Just four sides left in the race for a St Patrick’s Day showdown in Croke Park
If you had Thurles put into the sat-nav ready for a trip to Tipperary on Saturday for a day of top class club hurling action, then you may want to reconsider.
Due to a frozen pitch in Semple Stadium the AIB GAA Club All-Ireland hurling semis have now been switched to alternate venues – Mullingar for the clash of Kilmallock  and Portaferry while Tullamore hosts Ballyhale Shamrocks and Gort. The change was made late on Thursday and has disappointed many hurling fans who will now miss out on seeing a double header of the best teams in the country
Ballyhale Shamrocks V Gort 2pm O’Connor Park Tullamore
The raging hot favourites against the giant killers from the west. It’s another Galway-Kilkenny clash and one of the most intriguing east versus west meetings in a number of years. Ballyhale’s march to the last four has not been without its moments of danger, especially in the Leinster final success over Kilcormc-Killoughrey.
TJ Reid admitted before this weekend’s game how much of a fright they got from the Offaly side in the clash in Portlaoise. Supporters of both teams left O’Moore Park thinking the same thing – Ballyhale should have been beaten but through sheer willpower and with Reid immaculate from frees, the Offaly champions let the chance slip through their hands.
Gort’s arrival at this stage of the competition is after one of the most anarchic Galway championships in living memory. The delay caused by the appeal from Turloughmore meant the county final was only played in December with Gort getting the better of Portumna in a 2-13 to 1-10 affair. They came into that game with more recent match practice under their belt and it showed, as Joe Canning and his teammates struggled to get up to the intensity of the game after a nine-week break.
Ballyhale’s squad is littered with All-Ireland winners and arguably they have the most formidable group of players ever to enter a club championship campaign. James ‘Cha’ Fitzpatrick is the beating heart of the side and with Michael Fennelly at six,Tj Reid at 11 and Henry Shefflin as the roving full forward, the spine of the side is incredibly strong.
Equally the the westerners have some top class performers in Jason Grealish, Aidan Harte, Gerry Quinn and Albert Mullins. The problem for Gort manager Mattie Murphy is whether to try and play the sweeper and close down Ballyhale, or go man to man and attack a defence that did creak at times against both Clara in the Kilkenny county final and Kilcormac in the Leinster showdown.
Memories of the clash between both sides in the 1984 All-Ireland final form a juicy subplot to the game, the Kilkenny side winning that one in a replay played seven weeks after the original fixture. Murphy was a part of that Gort side and there is a feeling that there may be some unfinished business between the sides, despite the 30-year gap.
Ultimately, however, the game will be won on the pitch and how do you look past a complete hurling side like Ballyhale? They may have their faults, especially in the full-back line which can be exposed by pace, but they should have too much firepower to be caught by Gort. If the Galway side are to win they will need goals and they cannot afford to switch off like they did against Portumna.
Henry Shefflin should have at least one more day out in Croke Park after a tight win for his club.
Portaferry V Kilmallock Cusack Park Mullingar 2pm
So Portaferry won’t have to travel the 350km  to Thurles on Saturday which is a positive. They will still have to travel 223km, which is still a massive distance and much more than their Limerick opponents. It’snot going to bother them too much anyway as the club overcome worse obstacles every day as revealed by Paul Braniff in the build up to the game.
They’re looking to make some history this weekend by becoming the first side from Down to qualify for an All-Ireland club hurling final. Ulster teams have been on the rise in recent years with Loughgiel and Cushendall proving more than worthy opponents and champions over the last decade at the very highest level.
Kilmallock are rated as second favourites only to Ballyhale for this year’s championship and come in off the back of an epic Munster success over Cratloe. Mentally Kilmalllock won’t be found wanting after such a tough test and in Ger O’Loughlin, otherwise known as ‘The Sparrow’ they have a man who is one of the most astute club coaches in the country. He previously won three-in-a row of club titles with Adare but has never been at this level before.
Portaferry’s journey, on the pitch at least, has seen them overcome the odds on more than one occasion but the Limerick side should have too much for the Ulster champions. Braniff at full forward will need a huge amount of support from Eoghan Sands and Conor Coulter if they are to cause a shock. Kilmallock may be without Gavin O Mahony due to suspension but with Graeme Mulcahy, Paudie O’Brien and Bryan O’Sullivan buzzing around they will see plenty of possession around the middle.
The Ulster side have nothing to lose and it would be foolish for us to write them off as they have proven again and again how they love the underdog status. But tomorrow Kilmallock’s inter county experience, along with their greater scoring spread, should see them seal a place in the All-Ireland final on March 17th.
