The serious business starts for Kilkenny next weekend.
Following three Walsh Cup games that brought with it victories over Offaly and Laois and a defeat to Wexford, the Cats begin their league campaign on Saturday, February 4th when they travel to Corrigan Park to take on Antrim at 2pm (Live on KCLR).
It remains a period of novelty for Kilkenny supporters as they watch on with equal levels of intrigue and anticipation ahead of the beginning of the competitive games under new manager Derek Lyng.
One of those supporters is four-time All-Ireland winner Paul Murphy as he continues to watch on from afar following his retirement after the 2020 season.
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Speaking to KCLR, the Danesfort clubman highlighted how the bedding in period for the new management team will allow players gain opportunities on the playing field.
“I think a lot of players will look at this as a new opportunity under the new management. Everybody over the last number of years has been given a chance, but lots of players will feel that this is a clean slate.
“It’s very positive at the moment. I worked under Derek during my time as a Kilkenny player and he’s a great fella. There’ll be tough battles during the league and that’s when we’ll learn a lot more about this team. It’s been very positive so far and there’s no better man than Derek to take on the job.”
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Murphy, who was part of the county’s football side who won last year’s All-Ireland junior title, emphasised the importance of the new boss stamping his own mark on the team from early on.
“The main thing for Derek is to put his own spin on it. Brian Cody was obviously an incredible manager, but Derek will have his own ways as a manager in terms of how he deals with players. The fact that he has come from the U20 team is great because he’ll have an understanding of the younger players and how they are.
“It’s different now to when I was a young player and he’ll have that understanding which is important.”
While the spotlight will be on the new players throughout the league, the 34-year-old also mentioned the importance of the experienced players if Kilkenny are to be successful.
“He’ll know a lot of the players that are still there. He’s won All-Irelands with the likes of Cillian Buckley, Walter Walsh and Richie Hogan so he has a nice mix there between knowing the senior members of the panel and having a grasp on the younger players too.
“I think regardless of if you’re in the job a day or ten years, having experienced players in the panel is always a major benefit. Playing with these players for the younger lads fills them with pride.
“They’ll also be taking their lead because the older players will just go about their business, but the new members of the panel will learn from that and they’ll know what needs to be done to improve to their standards.”
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When asked where Kilkenny are in the pecking order heading into the new season, Murphy gave a straightforward answer.
“I think we’re exactly where we finished up last year – in second spot.
“It’s hard to look past Limerick at the moment, but Kilkenny’s game has moved away from the long ball and more towards the modern game over the last few years.
“There’s not one area where Kilkenny are lacking in and there’s a great blend there. I think they’ll gain from that experience of going toe-to-toe with Limerick in the All-Ireland final and that has left them in a good position coming into 2023.”
You can hear the full interview on KCLR’s Scoreline from 4pm on Saturday.
KCLR is the only place where you can hear all of Kilkenny’s Allianz National Hurling League, Leinster championship and All-Ireland series games in 2023.
