Emmet Moloney writes for the 'The Irish Farmers Journal' and is a former sports columnist with 'The Kerryman'.

Our senior hurling year is over and the landscape is little changed. Kilkenny still sit on top of the pile. And rightly so. Emmet Moloney writes...

Four titles in a row is a remarkable achievement in the modern era. What a team. What a squad. What a close shave on Sunday.

I felt Tipperary threw it away, but no team catches a game by the scruff of its neck like the Cats. The slightest chink in the armour is exploited. Three points down with ten minutes to go against opponents who are rampant in many areas and Brian Cody simply looks down at his subs: 'Who will I spring? Cha? Noel Hickey? No, sure I’ll go with Martin Comerford'. Five minutes later all is changed.

As All-Irelands go it was the best we have seen in twenty or thirty years. And the referee played a huge part in that. Get past the penalty. You can make the case either way. He gave it. They scored it. Get over it. It was an epic battle, very similar to the league final – only this time with two teams at their peak. This is what hurling is about.

The trouble is we will have to wait twelve months to see this again. Kilkenny and Tipperary, through no fault of their own, are miles ahead of everything else in the country. They will tinker and stroll through the Allianz National League next spring, but, come championship, nothing will stop either of them. The teams just aren’t there.

Kilkenny, by virtue of their fourth title, sit with any team to have previously played the game. Tipperary, by virtue of the fact that they should have won the game, sit close to these Cats. All things being equal, the Premier would be my favourites for 2010.
Of course all things are not equal. The qualifiers have ruined hurling for most of us. When everything is on the line we see spectacles like that in Croke Park last Sunday. When it’s not, we see the tepid matches that illuminated our summer. Kilkenny were nothing near full pelt against Galway or Dublin, neither were Tipp against Cork, Clare or Waterford. What a waste of great hurlers and a great game.

In fairness to the Cats, they haven’t lost a match since 2005. No back door for them. And you can’t help thinking that a back-door All Ireland would mean less to them. The same with Tipp.

We could be looking at the birth of a serious rivalry with these two. Both are relatively young in years and both have talent coming through on a class of a conveyor belt. Cork and Galway can possibly make the best case for catching one of them, but that’s what it would be, catching them. Brian Cody’s future will be discussed at length. I suspect he might be standing down. He’s written a book. That’s most un-Cody like, and always a sign that fellas are positioning themselves for the door. Unless he actually says nothing in the book. Unlike when he was talking to Marty! He was dead right, by the way. But that wasn’t the usual Brian. He bared his teeth. Frightened the life out of Marty while he was at it.

Now would be the ideal time for Cody to step down. He’s done the four in a row; the five, while unprecedented, can’t be as big as beating Tipperary in the final to win four. Knowing when to go is a quality few top managers have. Like boxers, they usually go one fight too long. Cody has nothing more to prove and has been in charge for over 10 years. Maybe he’ll decide to go.

Liam Sheedy has to stay. But he’ll be going into his third year and apart from the exception that is Cody, three years is a long time in modern management. And think of the pressure that will be on him next year. Most of Tipperary thinks this last one was thrown away. Eventually some of them will think that’s his fault.

A word for Benny Dunne. Let’s hope he stays hurling and battles his way back. Let’s hope he plays a proper part next year. For such a stylish and effective player, that moment of madness is no way to end a career.

Tommy Walsh was my man of the match on Sunday, narrowly ahead of Lar Corbett, PJ Ryan, Declan Fanning and young Maher at full back. For all the talk about Tommy we should be savouring him because he is the most talented hurler of his generation.
Is there a forward out there to trouble Tommy? Maybe when Noel McGrath is a few years older.

By the way, what was Plan B? There looked like there was quite a bit of aggression between supporters and security personnel at the barriers after the final whistle on Sunday. Especially down at the Hill 16 end. That’s not what we are about. That belongs to other codes. The GAA played this one wrong. Announcing that the presentation was to take place on the field during the week of the match was madness. This should have been made clear months ago and to make it work there had to be enough people to police it. GAA fans do not court confrontation and this incident had potential trouble written all over it. Considering that everything about Croke Park is professional, they got this one wrong.

Cork football fans will want to be on that pitch if they somehow beat Kerry and who could blame them? Clare supporters, and I could be one of them, would like a trip across the pitch for old time’s sake this Sunday if we win the U-21 hurling title. Watching your county man lift the Liam McCarthy/Sam Maguire from the steps of the Hogan Stand while you cheer on from the pitch is up there with the birth of a child (if you’re from Clare, Mayo, Donegal, Cavan, etc).

So don’t take it away from us. Give Aviva, Quinn Direct or FBD one of the soon-to-be-empty corporate boxes and that should cover the extra premium.

Related articles:
Tipp can blame the ref, the pitch, the Cats and... themselves - An Moltóir
Been there Benny, Dunne that! - AFR's Chronicles
Kilkenny worthy 'four in a row' Champions - Henry Martin
Sheedy's men outmaneouvred at the death - Conor Power

To catch Emmet's latest column, get 'The Irish Farmers' Journal' every Thursday...