The most famous hurling nursery in the country were defeated today.
St. Kieran’s College are the most successful hurling school this country has ever seen.
They’ve 55 Leinster Senior College’s Championships to their name. That’s 48 more than their closest rivals in Kilkenny CBS.
They’ve racked up 21 wins on the All-Ireland stage, lifting the Croke Cup 21 times since 1948.
With success comes a reputation. But there’s very few hurling strongholds, on any level that have a reputation that could come within an ass’s roar of the Marble City school.
The annual blessing of hurls and instruments at our beginning of year mass – symbolising and celebrating our varied gifts and talents pic.twitter.com/1YsrzMhyys
— St Kieran's College (@KieransCollege) September 27, 2017
It’s a school where the youngsters, you might as well just call them the hurlers, aren’t allowed to bring their hurleys into the shop at lunch-time for health and safety reasons.
It’s different down there. Hurling isn’t the most important thing, it’s the only thing.
It’s not just a game, it’s not just a way of life, it’s a full on religion down there. Kilkenny is a place where the majority of young boys and girls have a thirty something inch extension to their arms at almost all times.
Because of that dedication, that investment in their sport, the above-mentioned success has come.
There’s an aura about the all boys school in Kilkenny City. An aura that has brought them so much success, and it’s so rare that they’re defeated.
They were defeated on Thursday in the Leinster Senior College’s School’s Championship final. That was their first defeat in the Leinster competition since 2014.
Dublin North – a team composed of a selection of players from a host of schools in North Dublin defeated Kieran’s by three points in Netwatch Cullen Park in Carlow.
1-3 from Na Fianna club man Sean Currie turned the game in the Dublin side’s favour, who won out on a scoreline of 1-11 to 1-08.
The Kilkenny college, however, will still have a chance of winning the All-Ireland because combined teams, like Dublin North aren’t allowed compete in the All-Ireland series.
It was a welcome boost for Dublin hurling, however. It was their first time to lift this trophy since 2008 and one which ended the Kilkenny school’s stranglehold over the competition since 2009.
