Tipperary - show some respect for God's chosen people

[Plain of the Herbs]

Comedy Gold in The Midland Tribune this week. God’s chosen people were playing Clare in the ‘eighth-final’ of the Camogie championship last weekend. Clare won by a dozen points so the result was clearcut. The ‘Tribune’ thought differently and reacted in a manner similar to that Jamacian hurdler who threw a tantrum after knocking that hurdle earlier today.

The tone of the piece is that the championship system is to blame and that God’s chosen people shouldn’t have to lower themselves to face the plebs in preliminary rounds or the like. Seems they think Tipperary should be automatically placed in the latter stages of the All-Ireland championship lest the riff-raff take their place.

The report claims that Tipperary won three of their four group games. That is true but there are a few caveats. Firstly, Tipperary only had to face one of the top three teams - Wexford beat them 1-17 to 1-6 and they didn’t have to face Galway or Cork. Tipperary beat Kilkenny with two late goals and they required the assistance of the referee to beat Offaly (see The Camogie Thread). Incidentally the same paper described the dangerous assault in that game that could have seriously injured Elaine Dermody as ‘an incident’.

Worth pointing out that Clare beat Tipperary 1-19 to 1-7 in the match being reported on, so the result is an emphatic one. We are told Clare led 0-7 to 0-5 at half-time and that in the second half that Tipperary were “facing into a very strong wind which increased along with heavy showers as the game progressed”. For the Clare goal “Considine showed no mercy for Tipp keeper Rita Bourke as she pulled hard on the dropping ball”.

Previously Clare lost to Cork 2-9 to 0-16, lost to Galway 0-11 to 1-13 and drew with Dublin. For further context Clare ran Cork to a goal, 0-10 to 1-10 in the quarter-final, and in Cork at that.

Here’s the opening paragraphs to read for yereselves.

It was indeed a very bitter pill to swallow for the Tipperary senior camogie squad to be dumped out in the quarter final qualifying game against Clare which took place in O Moore Park, Portlaoise on Saturday last.
This was Tipperary’s sixth week on the trot without a break where they contested hard tough games in that peri-od of time, winning three out of the four in their group. Clare and Dublin on the other hand won none of their group games and drew one each, but have now qualified for the quarter final on August 4th.
The long winded crazy for-mat which was changed this year, has dealt Tipperary a very harsh hand and if the old system was used, Tipperary would have gone through two weeks ago.
The mood in the dressing room afterwards was one of anger, bitterness and disap-pointment and absolutely no one could blame them and it just wasn’t the players, but spectators from both sides were in total shock at the out-come and weren’t shy to com-ment that Tipperary would have been better off if they didn’t win any game or hadn’t even bothered to try. One could only feel a sense of pity for the players who worked so hard throughout the champi-onship, to be dejected in such a manner and certainly by no means did they deserve to be dumped out, and should now be preparing for a quarter final.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

So we have a perfect club championship system in Offaly club then? Personally I can see their point in the opening paragraph when you look at the results of both team in the groups. But can I feel sympathy for Tipp, eh , well no. And thats purely cause they are Tipp!!

[Lone Shark]

The poor craythurs obviously thought they were playing a different system until they found out the truth midway through the season.

In fairness, I'd be slow to blame Tipperary for what is probably just a case of one writer with a chip on their shoulder. There aren't any quotes from management or players here, as I doubt that anybody involved would be so blind as to make excuses after being hammered like that.

As an aside, the writing itself is also shockingly poor. The writer doesn't seem to grasp the difference between "dejected" and "ejected" for one thing. That stuff galls me, particularly at a time when I'd love to have a job in the industry myself again.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

I have read some similar type stuff in the Offaly media over the years.

[Plain of the Herbs]

I haven't, I must say. Not to the degree of that particular diatribe anyway. Perhaps you could give an example of something similar you read "in the Offaly media over the years".

I have read some similar type stuff in the Offaly media over the years.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

Well, I would refer in some part to the article recently with Brian Connor. That was a patronising a piece as I have seen in recent times. There was no hard questioning in it.
Also a certain jounalist from a well known football family writes some pretty patronising stuff, and rarely calls it as he should see it.
Much of the time there is rarely any depth to local articles, the dogs in street know more than is put into the paper, (and often with good reason).
Local journalists hands are tied in many cases, I understand that, and can you not see the level of frustration that the Tipp writer feels when you look at the results in the group stages? Maybe he is a bit biased but you most remember he is selling the paper to a Tipp market who tend to be more bised than the rest of us.Our journalists wax lyrical about our hurlers even though we have beaten no team of substance over the last 10 years.
Its a hard task as its hard to call it as it is, the Man behind the Wire always says "we think or we feel" rather than "I", (maybe Men behind the Wire is copyright!!)

The u13 tournament highlighting Johnny Pilkingtons thoughts on first time hurling after he oversaw one of the poorest performances of the minors in recent times, with no questioning as to how this may be the wrong road to go down. (Personally I think its a novel way to encourage kids to develop their coordination and will be enjoyable) But many of you guys who are more knowledgeable on hurling would appear to disagree and this should surely reflect the wider hurling community??
No one is penning an article with Johnny Flaherty to counter the ludicrous claims he made a few years ago about where the academies were going to bring Offaly hurling?? At the end of the day, no point in blaming, but could the local guys not take up the mantle to do there job and try to identify where it went wrong and what can be done to improve it?? Maybe a piece to highlight what is working on the ground to deliver progress in Camogie while we regress in hurling. (PS Not sure if regress is a word, help Lone Shark??)

Just think that its local stuff and hard to expect too much really.

[Plain of the Herbs]

When you mentioned reading "similar type stuff" and I asked for examples, I had in mind articles which typified Tipperary's 'bad losers and worse winners' attitude such as in the piece I quoted.

What you stated was entirely diferent to what I had in mind. Still, this is a discussion board. Feel free.

[Ahlethimoutwithit]

Fair enough I didnt. Cant recall something similar, but I suppose you can understand their disappointment, I suppose there was a little resentment about Tullamore winning the county hurling final after winning 1 group game? But that was the system, they can feel a little hard done by after winning their games, will they approach it differently next year?