All-Ireland Club JHC: Kilbrittain keen to enjoy the experience as semi-final looms

Scheduling training at a time that avoids trips to see Santa is not something that Joe Ryan envisaged at the outset of the year – but he’s certainly not complaining.

Having won the AIB Munster Club JHC title three weeks ago, Ryan’s Kilbrittain side clash with Davidstown-Courtnacuddy of Wexford in tomorrow’s All-Ireland semi-final at Clonmel Sportsfield (1pm).

The gap since the superb win over Waterford’s Kilrossanty has been ideal in terms of allowing the club to celebrate the victory and then re-focus, the manager feels.

“I think the fact that it was a Munster final meant that we needed that little bit of a break,” he says.

“We went back on the Friday afterwards and it gave us a bit of time to plan out the backups for weather if pitches didn’t work out.

“It’s the time of year - we trained on Sunday morning and we trained early because lads were taking their kids to Santa and stuff like that! There are different things on at this time of year that you wouldn't be budgeting for at the start of the year.

“The three weeks enabled us to enjoy it and enable the community to enjoy the build-up – we had a coffee morning last week and it was lovely to get young and old out for pictures with the cups and the lads.

“You have to kind of enjoy it as it happens because, it's a cliché, but it probably will never happen again so we may as well make the most of it.”

What was pleasing about the Munster final for all involved was that Kilbrittain produced their best display of the year in winning by 2-17 to 0-9.

“It was really satisfying,” Ryan says, “I was delighted afterwards.

“Because, even if you look at the county final, I thought we played very well at the start but at the end of the day it’s still a county final and there's still going to be nerves and things like that.

“In the Munster final, I thought they played very, very well but they just worked really hard. “We had a good spread of scorers but I think it's the first time this year in a championship that not all six of the forwards scored - but the three lads that didn't then contributed to about 2-8, I think it was, almost directly.

“At the other end, Kilrossanty were being talked up a lot regarding a goal threat but you had all of the defence doing a really good job as well, so it was just really satisfying that it was an overall team performance.”

And now the challenge is to improve further on that, given how strong the Wexford and Leinster champions have looked, with former county hurler David Dunne banging in the goals.

“We've watched them from what we can in a couple of games and they're very well-balanced,” Ryan says.

“They obviously have threats in the three Doyle brothers [Pauric, Joe and James] and Brian Smith looks like a really good player. Physically, they look very strong at the back as well.

“But again, no matter what team - whether it was going to be Clane or Davidstown, they're not making an All-Ireland semi-final for no reason.

“It looks like it has been a pretty good year for them as well, winning their junior A football, and they've obviously got momentum.

“I think, from having looked at them, I'd say it should be a very good game, probably a very physical game.

“It'll probably come down to something very small in the end.”