Tipperary’s youngest supporter celebrating their 2019 Senior All Ireland Hurling Win.
Tipperary Senior hurlers seriously upset their old rivals this afternoon, in Croke Park, inflicting a heavy defeat on their 14-man Kilkenny opposition.
It was a red card for Kilkenny forward Richie Hogan, just four minutes before the half-time break, that ensured ‘The Cats’ final demise, with Tipperary then only one point in front.
From the very start Kilkenny appeared to instantly settle, with TJ Reid rifling home two handy frees to open the Kilkenny account. However Michael Breen soon put the first point on the board for ‘The Premier County’. However, over the next 20 minutes Kilkenny appeared to govern the pitch, to lead Tipperary by 8pts to 3pts; 6pts of which came at the hands of an intent TJ Reid from frees, as they continued to menace Tipperary’s full-back line.
From the 24th minute, Tipperary appeared to have fully assessed the situation. Tipperary’s Jason Forde pointed over a 65, followed by a free and then came the Niall O’Meara goal which slid under Paul Murphy’s boot, giving Eoin Murphy in the Kilkenny goal mouth, no chance to defend. Suddenly, there was hope visible in the eyes of worried Tipperary spectators; the scores were again level, Kilkenny 0-8 (8pts) – Tipperary 1-5 (8pts). Kilkenny’s first 24 minutes of worrying mild superiority was amounting to nothing.
By the 27th minute Tipperary were in the lead for the first time, with Jason Forde converting a 65.
Then, four minutes before half-time, disaster struck the Kilkenny side, following a call made by referee James Owens and after extensive consultation with his linesman Johnny Murphy, Richie Hogan received a red card and was dismissed to the side-line for his high strong shoulder challenge on Tipperary’s Cathal Barrett.
As yet another downpour of rain drowned the pitch in Croke Park, both teams returned to their dressing rooms at half-time, with Tipperary one point to the good – Tipperary 1-9 (12pts) to Kilkenny 0-11 (11pts).
The second half saw a Tipperary side put this game out of the complete reach of the now reduced 14-man Kilkenny squad, all within just seven minutes of the restart.
Despite an early point from Kilkenny’s TJ Reid, levelling the score; in the 37th minute, Tipperary’s Seamus Callanan willed the ball to cross the Kilkenny line, his eighth goal of this championship to date. Tipperary were now 2-9 (15pts) to Kilkenny’s 0-12 (12pts).
Kilkenny, in desperation, then resorted to sending long range aimless deliveries to their full-forward line, where the ‘Premiers’ extra man was lurking, allowing Tipperary to easily defend and clear.
Now, points from Tipperary’s Callanan; O’Dwyer; Kennedy; both McGrath brothers; Forde; Connors; Kehoe and a superb goal from O’Dwyer, did little to support the retaliation points scored by a committed Kilkenny squad of Walsh; Reid; Ryan; Donnelly; Fennelly and Browne.
Final Score: Tipperary 3-25 (34pts) – Kilkenny 0-20 (20pts).
Tipperary Team: B. Hogan; C. Barrett; R. Maher; B. Heffernan; S. Kennedy; B. Maher; Padraic Maher; N. McGrath; M. Breen; D. McCormack; N. O’Meara; J. McGrath; J. O’Dwyer; S. Callanan and J. Forde. Substitutes: M. Kehoe for N. O’Meara; W. Connors for D. McCormack; J. Morris for J. Forde; S. O’Brien for C. Barrett and G. Browne for M. Breen.
Pic. Left: Window dedicated to St. Thomas Aquinas. Pic. Top Right: Summa Theologiae. Pic. Bottom Right: Archbp. Dr. Thomas Croke.
Ireland’s National Heritage Week 2019 begins August 17th.
Forgetting briefly the everyday religious benefits obtained by Thurles and Tipperary people; not to mention the same religious spiritual advantages enjoyed by hundreds of visiting day-trippers down through the centuries; it remains necessary to continue to reveal the history, relating to the Cathedral of the Assumption, Thurles, latter a truly magnificent edifice, built to the glory of God.
