St Finbarr's hurlers finely poised ahead of championship
Ben Cunningham, St. Finbarr's, gets away from Sean O'Donovan and Luke Meade, Newcestown, during the 2024 Premier Senior Hurling Championship last year. Picture: Jim Coughlan.
It ended in defeat — and a disappointing one at that. For large parts of the game, St Finbarr’s looked the better side, but they ran out of steam in the final quarter and paid the price.
It was a bitter end – sure. They will feel they could have done more and gotten the result. They will feel disappointed.
But the bigger picture? There’s plenty to take heart from.
A total of 28 different players got on the score sheet. The Barrs used 43 players.
Only Sars had more scorers. No one used as many players as the Barrs.
No team in Division 1 has taken a bigger leap than the Barrs in terms of depth. The numbers are proof of that.
Kevin O’Flynn’s steady improvement is reflected in his 2-5 return. Caolán O’Connor has pieced together some really promising performances. Cathal Crowley brought consistency every week. Jack O’Kelly’s development, especially off the ball, has been hard to miss. Adam Buckley is now a much more influential presence.
These aren’t necessarily the names that jump off the teamsheet — not yet anyway. But whether it’s with the senior or junior side this summer, they’ve all shown they can add value.
Then there’s the star power.
William Buckley racked up 2-47 despite limited appearances — an extraordinary return. Jack Cahalane was arguably the most impressive of the three Cahalanes this league campaign, with 4-14 from play to his name. Conor had his best outing against Fr O’Neill’s. Damien stood tall at centre-back versus Carrigtwohill.
Since his championship debut for Cork against Limerick in 2023, his development as a player has been rampant. The inter-county experience has taken him from a raw player with plenty of potential, to a cool head with incredible decision-making.
He only played once – against Kanturk – but looked steps ahead of the opposition all throughout. Could very well be one of the standout performers in this year’s PSHC.
Sam Cunningham impressed in the early rounds. John Wigginton-Barrett offers a real goal threat. Thomas Egan and Ciarán Doolan both gave strong showings in defence.
Their group stage assignment won’t be easy. Blackrock, Kanturk and Douglas all bring different kinds of challenges.
But after the abrupt end to last year’s campaign, Ger Cunningham’s side will be determined to make a deeper run this time. The quality is there. And crucially, it’s not confined to just the headline names.
They’ve refined their short-puckout structure. Their movement up front has improved noticeably. The signs are encouraging.
And we haven’t even mentioned Brian Hayes.
William Buckley 2-47 (0-12 f, 0-1 65), Jack Cahalane 5-25 (0-15 f, 1-0 pen, 0-1 65), Sam Cunningham 4-21 (0-10 f, 1-0 pen, 0-1 65), Conor McCarthy 1-9, Adam Buckley 1-8, Kevin O'Flynn 2-5, Conor Cahalane 1-7, Caolán O'Connor 0-9 (0-2 f), Aidan Barry 0-8, Ciaran Doolan 0-8, Ben Cunningham 1-5 (0-4 f, 0-1 65), Cathal Crowley 0-5, Jack O'Kelly 0-5, Colm Keane 0-5, Jack O'Brien 0-4, David Murray 0-4, Scott Callanan 0-4, James Kennefick 1-1, John Wigginton-Barrett 1-1, Billy Hennessy 0-3, Kevin O'Flynn 0-2, Luke Hannigan 0-2, Bill O'Connell 0-2, Shane Kennedy 0-1 f, Damien Cahalane 0-1, Thomas Egan 0-1, Ethan Twomey 0-1, Luke O'Shea 0-1.
William Buckley, Jack Cahalane, Sam Cunningham, Adam Buckley, Aidan Barry, Ciarán Doolan, Caolán O'Connor, Conor McCarthy, James Kennefick, John Wigginton-Barrett, Kevin O'Flynn, Jack O'Kelly, Jack O'Brien, Bill O'Connell, Cathal Crowley, Shane Kennedy, Damien Cahalane, David Murray, Billy Hennessy, Thomas Egan, Colm Keane, Shane Hurley, Eoin Keane, Jamie Burns, Ciarán Steele, Matthew Nason, Matthew Ahern, Luke Hannigan, Eoin Hallahan, Luke O'Shea, Jordan Millard, Rian Doyle, Eoin Kelleher, Jamie Linehan, Scott Callanan, Ethan Twomey, Jack Ryan, Shane McCarthy, Jack McCarthy, Conor Cahalane, Ricky Barrett, Ben Cunningham, Cian Walsh.
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