All Ireland Senior Hurling Final - Port Láirge vs Cill Chainnigh - 7/09/2008

[maxpower]

Agree about the weather, as often as acting as a leveller it can more clearly illustrate the difference in class in terms of first touch, striking etc. 

I think Waterford will bring incredible passion with them to this final, they have real quality forwards who can and will make life difficult for Hickey and co with Mullane, Mc Grath and especially Kelly in incredible form all year, they do need big performances from these three and moreso perhaps an increased performance from the half forwards esp Dan.

i believe even against a defence as tight as Kilkennys, Waterford can rake up a winning scoreline of around 2-14 ish, but it will be keeping KK out that will be the big problem.  Problems with full back line for years, goals conceded regularly against much less ruthless forward units.

If it goes as i expect Kilkenny will win a entertaining game on a scoreline

Kilkenny 4-15 Waterford 2-14

[orangeman]

Forecast is quite good for Sunday  - Kilkenny will have too much for them all over the field - expect Waterford to rough them up in the first 10 - they'll throw the kitchen sink at the cats - will it be enough ? Will they need to throw the Fridge / freezer at them as well ?

[INDIANA]

try throwing the house, the bus, the eiffel tower, the statue of liberty and halleys comet and they'll still probably come up short. anything around 85% of the cork performance from the cats will be more than enough. i worry about the waterford defence, just can't  see them stopping the cats scoring goals.

[orangeman]

try throwing the house, the bus, the eiffel tower, the statue of liberty and halleys comet and they'll still probably come up short. anything around 85% of the cork performance from the cats will be more than enough. i worry about the waterford defence, just can't  see them stopping the cats scoring goals.

Are Kilkenny THAT good ?

[Galforever]

anything around 85% of the cork performance from the cats will be more than enough. i worry about the waterford defence, just can't  see them stopping the cats scoring goals.

Dont know about that. I feel Kilkenny will actually have to perform better than they have all year to win

[seafoid]

I think on paper KK have it won but the match is still going ahead on Sunday as far as I know.
It is Kilkenny's to lose. Look at what Galway did to them in 2005. 

[AZOffaly]

Lads, I don't have time for my usual spiel, but ye know what I would say anyway One thing I would say is that the Waterford team seem to have taken the approach of hitting low, sensible balls into their quicker forwards like Eoin Mc and Mullane, and that tactic troubled Kilkenny when Wexford did it earlier in the year, and a couple of years ago. It goes without saying that Waterford will have to score pretty highly to win this game, and to do that they will have to win ball from 5-12 and let in the intelligent deliveries. High wide and handsome from 100 yards out is a waste of time against the Cats, they will have to be economical, and take goal chances if they get them.

Kilkenny will make hay against the Waterford full back line if they get ball in there, and I can't see Waterford stopping them scoring at least 2 goals. That means Waterford will have to score a couple themselves in my opinion.

My biggest worry for Waterford is that the 'occasion' will outweigh the game. Kilkenny will ate them alive if that's the case. Davy Fitz has been through a similar experience in '95, but the difference was the AIF was a bonus for Clare back then, the AIF was THE target for Waterford. Nonetheless he should bring a bit of nous to them Deise in that respect.

Waterford must play at 100% and hope Kilkenny have an off day, but I've said it before. If the Cats do drop their level, lads like Eoin Kelly, Mullane, Ken McGrath, Eoin McGrath, Tony Brown, Michael Walsh and maybe even Dan Shanahan will have the hurling to take advantage.

Problem is that I can't see the Cats having an off day. I can see them scoring 3 goals, Waterford scoring 1 or 2, and Kilkenny's goals coming at sickening times like early, just before and just after half time.

Sorry for not having too much time today, but my prediction is

Kilkenny 3-15 Waterford 2-11.

*Edit. I also predict, if the game goes Kilkenny's way, that at least one of the Waterford players will lose the rag and get the line, because they'll be so wound up, and upset.

If that happens, I would go

8/11 it will be Eoin Kelly
evens John Mullane
15/8 Dan Shanahan
2/1 Paul Flynn
7/2 Eoin McGrath
5/1 Ken McGrath

[dodo]

15:30  Kilkenny v Waterford   

  2 - 7       11 - 1        10 - 3 

http://www.paddypower.com/bet?action=go_disp_cat&disp_cat_id=53

[Bud Wiser]

Well here is my pop at what I think will happen tomorrow. The finger nails are bittten down to the quick as they used say waiting on news for tickets, but just got the good news there now so I am really looking forward to a cracking game and that is what I expect it to be.

The factory below produced eleven of tomorrows Cats and I think I am right in saying they have already won the Intermediate All-Ireland, The Junior All-Ireland and the games tomorrow will, it is expected, give them a clean sweep.  Looking at a program on RTE the other evening it appears there are plenty of kittens left in St.Kierans for years to come. Different media reports are saying this is the greatest team of all time.  I do not subscribe to the theory that this team are unbeatable at all and being a Fennelly living right on their border I will be rooting for the Cat's tomorrow.  However, against all the other odds I am predicting a Waterford win !.

Davy Fitz is one shrewd man, he will have his homework done on the Cats more so than any other manager Cody has faced to date.  Hardy has predicted players who might get the line from Waterford.  He could have predicted the entire team because they are going to be on fire in that first twenty minutes, Mullane in patrticular who I expect to stay in around the centre forwar position and make runs out to the wing when the ball is played up to him.  The Waterford backs have impressed me this year and I expect that Fitzy will have told them to hurl their hearts out tomorrow. Will we see Hells Kitchen from one end of the park to the other?  I think so and I think there won'y be more than a puck of the ball in it when the long whistle blows.  Waterford by a point or two unless Eddie Brennan hits the onion sack twice in the first five minutes.

It'll be Hell for Leather as Davy says and "there is no such thing as can't"       http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=_qgSVetdUeI&feature=related

[SLIGONIAN]

Best of luck Waterford tomorrow. Really hope yee do it.

[thejuice]

C'mon Waterford!!!

[INDIANA]

sitting here disappointed in waterford getting such a hiding but maybe now people will appreciate especially from cork how good the cats are. this is the greatest hurling team in the history of the game bar none.

[FermPundit]

Very sad to see Waterford getting such a beating but I wonder would any other county fare any better when Kilkenny are playing like this?

[glens73]

Absolutely awesome fom Kilkenny, every player is exceptional the skill, anticipation, workrate is phenomenal. Tommy Walsh's timing to catch that Waterford free that led to the second goal was excellent.

Can anyone beat them in the next 5 years or so?

[the colonel]

that was the best team performance ever seen. that was ridiculous