LIMERICK
NICKIE QUAID 7
Came under pressure from puck outs, with Limerick retaining 16 of his 27 restarts. Couldn’t get near either Kilkenny goal.
MIKE CASEY 7
Spent most of the game marking Billy Ryan, and kept him out of trouble for the most part. Use of ball was always productive.
DAN MORRISSEY 7
Stayed stoic on the edge of the Limerick square, meaning he was forced into one-on-ones with Eoin Cody on occasion. Supreme under high ball for Kilkenny’s late barrage.
BARRY NASH 8
So comfortable in that spare defender role, it makes you wonder why it took Limerick so long to think of it. Scored one brilliant point.
DIARMAID BYRNES 8
Given plenty to think about by Tom Phelan in the first half but devoured Kilkenny’s puck outs in the second, scored seven out of eight frees and another from play.
WILLIAM O’DONOGHUE 8
Set the tone with a huge turnover on Phelan in the first half. It says something that Limerick haven’t missed Declan Hannon.
KYLE HAYES 8
Typified Limerick’s overall performance. Powered up in the second half and thundered into Kilkenny. Imperious in the air.
DARRAGH O’DONOVAN 7
Processed a heap of ball around the middle and made sure the Limerick half-back line had an extra later of protection.
CIAN LYNCH 8
A virtuoso performance, particularly that 15-minute patch in the first half after moving to centre-forward. Scored 0-2 but his fingerprints were all over that thunderous second half.
GEARÓID HEGARTY 7
Came alive on the day he relishes most. Two long range points in the second half were not only the highlight of Hegarty’s day but his season.
DAVID REIDY 7
Final contribution of an industrious performance was a brilliant hook on Alan Murphy to snuff out a late goal. Scored 0-2 to boot.
TOM MORRISSEY 7
Lots of hustle and plenty of bustle, even if his end product wasn’t always refined. Scored a point but taken off after 55 minutes.
AARON GILLANE 7
Not quite the crowning performance many had anticipated, but eventually shook Huw Lawlor off when space opened up. Struck 0-5 (3f) but had three wides also.
SÉAMUS FLANAGAN 5
Never got to the pitch of the game. Hit one wide before making way for Graeme Mulcahy.
PETER CASEY 8
Efficiency personified. The second time he’s scored five points in one half in an All-Ireland final.
BENCH 7
Limerick weren’t forced to their reserve too early. Two massive points from Cathal O’Neill were the highlights.
MANAGER 10
John Kiely didn’t really have any selection decisions to make. But his – and Paul Kinnerk’s – coaching of the team could be seen everywhere in that second half performance, particularly their efficiency in front of goal.
KILKENNY
EOIN MURPHY 6
Never had a save to make but his puck outs were annihilated in the second half. Looked as though he had no option but to rain them down on top of one of Limerick’s towering half-backs.
MIKEY BUTLER 6
Would have been happy with his first-half’s work but Peter Casey was far too hot to handle in the second.
HUW LAWLOR 7
Probably broke even with Gillane in their much anticipated dual, winning the early rounds, but couldn’t keep his finger in the dyke for the whole game.
TOMMY WALSH 7
Saw off Seamus Flanagan but was on Casey for his last two points. In mitigation, they game was stretched by then and he was left in huge space.
CONOR FOGARTY 5
A veteran of these sort of days, he was shifted into the half-back line in the absence of David Blanchfield. Taken off at half-time without doing a huge amount wrong.
RICHIE REID 7
Made a couple of big blocks and scored one brilliant long-range point. Initiated the move that led to Paddy Deegan’s goal with a visionary long-range free.
PADDY DEEGAN 7
Beautiful finish for the goal and ended with 1-1. One of Kilkenny’s better performers on a day when they were swallowed whole by Limerick for half an hour.
JOHN DONNELLY 6
Went to midfield in the reshuffle and hit a point but as a pairing, himself and Adrian Mullen didn’t assert themselves on the game as Kilkenny would have hoped.
ADRIAN MULLEN 6
Turned over a couple of times and wasn’t the creative force Kilkenny have come to rely upon. A single point was his only tangible return.
TOM PHELAN 7
Mixed the good with the bad. Ended with 0-3 and set up Deegan’s goal, but miscued under pressure also.
MARTIN KEOGHAN 5
Slipped at the crucial moment for a goal chance in the second half. Rotated between the attacking lines and had one wide and another come off an upright.
WALTER WALSH 5
Given the nod by management but wasn’t the blunt force instrument Kilkenny needed.
BILLY RYAN 5
Peripheral. Buzzed around in pursuit of possession but it wasn’t a day for Kilkenny’s inside men, who were effectively starved of meaningful ball.
TJ REID 7
Produced two sublime passes that came to nothing. Scored 0-7, all from placed balls. Caught one brilliant ball in the first half for a free. Ended as the championship’s top scorer.
EOIN CODY 7
Superb goal was exactly what Kilkenny required at exactly the time they needed it but limiting his output to a single score was a major win for Limerick.
SUBS 6
Pádraig Walsh was first man on but Limerick had well and truly taken hold of the game by the time the rest of the cavalry arrived.
MANAGER 7
Started Walsh in a bid to neutralise some of Limerick’s half-back strength. But will surely rue his team’s persistence with long puck outs in the second half at a time when that division were clearly thriving.
