Not an over-reaction but a measured prediction.
If the Dublin hurlers are to win an All-Ireland in the next ten years, then Sean Currie will have played a huge part.
It might seem dramatic and over-the-top, especially when you consider that he hasn’t yet played a championship game for his county, but on a Saturday night in Parnell Park that’s how convincing he was.
Dublin need his pace, they need his care-free confidence and above all else, they need his turn ’em and burn ’em whirlwind. Na Fianna hit the ground sprinting in their first ever Dublin senior hurling final and, in a blaze of brilliance, their 22-year-old forward was the first to cut loose.
The game had barely calmed from its ruck-fuelled, throw-in-inspired-frenzy when, with just over a minute gone, Johno Treacy pinged him with a short puck-out and Currie did the rest.
From the guts of 90 yards, he lamped it into the night and without even thinking twice, he had Na Fianna men jumping out of their skins. From there, it the Sean Currie show as the lively forward with the low centre of gravity hopped and skipped and whipped his way to six first half points from play.
Talking of whipping, how about this for a second half sideline?
Go and find a more aesthetically pleasing piece of hurling than this Sean Currie sideline 🤤
We'll wait…pic.twitter.com/lvNk1vn7G1
— GAA JOE (@GAA__JOE) November 14, 2021
To Kilmacud Crokes’ credit – they had no other option really – in the second half they sussed out the danger-man and duly cut his supply lines but Currie had made his point. This was a display of the highest calibre and if Dublin are to make moves, as a dynamite forward, it is imperative for them that they get the best out of him.
Currie aside, this was a tremendous Dublin senior hurling final. There was Fergal Whitely’s class, Oisin O’Rourke’s dynamism and Donal Burke’s dead-eyed accuracy but for a finish, it all comes back to Ronan Hayes. It looked fatal when he missed a 55th minute penalty but his strength of character to bounce back with a late goal was something powerful.
Na Fianna never really recovered from there and having thrown away a nine point lead with ten minutes to play, this one will hurt and it will hurt for a long time yet. Currie’s despondent man-of-the-match interview told a story in itself but as a young team, they’ll get back on the horse soon.
“It’s tough to take,” he said. “We left everything out on the pitch. We gave it our all. We did all we could and came up short to a good team. But we have no regrets.”
As a young star, Sean Currie has some bright days ahead.