Slightly to the right hand side and to the rear as you face the Cathedral’s interior Tabernacle, can be viewed a stained-glass window, dedicated to Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274), probably born in the castle of Roccasecca in the Province of Frosinone, in the Lazio region of Italy, and who became a Dominican priest and Scriptural Theologian.
The dedicated window portrays the Saint, the son of Landulf of Aquino and his wife Theodora, holding a scroll containing the text of his Summa Theologiae, latter written between 1265 & 1274 and also known as the Summa Theologica or simply the Summa.
Summa Theologiae, Summa Theologica or Summa
The Summa Theologiae is the best-known work of St. Thomas Aquinas. Although never completed, same remains one of the most influential works within Western literature and a compendium of all of the main theological teachings held by the Catholic Church.
Same was intended as an instructional guide, not just for the few literate laity of that period, but also for theology students, including seminarians; to whom are extolled the five arguments required to prove the existence of God, which are known as the “five ways” or “five proofs” (In Latin: quinque viae).
The stained-glass window is the work of the renowned German stained-glass designer and manufacturing company of Franz Mayer, Munich. It is interesting to note that on closer inspection of this stained-glass window, the facial features of the late Archbishop Dr. Thomas William Croke appear; thus, replacing the unknown facial characteristics of St. Thomas Aquinas.
Text on the base of the window asks for prayers for Dr. Thomas Croke (D.Div.), [1824 – 1902], latter former Archbishop of Cashel and Emly and first patron of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Currently the largest Irish GAA stadium, “Croke Park“, situated at Jones’ Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 3, in which Tipperary will meet and hopefully defeat old rivals Kilkenny, in the 2019 Senior All Ireland hurling challenge, continues to be named in his honour.
Pictured L-R: (1) A section of the crowd which attended Semple Stadium last evening. (2) Tipperary Team member Dan McCormack (Borrisoleigh) signs autographs for hurling fans. [Photos: Courtesy Stewart Willoughby.]
Despite the occasional drizzle which fell lightly on the hallowed turf of Semple’s field yesterday evening (July 31st 2019); over 6 thousand men, women and children converged on Semple Stadium in Thurles, all seeking to get “up close and personal” with their heroes the Tipperary senior hurling team.
The Tipperary senior hurling panel had kindly invited their supporters to attend an open training session from 8.15pm last night; having beaten Wexford [1-28 (31pts) to 3-20 (29pts)] in a thrilling All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship semi-final last Sunday afternoon, (July 28th).
Tipperary will now face old rivals Kilkenny, on Sunday August 18th, in the All Ireland Hurling Final in Croke Park, Dublin.
For the sixth time in 11 years, Tipperary will again face neighbouring county Kilkenny in the 2019 All-Ireland hurling final decider, set for August 18th next, following their amazing semi-final win over Wexford at Croke Park, Dublin, this afternoon.
Manager Davy Fitzgerald’s team had led by two points at half-time, [1-14 (17pts) to 1-12 (15 pts)], with the Wexford men producing what seemed true winning form. However, Tipperary would inch into the lead within just five minutes of the second half, courtesy of Jason Forde and John O’Dwyer.
Early on in the second half, Tipperary forward John McGrath received a ‘Red Card’; his second of the game, for what was perceived as a needless strike on Wexford’s versatile player Damien Reck, thus reducing the Tipperary squad to continue today’s game with only 14 men.
A further goal from Wexford’s Lee Chin soon turned the tide back in Wexford’s favour. A second goal from Wexford’s Conor McDonald seemed to have finally decided the outcome.
But, the Tipperary squad of 14 showed their fitness and true character right up to the final whistle, in front of a raucous crowd of over 61,000 fans, accurately targeting seven of their last nine points, using the fresh legs of substitutes Ger Browne, Willie Connors, Mark Kehoe and Jake Morris, to seal a truly unforgettable conquest.
In a repeat of 2016, Tipperary will now meet Kilkenny in three weeks, to decide the 2019 All-Ireland Hurling Final; the venue Croke Park, Dublin.
