The Déise’s relief, revenge and rewakening

Overcoming last year’s defeat to Kilkenny showed a mental strength that will carry Waterford forward for years to come.

There was a point during Waterford and Kilkenny’s second round qualifier in Semple Stadium where you thought “here we go again”. Another Waterford bottle-job, another Kilkenny comeback. As bad as Kilkenny were throughout the game, the sight of black and amber racing around the field while a handful of points down is a sight all too familiar to rival fans.

It was scripted before, so often throughout the Brian Cody years that the Waterford players didn’t have to learn their lines. Kilkenny etched back a eight point deficit, buoyed by the fantastic TJ Reid who bobbled in the goal which sparked the fightback. Colin Fennelly nailed the equalising point in stoppage time; Kilkenny had done what they done so many times before, Waterford had done the inevitable in allowing the Cats do it.

Kilkenny’s late surge was slowed down by the final whistle, allowing Waterford to catch their breaths in the dressing room. They came out more composed now that the momentum had died down. A superb solo goal from Jamie Barron lit the spark once more for the Déise, leading for the rest of the extra period. Maurice Shanahan — who missed a free to win the game in 70 minutes — buried the final nail in the Kilkenny coffin. For some, this goal may prove more literal than figurative for this generation of Kilkenny hurling.

For Waterford, though, it released a wave of relief and emotion that had been bubbling for many years. The fact that they hadn’t beaten Kilkenny since 1959 was being bandied about as motivation to win, but the pain of the last handful of years, the year after year of failure to capitalize on such a talented crop of players, was much more raw.

The culmination of which in last year’s replay semi-final loss to Kilkenny, knowing they were so close to such a fantastic side but yet unable to climb over the mental barrier, frustrated the life out of the county. On Saturday night they had their revenge, proving to be by far the better team if the scoreboard at full time didn’t show it. This time, the mental strength was stronger as the resilience and tenacity of the likes of Barron, Austin Gleeson and the fantastic Tadgh de Búrca hauled the team over the line. The relief, the burst of exhilaration at full time was palpable throughout the 30,000 strong crowd in Thurles, throughout all Waterford fans and Tipperary and Dublin support who had stayed on for the main serving, surely impossible not to get swept by the surge of support from the south east.

Looking ahead, with the Cat finally off their back, Waterford have more work to do. The All-Ireland is more open than it has been in a long time but amongst the contenders, Waterford will be written off by their past and their sweeper systems, despite eliminating Kilkenny.

A quarter-final pairing against Wexford is the perfect draw for Derek McGrath and his squadron to keep on the upward curve. Quietly in the knowledge that they are the better team — at least on paper — and that the local derby will attract a huge horde of Waterford followers to Páirc Úi Caoimh, Waterford have no excuses to get back into an All-Ireland semi-final. If the aforementioned deliver more big performances, and the likes of Stephen Bennett can continue to be prolific in front of goal, then Waterford should have far too much for Davy Fitzgerald’s Yellowbellies who were humbled in the Leinster final.

Additionally for Waterford, this has to introduce a new mindset in the county that nobody is unbeatable. They have the ability throughout the spine and arguably the most talented hurler in the country, enough to go toe-to-toe with any county and say we will not be beaten.

Their Kilkenny 1959 hoodoo is over, but there’s a larger cloud that’s hanging over the south-east since that year, and that’s their time with an All-Ireland Senior Championship.