3 Key Match Ups as Limerick and Kilkenny meet in League Decider

We pick out three key match ups both teams will have to get right if they are to get the desired result and claim the title.

The stars will be on show in Pairc Ui Chaoimh this Sunday when Limerick and Kilkenny face off in the National Hurling League decider.

A repeat of the 2022 All-Ireland final, both sides will have somewhat of a different look to them with Limerick welcoming back a couple of All-Stars in Cian Lynch and Peter Casey. Arguably the biggest difference in Kilkenny will be the man on the sideline as the Cats take on Limerick without Brian Cody for the first time since March 1997.

Derek Lyng has offered debuts to a number of his U20 All-Ireland winning side while both managers will be keen to sample players in their final game prior to the championship kick off.

The squads won’t be released until later in the week but until then, we pick out three key match ups both teams will have to get right if they are to get the desired result.

Who picks up Hegarty this time around?

The 2022 All-Ireland final was barely four minutes old when Gearoid Hegarty struck for arguably the most crucial of scores. Thundering onto a loose ball on the Kilkenny 21′, the St Patrick’s man flicke the hurley into his hand before unleashing an unstoppable effort into the top corner of the net. Hegarty didn’t relent and four more point followed over the next hour as he eventually took his tally to 1-5 from play with Limerick’s final score, the last dagger in the Kilkenny coffin.

It continued a trend of Hegarty leaving his best for finals, taking his All-Ireland final total to 3-14 from his previous three outings (incredibly he didn’t score against Galway in 2018). In his other pair of finals for Limerick, Hegarty has also been to the fore, contributing 0-3 from play in the 2019 League decider against Waterford and adding five more against Clare in the 2020 decider that also acted as the first round of the Munster championship.

All told, that will make him a key for Kilkenny this weekend as a poor match up could see their chances blow up in smoke prior to throw-in. Last year, Paddy Deegan, despite his immense talent, couldn’t live with Heggo. The O’Loughlin Gaels man has since shifted into the forwards and is unlikely to revert to 7 where he would be met by the Pats man. In the semi-final, Derek Lyng opted for David Blachfield and Darragh Corcoran and on the face off it, both would match up physically with Hegarty. However, the Limerick forward is pretty much a freak of nature blending a huge frame with a fleet of foot and power.

Whether either can deal with that remains to be seen but Corcoran’s performances for UL suggest he could be given a try with Sunday’s game somewhat a free hit as both seem on a collision course for the All-Ireland final. What’s worrying for the Cats, if they can keep Hegarty quiet, Tom Morrissey presents his own unique and difficult challenge on the opposite wing.

Billy Drennan’s first Limerick match up

While Limerick got the upperhand in the Senior All-Ireland final, it was a Kilkenny man that stole the show in the U20 decider a month previously where the Cats edged the Shannonsider in a one-point win. Anyone in Thurles for Kilkenny’s 0-19 to 0-18 success in the 20s final would have had little surprise in seeing Billy Drennan immediately central to Derek Lyng’s plans in his first year in charge of the Cats.

Against Limerick, Drennan plundered over 0-8 with five of those coming from play in a tour de force that helped them over the line. Back-to-back scores down the stretch showcased what the Galmoy native is all about, first picking up the pieces to slot over before fetching over the Limerick rearguard and applying the deft finish. Somewhat surprisingly, he didn’t get added to the Kilkenny side in their run to the All-Ireland final but he has made up for lost time since, top scoring for the Cats so far in the Spring with a total of 2-65, nearly twelve points a game. Incredibly, he has been the Cats leading scorer in each of their six games to date.

Yet, he will be thrust into the deep end on Sunday with whatever Limerick player is assigned to him. Whoever is named at full back is likely to take Martin Keoghan with Mike Casey or Dan Morrissey the likely recipients of the Limerick #3 jersey. Sean Finn is the obvious candidate for Drennan and the four-time All-Star is widely regarded as the best defender in the game. On the other side, Barry Nash has hugely increased his defensive capabilities and would immediately put his man on the back foot with a penchant for getting forward. Richie English is another All-Star that would test the young stars’ credentials.

There is no doubting his obvious talent and trajectory to becoming a Kilkenny great but Limerick right now is the acid test for any player, not to mind one in their first true season with the seniors.

Dealing with Cian Lynch

Despite getting the job done against Kilkenny in last year’s All-Ireland final, there was still a notable presence missing from the Limerick set up. Twelve months previously, Cian Lynch gave a performance for the ages in the record-breaking win over Cork where the Patrickswell assisted 2-6 in the first half and then taking his personally tally to 0-6 prior to the final whistle. As history goes, the Hurler of the Year went down in Limerick’s Munster Championship second-round win over Waterford and would go on to miss the remainder of the season barring a twenty-minute cameo against Galway.

He made his triumphant return to the team against Cork in the first round of this year’s league and has gradually got back to the form that made him one of only two players to win multiple HOTY awards in 2021. Kyle Hayes was in scintillating form for Limerick at #11 in last years final but Kilkenny will have a completely different proposition on their hands in Lynch this Sunday.

Huw Lawlor was named at centre-back for the league semi-final but such was his performance on Aaron Gillane in the All-Ireland final, Lyng may be tempted to send him back on the full forward. Richie Reid was the man at #6 for Kilkenny throughout 2022 but he has been busy with Ballyhale Shamrocks and could make his return. Mikey Butler was one of the finds of the year at corner back but he could be detailed on Lynch as he was on Tony Kelly where he dominated the duel.

Paddy Deegan is another option but like Hegarty, Kilkenny will have to get this one right to ensure Lynch’s handprints aren’t all over everything Limerick do well as has become the case so often.

Limerick take on Kilkenny in the 2023 National Hurling League final on Sunday, April 9 at 2pm in Pairc Ui Chaoimh.

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