The three Limerick inside forwards, Frank Nolan, Ned Rea and Joe McKenna contributed a total of five points between them.

The goal that Dowling scored came from a ruck in the goalmouth. There was some crowding in the Kilkenny goal area and Noel Skehan had been bundled into the net on a few occasions.

Fourteen of Limerick’s 21 points came from their midfield pair, Richie Grimes and Eamonn Grimes. Kilkenny had only two points from midfield, both scored by Liam O’Brien.

Kilkenny were considerably handicapped at midfield. Liam O’Brien was injured as the ball was thrown in for the start of the game and had to get stitches for an eye injury. Frank Cummins was far from recovered from his recent shoulder injury and had to retire near the end. Paddy Broderick wears glasses and he too had to call it a day when the rain made it impossible for him to see. Paddy was making quite an impact on the game and he would be going strong at the end.

Kilkenny failed because this attack failed to click with its customary fluency. The loss of Eddie Keher and Kieran Purcell was incalculable. Kieran Purcell did take the field in the second half but he could hardly be expected to be anything like his best.

Eddie Keher was missed not merely for his hurling but for his inspiration. Eddie can be regarded as the main co-ordinator in the attack and it was a lack of co-ordination that made the Kilkenny attack so ineffective on Sunday. There was no worry about the free-taking with Claus Dunne on hand.

But what mattered most from Kilkenny’s point of view was that Pat Delaney, Mick Brennan and Mick Crotty never did as much work for such a meagre return. This was the kernel of the problem. Kilkenny followers were waiting for the goals that did not come.

Teams & Scorers

Limerick - R Bennis (0-10); M Dowling (1-1); E Grimes (0-4); F Nolan, N Rea (0-2 each); B Hartigan, J McKenna (0-1 each).

Kilkenny - C Dunne (0-7), P Delaney (1-1), M Crotty (0-3), L O’Brien (0-2), M Brennan (0-1).

Limerick - Séamus Horgan; Willie Moore, Pat Hartigan, Jim O’Brien; Phil Bennis, Eamonn Cregan, Seán Foley; Richie Bennis, Eamonn Grimes (c); Bernie Hartigan, Mossie Dowling, Liam O’Donoghue; Frankie Nolan, Ned Rea, Joe McKenna.

Subs: Tom Ryan, Paudie Fitzmaurice, Andy Dunworth.

Kilkenny - Noel Skehan; Phil ‘Fan’ Larkin, Nicky Orr, Phil Cullen; Pat Lawlor, Pat Henderson, Brian Cody; Frank Cummins, Liam ’Chunky O’Brien; Claus Dunne, Pat Delaney (c), Paddy Broderick; Mick Crotty, Jim Lynch, Mick ‘Cloney’ Brennan.

Subs: Kieran Purcell, Willie Harte, John Kinsella.