*Ian Galvin gets away from Richie Reid. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
CLARE “won all the battles,” Kilkenny manager Derek Lyng pointed out while reflecting on Saturday’s All-Ireland semi-final.
Two points separated the sides in the All-Ireland semi-final as Clare overcame Kilkenny in the last four for the first time since 1997.
Derek Lyng played at midfield on the Kilkenny side which defeated Clare in the 2002 All-Ireland final and was in the centre of the park when the counties clashed in the 2006 All-Ireland semi-final. That 2006 semi-final was the last time current Clare manager Brian Lohan played championship hurling for Clare, both he and Lyng crossed paths on the sideline for the last two All-Ireland semi-finals.
Speaking following Saturday’s game, Lyng stated, “Clare deserved the win going on the second half”. He added, “We were in a strong position when we got the second goal but we didn’t kick on and we should have. We tried to make a few changes to get the spark back into us but the momentum was with Clare. The reality is they won all the battles. They were better, they were in front of the man and were winning all the battles around the pitch, we struggled on the back of that. They deserved it in the second half”.
Kilkenny may have been the better of sides in the first half but this did not carry through to the second half. “Clare move the ball pretty well, they have excellent forwards. As the game wore on we lost our shape, we tried to get it back, but that is very difficult thing to do in the middle of a game and when the momentum goes against you and is with the other team. It’s disappointing, we tried to wrestle it back, in fairness to the players. They never stopped trying, their effort is outstanding always”.
Unlike many Kilkenny teams of days gone by, they failed to see out this game. “It’s a tough one to take. I felt we were in a really strong position but we didn’t see it out, we didn’t play well enough. We were six points ahead, I thought there were aspects of our play that were a little bit off”.
Stopping Clare’s momentum was something they were unable to do, he admitted. “We were well on top in the first half, we looked really strong but you have to credit Clare, their forwards grew into the game, and from their point of view, they had a difficult start as we were on top but as the game wore on they got the better of us. All over the pitch in lots of places, we found it hard to stop that momentum. They are a top class team. It’s just disappointing from our point of view. We are better but we didn’t show our best form. When you are on top you have to be scoring and taking your chances. We had our spell and the last day we were very efficient but not so today. Clare were going to come at you and they got more points on the board. Another couple of points would have been a big help for us.
Going without a score from the fifty seventh minute until the final whistle was a source of disappointment for the Cats. “We had a couple of chances but we didn’t take which was probably down to the pressure Clare were putting on us. We tried to move things around to get lads into the game but you have to credit Clare, they were winning most of the battles, the credit goes to them”.