Today’s Tipperary Team:
Brian Hogan (Lorrha-Dorrha); Cathal Barrett (Holycross-Ballycahill); Seamus Kennedy (St Mary’s Clonmel); Barry Heffernan (Nenagh Éire Óg); Brendan Maher & Dan McCormack (both Borris-Ileigh); Padraic Maher (Thurles Sarsfields); Ronan Maher (Thurles Sarsfields); Noel McGrath (Loughmore-Castleiney); Michael Breen (Ballina); John O’Dwyer (Killenaule); Niall O’Meara (Kilruane MacDonaghs); Jason Forde (Silvermines); Capt. Séamus Callanan (Drom-Inch) and John McGrath (Loughmore-Castleiney).
Remember Ireland’s National Heritage Week 2019 begins August 17th – August 25th.
To the less well informed, he appears to be carrying a Hurley stick, and this comes as no surprise since his icon is to be found in Thurles, Co. Tipperary, latter the undisputed home of hurling.
He is regularly a point of focus; visited on numerous occasions daily here in the Cathedral of the Assumption Thurles, since he is also the Patron Saint of hope for ‘hopeless cases and lost causes.’
Indeed, for this latter reason we understand many hurling supporters from Co. Laois have made a pilgrimage here to Thurles Cathedral this week, hoping for a better outcome, but in the knowledge that they will be forced to do battle with the mighty Tipperary hurling selection next Sunday. 🤣 🤣 🤣
All jesting aside, the Saint to whom I refer of course is St. Jude (Judas Thaddaeus), one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. A farmer by trade; St. Jude according to legend, was the son of Clopas and Mary of Clopas, herself a sister of the Virgin Mary, latter the mother of Jesus.
St. Judas Thaddaeus became known as simply St. Jude after early translators of the New Testament sought to disassociate his similar name totally from that of another apostle named as Judas Iscariot; subsequently abbreviating his forename. The Bible informs us that Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus Christ to “a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of the people”, in the Garden of Gethsemane, in Jerusalem.
The icon of St. Jude (Judas Thaddaeus) can be located over to the right-hand-side, as the visitor faces the Tabernacle in Thurles Cathedral; displayed in one of the many beautiful stained-glass windows, designed and manufactured by Franz Mayer & Co of Munich, Germany. And no, he is not carrying a Hurley stick in his right hand, rather he holds a Hurley shaped club, the symbol or attribute of what was to be his eventual martyrdom.
The window asks for prayers for Anastasia Hayes, Thurles.
After Jesus Christ’s death and following his precise command, (“Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature”), Saint Jude began preaching the Gospel in Judea, Samaria (Palestine), Idumaea (Jordan), Syria, Mesopotamia (Iraq, Kuwait) and Libya. He was to suffer martyrdom about 65 AD in Beirut, Syria, together with the apostle Simon the Zealot, (the Zealot – to distinguish him from Simon Peter).
Sometime after his death, his body was brought from Beirut to Rome and placed in a crypt in St. Peter’s Basilica. Today, his bones are in the left transept of St. Peter’s Basilica under the main altar of St. Joseph in one tomb with the remains of the apostle Simon the Zealot.
It should be noted that almost all Christian Saints were traditionally represented in visible format by a symbol or attribute, usually carried in their hand. These symbols associated with their life, made them easily identifiable in the past to the vast majority of earlier pilgrims, whom then would have been mostly illiterate.
On the Thurles icon, St Jude is depicted holding in his left hand a book, said to be the ‘Epistle of Jude’, latter containing only 25 verses and to be found in the penultimate (second last) book of the New Testament series of writings.
The surname Thaddeus means ‘generous’, ‘courageous’ or ‘kind’. It is not therefore surprising that still today millions of people throughout our world and in today’s often confused and disorderly times, chat to him. Same are most often seeking a safe path away from incurable diseases found to be outside the reach of modern medical science. Their problem may be one of extreme poverty; mental depression; associated family distress or feelings of utter helplessness.
“If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth”. – St Mark Chapter 9: Verse 23.
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