History of The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship - 1989 To 1993 - The Big Three Redeem Themselves

The Big Three Redeem Themselves

In 1989 Tipperary were still the best team in Munster and won a third provincial title. For the third time in as many years Tipp faced Galway in the All-Ireland series, however, on this occasion the men from the West were without their star player Tony Keady. The game turned out to be a tense and unsavory affair as Tipp finally triumphed over Galway. Antrim, the surprise winners of the other semi-final, provided the opposition in the subsequent All-Ireland final. It was an historic occasion as it was only the second appearance of an Ulster team in the championship decider. Antrim’s relative inexperience robbed the final of any real element of contest and Tipp romped home to a 4-24 to 3-9 win. Nicky English entered the record books with a personal tally of 2-12, while Tipperary preserved their unique record of being the only team to win an All-Ireland title in every decade of the GAA's existence.

In 1990 Tipperary looked set for another year of dominance at the top of the hurling world. The Munster final pitted them against Cork, however, Tipperary manager Michael 'Babs' Leating dismissed Cork's chances of a victory with the famous phrase:

Keating was forced to eat his words as Cork secured an odds-defying 4-16 to 2-14 victory over their greatest rivals. Cork subsequently qualified for another All-Ireland final showdown with Galway. Once again, Galway were the favourites and were out to make amends and capture a third All-Ireland title in four seasons. Shortly after half-time the westerners were up by seven points and were cruising to victory thanks to a masterclass in hurling by Joe Cooney. Cork's Tomás Mulcahy, however, played a captain’s role and scored a crucial goal that revitalised the Cork attack. The final score of 5-15 to 2-21 gave Cork the victory in one of the most open and exciting hurling finals in years. Two weeks later the Cork Gaelic footballers claimed the All-Ireland title, thus securing a unique double.

Tipperary bounced back in 1991 and defeated Cork in a thrilling Munster final replay. The subsequent All-Ireland final saw Tipperary take on Kilkenny for the first time in exactly twenty years. A freak goal by Michael Cleary in the first-half gave Tipp a lead which they never surrendered. A 1-16 to 0-15 victory allowed Tipperary to claim a second All-Ireland title in three years.

In 1992 Kilkenny bounced back from the All-Ireland defeat. That year's championship decider saw ‘the Cats’ take on Cork for the first time in nearly a decade. The game was well balanced for the first-half, however, new sensation D.J. Carey scored a goal four minutes before the break. This seemed to give Kilkenny the impetus to go on and win the game. Two more goals by John Power and Michael Phelan in the second-half secured a win for Kilkenny and a first All-Ireland title since 1983.

In 1993 Kilkenny were still on top of the hurling world as the team lined out in a third successive All-Ireland final. That year ‘the Cats’ faced Galway for the first time since 1987. Galway won on that occasion; however, in 1993 they were lagging behind Kilkenny for much of the game. They went a point ahead coming into the last quarter; however, Kilkenny won the match by five points.