Opinion- Talent drain a huge issue as Kilkenny look to the future

As the rest of the country gets set to concentrate on this weekend’s All-Ireland senior hurling final between Cork and Tipperary, the pain of missing out is still a huge sore point around Kilkenny.

The controversy and drama around the scoreboard issues have just about abated and now the reality has kicked in that the Cats are missing out on hurling’s big dance for a second successive season.

Another winter of discontent is inevitable and that will only increase with the fact that the wait for an All-Ireland title is now in its longest famine since the county won its first national crown in 1904.

Quite the stat, that. Not one Kilkenny will be overly proud of but, as Richie Power outlined in the build-up to the All-Ireland semi-final with Tipperary, the lack of underage success is really coming to the fore at the Noresiders’ expense and is a huge reason for the 2015 success over Galway being their last senior title.

While Kilkenny won an All-Ireland under-20 title with current senior manager Derek Lyng at the helm back in 2022, the net result from that squad paints a pretty bleak picture at the moment.

From the matchday squad that took on the Premier County last Sunday week only Killian Doyle, who was present on that All-Ireland winning team, got game time. Even at that, his minutes were heavily restricted as he only came on in stoppage time.

Aidan Tallis, Padraic Moylan and Billy Drennan were all replacements but the bigger issue is the quality over quantity as outside of that group, the likes of Niall Rowe, Joe Fitzpatrick, Peter McDonald, Gearoid Dunne, Denis Walsh and Timmy Clifford have all been looked at but very few of them have made the impact that the Cats probably need them to make.

Underage success is not the be-all and end-all when it comes to bringing through players but it’s still the most reliable barometer for a team’s success.

And Tipperary’s journey to Sunday’s decider in Croke Park definitely hits on this point with three of the under-20 team that beat Kilkenny in Nowlan Park only a few weeks ago playing big roles in the senior success against the Cats.

All-Ireland winning under-20 captain Sam O’Farrell pitched in with a point from wing-forward and although Darragh McCarthy was ultimately sent off, he still scooped a goal for himself in the opening half.

LISTEN: Andy Comerford, Tommy Walsh, Paul Murphy and more - Kilkenny People Sport Podcast

Throw in the name of super sub Oisin O’Donoghue, who Kilkenny supporters won’t forget for a long time after his wonder goal essentially settled the last four tie in the Premier County’s favour, and already Tipp have transitioned some of their future stars onto the senior team and they seem to be flourishing.

Kilkenny’s underage talent is not making the same mark for whatever reason and even if you compare the 2022/2023 All-Ireland final teams that played Limerick to the current version, there are still a lot of similarities.

From the team that started during Brian Cody’s last game as Kilkenny boss in the All-Ireland final with Limerick three years ago, there were only three alterations to Derek Lyng’s selection for this year's semi-final with Conor Browne, Padraig Walsh and Tommy Walsh being the outliers.

Even the fact that Kilkenny only used three substitutes in the semi-final defeat to Tipperary would raise question marks about the depth at their disposal at the moment.

It’s not outlandish to suggest the Tipp bench was the ultimate difference with the influence of Alan Tynan and Noel McGrath adding to Oisin O’Donoghue’s match-winning goal.

The Premier County definitely had a degree of being battle-hardened on the back of tough contests with the likes of Waterford, Clare and Limerick during the Munster campaign and as well as the scoreboard issue, a relatively straightforward run through Leinster may have cost the Cats in the end.

Apart from the Dublin game which saw the side from the capital almost reel in a huge deficit at the Noresiders expense in UPMC Nowlan Park, it was one-way traffic for Kilkenny throughout the provincial campaign.

It’s a route that Kilkenny have made their own after winning six Leinster titles on the trot, but with no All-Ireland win in that same timeframe, the balance of power has definitely shifted.

Limerick have had a dominant spell that has seen them win four of the last five deciders. After Clare reigned supreme in 2024 and either Cork or Tipperary pick up the Liam MacCarthy Cup on Sunday evening, it’s clear that the list of contenders is growing year on year.

In a stat that won’t sit well, Kilkenny have also lost to all five Munster counties in the championship over the last six seasons.

Final losses to Limerick in 2022 and 2023 were a major sore point for the Cats, but with further last four losses to Waterford (2020), Cork (2021), Clare (2024) and now Tipperary (2025), there is still some ground to make up.

TJ Reid, Eoin Murphy and Richie Reid are the last remaining soldiers from the 2015 All-Ireland winning side. With each passing year, getting back to that level looks to be getting more and more difficult.

LISTEN TO THE LATEST KILKENNY PEOPLE SPORT PODCAST BELOW: