A lovely touch from Michael Fennelly.
For a record seventh time, Ballyhale Shamrocks of Kilkenny are the All-Ireland senior club hurling champions. It was all too easy for Henry Shefflin’s side in Croke Park, with Colin Fennelly and Adrian Mullen having field days as they coasted to a 2-28 to 2-11 victory over Galway’s St Thomas’.
The Bally boys enjoyed jubilant scenes of celebration on the hallowed turf afterwards before their captain Michael Fennelly scaled the steps of the steps of the Hogan Stand to accept the Tommy Moore Cup on behalf of his parish.
The former Kilkenny All-Ireland winning captain is well used to giving winning speeches and on Sunday he used all his experience with a passionate offering in Croker.
“Our club is made up of three small parishes,” he said.
“We’ve very modest resources, but what we do have is two hurling fields in the village of Ballyhale and a primary school with a field out the back – and that’s been the birthplace to some of the finest hurlers this country has ever seen.”
You can say that again. Only a small area, Ballyhale’s ability to constantly produce top class hurlers, from Henry to TJ and from TJ to Eoin Cody and Adrian Mullen and the likes – sums it all up.
Fennelly went onto pay a touching tribute to a man lost on the journey. Last April, young Eoin Doyle – a member of the Ballyhale senior panel – passed away after a motorbike crash.
The Ballyhale team have been carrying his memory with them with his jersey in the dressing room for every one of their games and Fennelly dedicated the win to Doyle.
“Back in February 2018, we started this journey with this team. We’re finishing now on St Patrick’s Day but we’ve one less player and that’s Eoin Doyle. We brought Eoin’s memory with us the whole year along, with a jersey in the dressing room, and this cup is in dedication to him and what we’ve done.”
Is iad @BallyhaleGAA seampíní iomána na hÉireann!@GAA__JOE @KilkennyCLG @AIB_GAA #TheToughest pic.twitter.com/uaC321mKx4
— Spórt TG4 (@SportTG4) March 17, 2019
Fair play to them.
