Kilkenny substitutes make the difference

THE CAT laughs were left to the comedy aficionados. Certainly, as far as Kilkenny hurlers were concerned, this Leinster championship semifinal at Croke Park, bizarrely interrupted in the first half by an exodus across the pitch from the New Stand, was no barrel of fun and a seven point winning outcome concealed a dangerous dalliance with a Dublin team who fought gallantly, but vainly to end a dominance which has existed for 55 years.

Moral victories don't mean much, if anything, at this level. But Dublin, who haven't beaten Kilkenny in the provincial hurling championship since 1942, only creaked in the last 10 punishing minutes of an exciting match and could justly take some solace from their endeavours.

Indeed, a touch of luck and a smattering of genius - with PJ Delaney and DJ Carey the central characters eventually enabled Kilkenny to secure victory.

Kilkenny hauled themselves out of the mire late on in a match which was actually halted for nine minutes in the first half to allow an overflow of patrons from the New Stand cross over to the Hogan Stand. Referee Pat Aherne only stopped the match when Kilkenny manager Nicky Brennan and Dublin County Board Secretary John Costello ran on to the pitch to make the request.

"It was a cock up," conceded Brennan. "But there is no point blaming anyone, looking for scapegoats. Any other day here in Croke Park there would be 25 to 30,000 in for a semi final and it wasn't unreasonable to expect a similar crowd.

"However, it took the referee a long time to cop on and it was impossible for Michael O'Grady and myself to conduct our business on the line with the crowds on top of us. The match had to be stopped. How do we know, for instance, that a Kilkenny man wouldn't have jumped out to stop a Dublin player going through?"

Thankfully, nothing like that happened and the two teams showed remarkable composure, in the circumstances, to produce a game which may at times have lacked finesse but always contained excitement and plenty of commitment. Dublin, in fact, led for the majority of the match but were hanging on by their fingertips when Kilkenny conjured up two goals in a 90 second spell to decide the outcome.

Strength in depth, though, was just as crucial a factor for Kilkenny in this win. The three Kilkenny substitutes - Philip Larkin, Michael Phelan and Delaney - were immensely influential in changing the course of the game, none more so than Larkin, who was introduced at half time when Dublin led by five points.

The Kilkenny substitutes compiled 1-2 between them, while, in contrast, none of the Dublin players introduced during the game managed to score. Tellingly, nine Kilkenny men managed to score during the match, but just four Dub liners were able to get on the score sheet - and this included a personal tally of 1-8 from James `Shiner' Brennan.

"My words came back to haunt me, admitted Dublin manager O'Grady, who prior to the match had stated he'd love to have some of the Kilkenny substitutes.

Dublin, though, were fully deserving of their interval lead of 2-8 to 0-9. Brennan, ironically a native Kilkenny man, scored Dublin's first goal in the 16th minute when his long range free dipped wickedly to deceive Adrian Ronan, but there was a touch of magic about his side's second goal, just before the interval.

Brian McMahon passed to Ger Ennis, who had graced the Croke Park turf in nine Primary Schools finals, and the Donnycarney lad smashed the sliothar to the net with power and grace.

The stop start nature of that first half didn't appear to unduly upset the teams, although the hurling was a little frenetic at times. In the second half, Kilkenny, with the change in personnel working well, gradually, but surely, put their stamp on the game and some of the crispness (especially in their finishing) that was absent earlier on did materialise in time for them to secure victory.

Kilkenny had been chipping away with limited success at Dublin's lead for 25 minutes of the second half and had managed to creep to within one point of them when Lady Luck finally smiled upon them. Delaney, blindly, sent the ball towards the Dublin net and, for once, Dublin goalkeeper Brendan McLoughlin, who had played superbly, was beaten.

Delaney pointed his index finger to his own chest to seek reassurances from his teammates that he was the goalscorer. The score, in the 60th minute, gave Kilkenny the lead for the first time since the 16th.

Ninety seconds later, McLoughlin was again reaching into the back of the net, although there were suspicions that Dublin should have been awarded a free early on in the move. But there was no question mark about the actual finish. It was sheer class. Larkin's long ball into the Dublin fullback line was masterfully claimed by Carey, who did what he does best, smacking the ball - past McLoughlin. Kilkenny 2-17, Dublin 2-12.

Dublin's three minutes of misery were completed - and any possible fight back thwarted - when fullback Sean Power was sent off for a second bookable offence and, moments later, at the other end of the pitch, Eamonn Morrissey's penalty was deflected over the bar by Ronan.

Kilkenny cruised smoothly into the final by claiming the last three points of the game, courtesy of Larkin, Phelan and Andy Comerford. "It took us a long time to get to grips with them," admitted Kilkenny manager Brennan.

That, perhaps, is to Dublin's credit and their manager O'Grady took comfort in the fact that his team are in the knockout stages of the National League. It won't be a summer of discontent.