Room for improvement at both ends for Lyng’s men
BY NIALL SHERRY, SPORTS EDITOR
SPORTSEDITOR@KILKENNYOBSERVER.IE
So where are we? It’s April already. Hopefully ‘winter hurling’ is in the rear-view mirror and we can look forward to better weather and better hurling for those in black and amber over the next three months or so. Now there are many things that Derek Lyng and his management team can control, but we will leave the weather to the Gods. In a little over two weeks, our senior hurlers will begin the defence of their Leinster championship crown way out west as they make the second trip of 2026 to Pearse Stadium for a mouth-watering round 1 clash with Galway. The first road trip, almost a month ago, saw the Noresiders record their heaviest defeat in the league since 1953 and the performance in Salthill that day was a low point during an underwhelming National League campaign.
With both the Walsh Cup and League out of the way, the preparation continues ahead of this season’s provincial defence, one that many pundits and supporters feel will be a huge test for Lyng and all concerned with Kilkenny hurlers. As the wait to be reunited with our old friend Liam MacCarthy continues, questions remain; are there green shoots and reasons to be cheerful or at least hopeful? Like everything in life, it’s a matter of opinion, but when we study the body of work since the great Brian Cody stepped aside, are we closer to the holy grail?
Looking at 2026 to date, it’s difficult to head into Easter with a ‘glass half full’ mentality. If you were to pick the strongest XV for the Cats to tackle the Tribesmen’s challenge shortly, many would have Huw Lawlor, Billy Ryan, Adrian Mullen and Tommy Walsh in it. Unfortunately for the manager, he hasn’t been able to call on any of the above-named quartet thus far. Adrian and Tommy are continuing their rehabilitation from injury; the latter is unlikely to feature anytime soon, whereas Shamrocks Ballyhale’s Mullen should be back in the fold in the near future, hopefully at some stage of his sides’ provincial defence. These four players were constants on the Kilkenny team sheet, and in Huw Lawlor the county has possibly the finest No.3 on the island, while Billy Ryan was coming off his most consistent season in the black and amber. Having the O’Loughlin’s man on the edge of the square would have undoubtably strengthened the defence, while Graigue Ballycallan’s Ryan would have provided more dynamism in the attacking third, two things that were badly missing in the season to date. Some have suggested that Messrs. Lawlor and Ryan should cut their travel short and return to base, but can anyone truly begrudge these men the opportunity to experience life ‘down under’.
Others that have been missing include rising Dicksboro star, Harry Shine, who like Tullaroan’s Tommy Walsh, is nursing himself back from the dreaded ACL injury. Conahy’s Tom Phelan missed a decent amount of time and has been getting some minutes recently, including a decent cameo in the draw with All-Ireland winners, Tipperary. Then we turn to this season’s captain, the legendary TJ Reid. Another player that used the winter period to help get the body right; the evergreen sharpshooter made his much-anticipated return in FBD Semple Stadium and certainly helped his side claim a share of the spoils against the Premier County, notching 1-8 and giving those around him a real focal point and more importantly, belief. This is TJ’s third time captaining his beloved county, in what will be his 20th season in the stripes, and he will know better than most that this provincial defence could be one of their trickiest yet. Going for a seventh straight and 78th Bob O’Keeffe Cup; this is the bare minimum that the players and supporter’s demand, but the likes of Galway will be quietly confident that they can break this dominance.
Having secured a point on their trip to Tipp, manager Derek Lyng spoke from the heart when he said that he wouldn’t have been too pleased with his sides showing in the league but was pleased that the performance in Thurles was better than that given in Salthill. The Cats finished with a real mixed bag in Division 1A, two wins, three losses and a draw from their six outings. Wins over Offaly and neighbours Waterford were offset by defeats to Limerick, Cork and Galway. The teams beaten are unlikely to challenge at business end of the season, while at least two of our victors will be there, or there abouts come July while Tipperary will not relinquish Liam easily.
Kilkenny’s shining light in 2026 has been Cian Kenny. The Village man has shaken off missing out on promotion back to the top table of club hurling with James Stephens in the best way possible, by giving all in the black and amber, in whatever position that the creative schemer has been selected in. With placed ball conversion so vital, it has been Kenny that has mostly been entrusted with this duty and pressure this season in TJ’s absence, and Cian has acquitted himself well in this area. What he may lack in height, he makes up for in heart, hunger and desire. When you mix this with his undoubted skill, it is easy to see why CK has excelled this year. Having mostly been deployed in midfield, the dilemma appears to be which player will partner with The Village star for the provincial and All-Ireland campaigns. O’Loughlin’s Jordan Molloy has been the most frequent partner for Kenny in the engine room, and has done well, but I for one felt that his move to wing back against Tipperary played more to his strengths, roaming forward into spaces from the wing, rather than trying to progress via the congested middle third.
While Eoin Murphy has been largely absent, Aidan Tallis has been impressing with his displays between the sticks, in particular against Liam Cahill’s men in FBD Semple Stadium. The Lisdowney man has looked assured in the number one jersey, agile, varied restarts and excellent reading of the game have led many to think that Tallis could start when the Leinster defence gets underway in Galway on April 18th. The netminder has pulled off many great saves so far this season and has been a little busier than I am sure his manager would like, but that again is down to a looseness in the rearguard in 2026. The loss of Mikey Carey to injury in the Pearse Stadium debacle has not helped, but there has been some chopping and changing in the back line this year. Vice-captain Darragh Corcoran has looked decent in the black and amber, and it remains to be seen where he will be deployed in the championship. Fenians Rory Garrett has seen quite a bit of game time, while Ivan Bolger has been used also. Killian Doyle has operated at wing back, while the experienced Paddy Deegan and Richie Reid have played their part. Former skipper Deegan spent most of the Tipp game anchoring the full back line and did well, but do you lose his ability to burst to burst forward and take scores from distance if the O’Loughlin’s man is on the edge of the square? Kilkenny had the third worst defensive record in 1A, and that tells a tale.
If the Cats defence has been a little generous during the league, the forward division haven’t been firing on all cylinders either. Stats wise; the Noresiders were the third lowest scorers across their six league games, and there is no doubt that their scoring efficiency will need to improve greatly if things are to improve. Emerald’s clubman Lyng will hope that the return of TJ Reid will inspire those around him, particularly Mossy Keoghan and Eoin Cody, the more senior of our attacking unit. We know that both these players possess the skills and attributes to trouble any defence, we just need them to get back to doing this on a consistent basis. The hard work ahead of Leinster continues, but as TJ pointed out recently, the supporters need to get behind the team once again. Yes, we know we are impatient, and there has been some negativity around the Cats, but TJ is right, we need to be the extra man and drive them on. Cill Chainnigh Abú.
