As time is almost upon us for the All Ireland Senior Hurling championship for 2011, it’s refreshing to see Dublin appear in a semi final for the first time since the early 1960s...

The coming of Dublin has been forecast for a number of years now but they have had to bide their time and take it baby step by baby step. Tommy Naughton might perhaps feel an injustice at the breakthrough not coming during his time, but the players weren’t ready, and they wouldn’t have had the same number of appearances back then that their big game experience has bequeathed them now.

They enter unknown territory on Sunday and have a greater chance than people are giving them. Despite the absence of key personnel, they will not wilt. The pressure is off, they are rank outsiders, and they are there to have a go. That said, they may not succeed, but outside of a Dublin victory on Sunday, they need to be leaving Croke Park thinking, “We would have won with Keaney.”

The manner of their quarter final victory over Limerick was ‘iffy’, especially given the control they had for the first twenty-five minutes, but in such cases, the result is more important and getting over the finishing line was all that mattered. But it has to be said that they ground out the result when the game was in the melting pot, and when the Dublin team of 2009 failed to cross the line. That in itself will stand them in good stead, and based on results of 2011 to date, Dublin can be realistically considered the third best team in the country. But there is still a gap to be bridged to the Big Two.

Tipperary are coming in on a wave of expectation. They hammered Waterford in the Munster final and will have watched Kilkenny dispose of the same opposition with less fluidity. Some regard the All Ireland Championship of 2011 to be the property of Tipperary right now, but Kilkenny will have something to say about that and Dublin ain’t beaten just yet either. Paddy Power may have paid out in advance of Manchester United winning Premiership titles, but they haven’t done so yet in the hurling championship and are never likely to do so.

Tipperary are in the public eye. Their movement and supply of ball will have been monitored closely and the Dublin intention will be to have their half backline running towards their own goal as often as possible. In short, the key to beating them is their half back line. Anthony Daly will (a) Look to deny the Tipperary half back line the open space to pop their Lar Corbett deliveries, (b) Take them on as often as possible by running at them, (c) Pressurise them so that they are clearing the ball on the back foot.

In defence, he may well look at options ranging from testing the elasticity of Lar Corbett’s jersey for a split second to obstruct his runs, to keeping a defender in front of Gary Maguire at all times. Against some opponents, it’s better to risk the concession of a point, than to lose a goal. Unlike Waterford, Dublin have defenders playing in positions with which they are accustomed. Peter Kelly is adapting to full back very well and his defending to deny Kevin Downes a shot at goal in the first half of the quarterfinal was impressive. He is more than capable of defending against any of the opposition forwards that spend time in his company. The question marks would surround Joey Boland who looked loose at times in the quarter final, and how Dublin will handle Patrick ‘Bonnar’ Maher’s unpredictable and random handpasses as he hits the deck.

Tipperary, on the other hand, will seek to do what has served them well since the Sheedy reign began, finding one another in space and moving off the ball in the forward line to facilitate that. They have won silverware for the fourth successive year, and want to nail the McCarthy Cup this year going through the front door. They will not necessarily fear the Dublin forwards, feeling that their backs should contain them from general play, and they won’t be concerned about Paul Ryan because conceding points from frees hasn’t really been anything they have considered a problem. However, earlier this summer, Clare, and to a lesser extent Cork, showed that their defence doesn’t like to be run at, and Dublin have the artillery to run at them. Goals had been a problem for Dublin up to the Limerick game and Ryan O’Dwyer’s three goals apart, they haven’t really threatened goals. The one point that Dublin must prove on Sunday, even with 2012 in mind, is that they can score goals against top opposition.

It could be to Ryan O’Dwyer’s advantage that he isn’t really rated by a lot of people in Tipperary as a player for the month of August, and that should provide a serious form of motivation for him. He may be wound up, he may be taunted about his lack of an All Ireland medal, but the important thing for him is to keep his cool, and channel his aggression into putting the Dublin team first. It will be interesting to see what formation Dublin adopt, but one suspects having done his job in the full forward line the last time out, he could well be on the half forward line this time. Padraig Maher needs to be curtailed, and Conor O’Mahoney needs to be taken on at every available opportunity. Rushe on O’Mahoney and O’Dwyer on Maher could be productive for Dublin. Physicality is the key for the Dublin forwards from a defensive capacity, Conor McCormack’s physical performance in the league final would have to symbolise the tone for Sunday if Dublin are to compete. Controlled aggression at its best is what they need, with a little bit of cuteness on the ball.

Overall, Tipperary’s greater ability to finish their chances will guide them through but not without a battle from Dublin. When a team has become champions, they play with assurance, like the manner Cork did against Clare in the 2005 All Ireland Semi Final. No panic buttons are pressed, and they trust the methods that have enabled them to become champions. Dublin have yet to reach that level but have achieved an awful lot this year. In the last ten minutes last Sunday, it appeared as though Waterford were content to shut up shop at the back to lose by a respectable score line when they should really have been leaving taking a chance at the back and having a go at Kilkenny. If you are going to lose by a game by six you might as well have a go and risk losing by nine. Perhaps if Dublin are in a similar position with the clock ticking down, they will have a go.

Tipperary have a strong bench and have men who can score freely. Dublin will attempt to curb the fluidity of their scores, and will succeed to a certain extent but not enough.

Another Tipperary vs. Kilkenny final.