“Can ALL hurling games please be regarded as U21 in the future?”
So requested the Wexford GAA Twitter account after Galway and Wexford’s under-21 game in Portlaoise earlier this year. Every single sinner in O’Moore Park longed for the same and anybody watching on TG4 must have wondered what it is about good old under-21 hurling that lights up pitches all over the country every single time.
Under-21 hurling has been that gift that kept on giving over the last few years. With the fixtures always dotted in between the big senior games on midweek summer nights, the hype is never huge for them. Sure they’re only meant to keep us ticking over really.
But the lack of hype might be its biggest advantage. On top of supporters not caring about the result as much as they do for the county’s senior team, there’s less tension in the air and there’s definitely less pressure on the players themselves.
The beauty of it is that it has so many different kinds of players, every single one of whom real GAA followers are mad to watch in full flight. And for some reason, when under-21 hurling is the game, they nearly always hit full flight.
You’ve the budding youngsters about to take senior stage by storm. You’ve the lads who have already made that step up and it’s an acid test to see if they can stand out in their own age group. These lads are on the cusp of adult-hood, these lads are coming into their own now.
When you see GAA Beo TG4 tweeting of a Wednesday morning about the live Munster/Leinster championship game taking place that night, that’s the only hype you need.
And all of those ingredients culminate in gripping games like the one the Wexford and Galway under-21s threw up in county Laois on Wednesday night. With the World Cup catching fire, the Munster and Leinster hurling finals delivering at the weekend, the Yellow Bellies and the Tribesmen only went and outdone them all.
Watch Full-time Highlights as @Galway_GAA beat @OfficialWexGAA to win the @gaaleinster Under 21 Hurling Final 2018 pic.twitter.com/Hp5RbQF5QQ
— The GAA (@officialgaa) July 4, 2018
There were swings and there were roundabouts in that game, there were last minute levellers, there were managers going bananas, there were Wexford and Galway folk losing their minds in the stand.
There were points like this one from ninety yards out, scored by a clearly limping and hampered Joe O’Connor.
There were boys becoming men, dying in their boots for their teammates and for their counties. These lads will be heard tell of in the years to come.
Joe O’Connor lands a fantastic point from distance in Extra-Time for @OfficialWexGAA pic.twitter.com/9wgfNxYo0a
— The GAA (@officialgaa) July 4, 2018
In the end, Jesus, there was heartbreak for the boys of Wexford but haven’t they so much to be proud of, and now a semi-final to prepare for.
We’re all well aware of the fight and the spirit they showed, but on top of that they brought joy not only to a whole county but a whole country. They even had stoic football folk like Tomás Ó Sé peering in enviously on the fastest game on earth.
World Cup is massive, The hurling championship is better, the super 8s in the post ready to land and the U21s throw this up last night!!! The best Summer of Sport I can ever remember!!!! And the ☀️ keeps belting out 👍🏼👏🏼💪🏼🔥 giddy up!!!! https://t.co/T7A9o1SRa1
— Tomás Ó Sé (@tomas5ky) July 5, 2018
Where else would you get it? Why the hell would you want to put a stop to something as beautiful as this?
Next year, under-21 hurling will more than likely be no more.These competitions that are making young hurlers and moulding them into future senior stars will be no more.
That’s because after a decision made at GAA congress in February 2018, under-21 will change to an under-20 competition more than likely next year and if not, the year after. Now, we’re not saying that all will be lost because of one year but what we are saying is that under-21 is the perfect age for this competition.
Next year and forever more 21-year-olds will be plunged straight into senior hurling when they might not be ready for it all because of a decision that just screams of one made to justify football’s move. Under-21 always acted as a natural stepping stone, a bridge to senior hurling. Now lads don’t have that stone to step on and they’re trying to make the jump without that year that could have made them mentally and physically.
Look what three All-Ireland wins at the age group did for Colm Galvin and Tony Kelly of Clare. Look what last year’s win is already doing for Aaron Gillane and Tom Morrissey on the senior stage for Limerick next year.
The under-20 level won’t be played at as high a standard. It won’t have the same attraction because there won’t be as many senior players playing. It won’t have the same capacity to thrill.
The extra year helped to make these players, the lack of it might just break some of them in the future.
This wasn’t broken. There was no need to fix this.
