Portumna 3-19 Birr 3-9:THIS WAS no mismatch, no easy ride, no anti-climax. This was simply the best club hurling team in the country, slowly but surely killing the team that once held that acclaim. This was simply Portumna's day.
With this their second AIB All-Ireland club title in three years they're fast building a enviable reputation of their own, and based on this performance, it should endure a while yet. The only match they've lost in that period was the 2006 Galway final, controversially - and that defeat was among the many driving forces coming into this game.
The 10-point winning margin is exceptional and considering Portumna were down five points after the opening 10 minutes, this ranks among the most accomplished of displays ever witnessed in a club final. Birr came out fighting, tough as nails, and in the end were still left battered and shaken by the pure ferocity of Portumna, particularly their running game.
That ferocity came from all directions. Joe Canning, the 19-year-old genius of hurling, was typically instrumental, hitting 0-10, all but two from the placed ball (and still missing a penalty). All around him were players of equally dazzling quality, like Damien Hayes (1-3), Kevin Hayes (0-2) and the previously unheralded Andrew Smith (2-2).
Ollie Canning gave another masterclass in defence, brilliantly assisted by Eugene McEntee, and midfielders Leo Smith and Eoin Lynch helped ensure Birr hardly won a single puck-out. Portumna's only fault was it took them a while to get going. For Birr, that was the one blessing of the day.
Despite hitting 2-1 in the opening 10 minutes, with relatively simple goals for Stephen Brown and Paul O'Meara, Birr were soon running into brick walls, if running anywhere at all. They got just one score from play in the second half from the master veteran Brian Whelahan, but his day still ended on the sourest note when he was red-carded for a "stupid" strike on Leo Smith.
Once Portumna drew level on 15 minutes with the first of Andrew Smith's two goals the game went into inevitable mode. Birr briefly rallied with points from Rory Hanniffy and Simon Whelahan, but dominant Portumna outscored them 0-7 to 0-1 in the run-up to half-time. Suddenly they were unstoppable - starting with Andrew Smith's second goal, and culminating with a blistering 49th-minute strike from Damien Hayes which rattled the Birr net. It was a glorious score and left it 3-17 to 2-8. Game over.
Afterwards, Hayes dedicated the win to his mother Noreen: "She's in hospital in Galway, very sick. She's a problem with her kidney, and is on dialysis. She's brought us to every match. We promised her over the phone last night that we'd bring her back the cup, so we're delighted. So we're dedicating this to her, and remembering Keith (their late brother) as well."
Joe Canning was modest about his role and though he missed a penalty, his pointed sideline on 48 minutes was sublime: "These occasions don't come around very often. I was lucky enough to win two years ago, and lucky to win a second today. We'd a poor enough start, and they came right at us. But then we didn't expect anything else. They're four-time champions, but for us, we were getting a lot of slack in Galway, that we were only one-hit wonders. So we had a point to prove today, that it wasn't a fluke first time."
The expectation now is the younger Canning and older brother Ollie will join the Galway panel: "Well I'll celebrate tonight, first," said Joe. "We'll just have to see in the future if I'm with Galway or not. A senior All-Ireland with Galway, obviously, is every player's dream.
"But it's even sweeter with the club, because you're with everyone you grew up with. Looking up out there, I knew nearly everyone in the stand. The club really is a special achievement."
Manager Jimmy Heverin, who incredibly has lost just a single game during his three years in charge, is now stepping aside.
"I've been here three years now, and there's only so much you can do. I mean players stop listening to you after three years. But this team is all about the skill of those players, certainly not about me.
"They all live for hurling. It's a huge part of their lives, and I think that's what sets them apart from other clubs. We'll have a league match in Galway in two or three weeks, and all these lads will want to be there. And all want to win.
"When they pull on the Portumna jersey it means everything. They would die for it. Their attitude is unreal, and that's what brings us through," he said
Birr never gave up the chase, nor would they dare, but Simon Whelahan's goal with 10 minutes left was too late to alter the game's trend. Instead their defeat was made compete by the sending-off of Brian Whelahan, who in no way deserved to go out like this: "Stupid," he admitted. "Stupid at this stage of my life. I meant to give him a dig, but it wasn't to be where it was. That's the way it is, that's life. I know the effort we put in, and the red card, especially, makes it very disappointing.
"But the best team won, not a shadow of doubt about that. We got a great start, that we didn't expect, but we stood off our men a little bit, and you can't do that with the game Portumna play. You've got to stay close, and once they got any sort of possession they were able to inflict their running game on us. We just couldn't come to grips with it. But they had a job to do, and did it in style."
PORTUMNA: I Canning; M Gill, E McEntee, O Canning; G Heagney, M Ryan, P Smith; L Smith (0-1), E Lynch; A Smith (2-2), K Hayes (0-3), N Hayes; D Hayes (1-3), J Canning (0-10, six frees, one 65, one sideline), D Canning. Subs: A O'Donnell for Smith (56 mins), C Ryan for D Canning (59 mins).
BIRR: B Mullins; JP O'Meara, N Claffey, M Verney; B Watkins, P Cleary, D Hayden; Barry Whelahan, R Hanniffy (0-2); G Hanniffy, Brian Whelahan (0-1), S Ryan; P O'Meara (1-0), S Whelahan (1-6, six frees), S Brown (1-0). Subs: M Dwane for Ryan (31 mins), P Molloy for O'Meara (37 mins), B Harding (51 mins).
Referee: J Sexton (Cork)
