Preview- Shamrocks and Saints are on a collision course at Semple

Shamrocks of Ballyhale are very much in familiar territory as they head to Semple Stadium to take on Galway kingpins St Thomas in the All-Ireland senior club hurling semi-final on Sunday afternoon (throw-in 3.30pm).

Hot on the heels of winning both a fourth successive Kilkenny hurling title and a third Leinster crown on the bounce, the star-studded Shamrocks are now aiming to reach a 10th All-Ireland final in their glowing history.

The first arrived way back in 1979 when they were beaten by Blackrock of Cork while their most recent was two years ago when they saw of Borris-Ileigh in a well contested decider.

The Kilkenny champions have a first ever All-Ireland three in a row very much in their sights and they are no strangers to St Thomas either after beating them in the 2019 final.

All of 17 points separated the teams on that occasion, but a much closer encounter is expected on Sunday.

St Thomas are on a winning sequence of results and a victory over Clarinbridge in December’s Galway hurling final ensured a fourth crown on the trot for the Peterswell Castledaly-Kilchreest outfit.

Conor Cooney captains the side while fellow All-Ireland winner with Galway, David Burke, is also involved.

Gerard Kelly, as well as Fintan and Eanna Burke, are other players that give the St Thomas side a real strong spine but unfortunately for them they will be without Shane Cooney.

The talented defender picked up a knee injury in a recent challenge game with NUI Galway and his loss will be keenly felt.

Cooney looked set for a man marking job on TJ Reid who, ironically, is a doubt himself after aggravating an injury in the Shamrocks Leinster final victory over Clough-Ballacolla that he originally picked up in the Kilkenny hurling decider.

The other key match-up for the Galway side will be whoever they deploy Fintan Burke on, but after Colin Fennelly did a fair amount of damage in the corresponding fixture back in 2019 it’s likely that pair will face off again.

The view in Galway seems to be that apart from their maiden All-Ireland success in 2013, there is a feeling of underachievement in the club so they may feel like they have a real point to prove on Sunday after losing to the likes of Ballyea and Borris-Ileigh in recent years.

Shamrocks, on the other hand, have been there and done that. They will fully believe in their capabilities to make another final.

The Ballyhale men can also welcome back Joe Cuddihy into the fold after the Kildare-based school teacher sat out the Leinster final win over Clough-Ballacolla through suspension after a straight red card against St Rynagh’s in the semi-final.

His return will be a big boost to the Shamrocks as he was very influential in the Kilkenny championship win as well as the Leinster opener against Mount Leinster Rangers of Carlow.

TJ Reid’s availability will also play a key role in the destination of Sunday’s game as his presence along with Cuddihy, Adrian Mullen, Colin Fennelly and Eoin Cody in the Shamrocks forward line makes the three-in-a-row chasers an incredibly dangerous outfit.

Shamrocks are celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2022 and as manager James O’Connor said after the Leinster final, an All-Ireland title would be the icing on the cake.

“It’s a massive deal, being honest with you,” he said. “It’s never said to me, but I know it is in the background. It’s my job to get a performance out of the team every single day, it’s my job to keep them in tip-top shape week on week.

“They’re a very proud club, they’re a club that sets targets from the start of the year to the end.

“And what a great way to start a year if you could start it by winning an All-Ireland semi-final.”

A win on Sunday brings Shamrocks a step closer to that goal. If anyone knows how to get the job done it’s the boys from Ballyhale.