1997 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final
Encyclopedia
The 1997 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Final was held on the 14 September 1997 and contested between Clare
and Tipperary
. It was an historic occasion in the history of the championship as it was the first time that two counties from the same province were appearing in the championship decider. Both sides had already met during the year in the Munster final when Clare defeated Tipperary. Clare had last won the All-Ireland title two years earlier in 1995 when they defeated Offaly
while Tipperary last claimed the championship title in 1991 when they beat Kilkenny
.
of Wexford threw in the sliothar and a much talked about game got under way. In fact, the game turned out to be one of the best of the decade. Tipperary had a good breeze behind them for the opening thirty-five minutes; however, they struggled to find their feet. After a tough opening quarter Tipp’s wind advantage only resulted in a 0-3 to 0-2 lead. The Tipperary team eventually found their groove as Declan Ryan
and John Leahy
fired over some more points and by the twenty-fifth minute they were five points ahead. Tipp forged ahead and looked towards building a match-winning lead by half-time. Clare rallied and a brilliant two-minute spell yielded three unanswered points, two of which came from All-Ireland debutante Niall Gilligan
. He was giving star defender Paul Shelly
an unexpected torrid time during the first half. At half-time Tipperary were ahead by 0-10 to 0-6, however, Clare were in the ascendancy.
Within fifteen seconds of the restart Liam Doyle
, one of Clare’s unsung heroes, sent over another great point. Three Clare points followed in quick succession over the next six minutes before a Colin Lynch
effort leveled the game at 0-11 apiece. The Clare management then brought on David Forde
in a move that would prove most beneficial. He entered the game as a right corner-forward; however, he proceeded to roam all over the forward line. The decision by his marker, Michael Ryan
, not to follow him proved costly as Forde quickly sent over two quick points before setting up a third to give Clare a 0-17 to 0-12 lead with ten minutes left in the game. It looked as if Clare were going to run away with the title, however, there were a few more twists in store. Substitute Liam Cahill
put Tipp back in the game with an opportunist goal. With four minutes left in the match teenager Eugene O’Neill doubled on a free that had come back off the crossbar and sent the sliothar into the net. Tipp had taken a 2-13 to 0-18 lead as the game entered the dying minutes. Ollie Baker
leveled the scores after landing a huge point before Colin Lynch found Jamesie O'Connor
on the right-hand side and fifty yards out from goal. O’Connor’s effort flew straight over the bar and landed in the hand of team manager Ger Loughnane
who was standing behind the goalposts. With seconds remaining in the game Tipperary launched one final attack. A great pass from Brian O'Meara found John Leahy in front of the Clare goal. A point would have resulted in a draw; however, Leahy went for broke and sent a low shot in towards the bottom of the net. Goalkeeper Davy FitzGerald
saved the shot and cleared the sliothar. With that the full-time whistle was blown and Clare were the champions with a 0-20 to 2-13 victory.
MATCH RULES
Clare GAA
The Clare County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Clare GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Clare. The county board is also responsible for the Clare inter-county teams....
and Tipperary
Tipperary GAA
The Tipperary County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or C is one of over 30 regional executive boards throughout the world. These executive boards are known as County Boards even though some no longer correspond to the area under the jurisdiction of the counties from which their names...
. It was an historic occasion in the history of the championship as it was the first time that two counties from the same province were appearing in the championship decider. Both sides had already met during the year in the Munster final when Clare defeated Tipperary. Clare had last won the All-Ireland title two years earlier in 1995 when they defeated Offaly
Offaly GAA
The Offaly County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association or Offaly GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Offaly...
while Tipperary last claimed the championship title in 1991 when they beat Kilkenny
Kilkenny GAA
The Kilkenny County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland and is responsible for Gaelic Games in County Kilkenny. The county board has its head office and main grounds at Nowlan Park and is also responsible for Kilkenny inter-county teams...
.
Match report
At 3:30pm Dickie MurphyDickie Murphy
Richard 'Dickie' Murphy is an Irish hurling referee and former player. He played hurling with his local club Raparees and with the Wexford senior inter-county team in the 1970s and 1980s. Murphy is regarded asone of the best and most popular referees on the inter-county scene...
of Wexford threw in the sliothar and a much talked about game got under way. In fact, the game turned out to be one of the best of the decade. Tipperary had a good breeze behind them for the opening thirty-five minutes; however, they struggled to find their feet. After a tough opening quarter Tipp’s wind advantage only resulted in a 0-3 to 0-2 lead. The Tipperary team eventually found their groove as Declan Ryan
Declan Ryan
Declan Ryan is an Irish hurling manager and former player. He is the current manager of the Tipperary senior hurling team....
