10 years on and the Kilkenny lads have no problem admitting they got a soft one.
Ahead of Sunday’s All-Ireland hurling final between Tipperary and Kilkenny, Colm Parkinson managed to squeeze Lar Corbett between Eoin Larkin and JJ Delaney on a cosy couch in Dublin. Just to be safe, he got along referee Brian Gavin to keep the peace.
Corbett, Delaney and Larkin had their fair share of duels over the years as Tipperary tried their damnedest to stop the Cats winning the Liam MacCarthy Cup year on relentless year.
Brian Cody has led Kilkenny to 11 All-Ireland victories but Tipp denied him in three finals and prevented his side from getting to the Croke Park showpiece on another couple of occasions. The 2009 final looked to be going Tipperary’s way but some goalkeeping brilliance by PJ Ryan and a poor penalty call by referee Diarmuid Kirwan saw them denied.
As guests on The GAA Hour Live, Corbett, Larkin and Delaney [from 14:30 below] all gave their view on that game-changing penalty.
The penalty was awarded after 62 minutes of a final that looked to be heading Tipperary’s way. The Premier County led 0-21 to 0-19 when Kirwan awarded a penalty for what deemed to be a foul on Richie Power, even though it was outside the rectangle.
Henry Shefflin stepped up to rifle the penalty home and Martin Comerford rammed home another from open play just 60 seconds later. Kilkenny went on to win 2-22 to 0-23.
“It was either a free out or a free in,” observed Brian Gavin. “The last thing it was, was a penalty.” Asked for his take on the incident, JJ Delaney said:
“Oh no, it wasn’t a penalty, and that makes it even better!
“I’ve no problem saying that whatsoever. It definitely wasn’t a penalty but we still won the game, so it makes no difference.”
Corbett reflected that those two goals changed the game and they certainly did. After the penalty was awarded, Kilkenny scored 2-4 to a solitary Tipperary point.
“Sometimes you get the decisions and sometimes you don’t,” said Corbett, “but that [decision] was when the stakes were at their highest and at the most important point of the game… it changed the course of the game.
“I remember speaking to the Tipp lads about it and for a split second that day, we thought we had the game won and that penalty, and then Comerford’s goal, were really the nails in the coffin.
Revenge was not long in coming, at least. Corbett blasted in a hat-trick in the 2010 final as Tipperary beat their old rivals 4-17 to 1-18.
