How do you stop this?
All-Ireland Junior Hurling Quarter-final
GRANUAILE (LONDON)
vs.
KILWORTH (CORK)
Venue: Meleek, Co. Clare
Saturday, January 27, 2.30pm
 By
David Thorpe
As challenges go London’s Granuaile face one of the toughest on
Saturday when they will attempt to dump the Munster champions Kilworth
out of this year’s Championship.
The Cork side are on an excellent run combining fast accurate hurling
with an insatiable desire to go all the way in 2007.
A battle-hardened outfit they needed to win nine matches to claim the
Junior County title. They duly swept aside all before them in the Munster
Championship, comfortably defeating the Tipperary champions Knocknagowna
in the provincial final.
The team from just outside Mitchelstown in North-East Cork were beaten
in the 2005 county junior final before triumphing this year and are regarded
as one of the best teams to have come out of that grade in the rebel county
in recent seasons.
Granuaile will want to pay close attention to Will Twomey, a former Cork
senior panelist who won a junior All-Ireland with the Rebels and has also
represented the county at minor and U-21 level. Another threat comes from
Andy O’Donovan who was an All-Ireland minor winner with Cork in
1998 and recently attended trials for the county senior team.
In marked contrast to that rich pedigree Harrow side Granuaile won their
first London title this year. They have struggled to attract players to
the club in recent seasons but are hoping that the publicity and profile
generated by their county title win this year could help to preserve the
club’s existence in the coming seasons.
To make Granuaile’s task even more difficult they have lost two
of their most influential players, in captain Enda Lynch and the talented
Sean Cordial. Both players left the capital for work reasons and the London
champions now know they’ll have to be at the very top of their game
if they’re to progress in this year’s Championship.
The long-serving Ken Hayes will take over as captain of the side for the
biggest game in their history, while Ollie Forde is likely to come into
the team.
A team spokesman said “One of the things which could prove decisive
on the day is that the Kilworth lads have been playing together all their
lives, they will know each other’s game and that will be very important”.
London hurling has enjoyed some famous days in the last number of years,
but if Granuaile overcome the challenge of Kilworth it may go down as
the greatest single achievement by a London hurling team. Can they do
it? Anything’s possible when the pride of your club is at stake.
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