and John Leahy
John Leahy (hurler)
John Leahy is a former Irish sportsperson. He played senior hurling with the Tipperary inter-county team from 1988 until 2003. He also represented Tipperary in all grades in Gaelic Football. He is regarded as a great hurler in Tipperary.-Early life & private life:John Leahy was born in...
fired over some more points and by the twenty-fifth minute they were five points ahead. Tipp forged ahead and looked towards building a match-winning lead by half-time. Clare rallied and a brilliant two-minute spell yielded three unanswered points, two of which came from All-Ireland debutante Niall Gilligan
Niall Gilligan
Niall Gilligan is an Irish sportsperson. He plays hurling with his local club Sixmilebridge and is a former player with the Clare senior inter-county team.-Club:...
. He was giving star defender Paul Shelly
Paul Shelly
Paul Shelly was an Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Killenaule and with the Tipperary senior inter-county team in the late 1990s.Shelly played for Tipperary as a defender and also as a full forward later in his career...
an unexpected torrid time during the first half. At half-time Tipperary were ahead by 0-10 to 0-6, however, Clare were in the ascendancy.
Within fifteen seconds of the restart Liam Doyle
Liam Doyle
Liam Doyle is a retired Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Bodyke and with the Clare senior inter-county team in the 1990s and 2000s. Doyle served as trainer of Sixmilebridge Hurling club in 2007 and 2008.- Reflist :...
, one of Clare’s unsung heroes, sent over another great point. Three Clare points followed in quick succession over the next six minutes before a Colin Lynch
Colin Lynch
Colin Lynch is an Irish sportsperson. He plays hurling and Gaelic football with his local clubs Kilmaley and Lissycasey, and was a member of the Clare senior inter-county hurling team from 1997 until 2008.-Club:...
effort leveled the game at 0-11 apiece. The Clare management then brought on David Forde
David Forde (Clare hurler)
David Forde is an Irish sportsperson. He plays hurling with his local club Ogonnelloe and was a member of the Clare senior inter-county team in the 1990s and 2000s. He played as a forward.-References:...
in a move that would prove most beneficial. He entered the game as a right corner-forward; however, he proceeded to roam all over the forward line. The decision by his marker, Michael Ryan
Michael Ryan (hurler)
Michael Ryan is a retired Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Upperchurch-Drombane and with the Tipperary senior inter-county team in the 1990s....
, not to follow him proved costly as Forde quickly sent over two quick points before setting up a third to give Clare a 0-17 to 0-12 lead with ten minutes left in the game. It looked as if Clare were going to run away with the title, however, there were a few more twists in store. Substitute Liam Cahill
Liam Cahill
Liam Cahill was an Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club Ballingarry and with the Tipperary senior inter-county team in the 1990s and 2000s. Cahill transferred to play for Thurles in 2007, winning a County Senior Hurling medal with them in 2009...
put Tipp back in the game with an opportunist goal. With four minutes left in the match teenager Eugene O’Neill doubled on a free that had come back off the crossbar and sent the sliothar into the net. Tipp had taken a 2-13 to 0-18 lead as the game entered the dying minutes. Ollie Baker
Ollie Baker
Oliver "Ollie" Baker is an Irish retired hurler who played as a midfielder for the Clare senior hurling team. He is the current manager of the Offaly senior hurling team....
leveled the scores after landing a huge point before Colin Lynch found Jamesie O'Connor
Jamesie O'Connor
Jamesie O'Connor is a retired Irish sportsperson. He played hurling with his local club St. Joseph's Doora-Barefield and with the Clare senior inter-county team from 1993 until 2004.-Biography:...
on the right-hand side and fifty yards out from goal. O’Connor’s effort flew straight over the bar and landed in the hand of team manager Ger Loughnane
Ger Loughnane
Ger Loughnane is a Irish hurling manager and former player. He played hurling with his local club Feakle and with the Clare senior inter-county team in the 1970s and 1980s...
who was standing behind the goalposts. With seconds remaining in the game Tipperary launched one final attack. A great pass from Brian O'Meara found John Leahy in front of the Clare goal. A point would have resulted in a draw; however, Leahy went for broke and sent a low shot in towards the bottom of the net. Goalkeeper Davy FitzGerald
Davy FitzGerald
David Fitzgerald is an Irish hurling manager and former player. He is a former manager of the Waterford senior hurling team....
saved the shot and cleared the sliothar. With that the full-time whistle was blown and Clare were the champions with a 0-20 to 2-13 victory.
Statistics
- 70 minutes.
- Replay if scores level.
- Three named substitutes>