“We’ve been through it before and that’s always a help” | John Kiely discusses getting preparations right for All-Ireland final

It is familiar territory for both sets of managers this Sunday in the All-Ireland final between Limerick and Kilkenny.

The two best managers in the game meet for the first time in an All-Ireland final this Sunday as Limerick and Kilkenny do battle in Croke Park.

John Kiely and Brian Cody have not met since the 2019 All-Ireland semi-final where the Cats bested the Shannonsiders.

That was Limerick’s last championship defeat as they prepare for a third successive final with Kiely confident in the sides preparation for a fourth final in five years.

We have routines now, we’ve been through it before and that’s always a help no matter what it is, so we’ll take those learnings that we’ve had over the last couple of years and put them to best effect. We’ve people that are very experienced now and they know what the job is to be done.

“Ultimately, it’s about getting your physical preparations right, your tactical preparations right and your mental preparations right, those are the key areas.”

Limerick were made to work for their final berth as Galway pushed them all the way in the All-Ireland semi-final.

For the second time in three years, only three points separated the sides at the final whistle with Limerick needing a huge intervention from the bench with David Reidy bagging three on his introduction.

And Kiely understands that Limerick weren’t at their best in the last four game as he says his team need to work harder in the final.

“We hold ourselves accountable to very high standards and for me we didn’t work hard enough on the day, we just barely got across the line and if we’re going to be competitive in the final, we’re going to have to work ten times harder.”

This summer, Kilkenny have shown some nuances in their game as they seem to have adapted a gameplan more in line with Limerick’s through the lines.

They do still have the option of going long as TJ Reid and Walter Walsh showed to devastating effect in the semi-final with the Cats ability to mix it up yielding 17 goals this year in the championship as Kiely looks forward to trying to stop that threat.

“Every year and every team takes on different nuances and different approaches as opposed to traditional set up as 15 on 15 is definitely gone but is it anything to do with us, I don’t think so, I think that there’s a natural evolution and that every team wants to play to its strengths depending on the skillset of the players that they have available.”

“It’s a fantastic achievement, it’s something we’re going to have to be extremely well prepared for and at the the same time you’ll find that our record in terms of defending is extremely good as well, so that’s going to be an interesting aspect to the game.”

Limerick face Kilkenny in the 2022 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final on Sunday 17 July at 3.30pm in Croke Park.