Nationalist, 9 September 1989

For a county with the kind of hurling pedigree of Tipperary’s, 18 years is an awful long time to wait for an All Ireland. The tale of woe of Tipperary hurling during the 1970s and ‘80s was a long and bitter one, with such villains as Richie Bennis and Seanie O’Leary popping up every now and then to heap yet more misery down on the heads of the long-suffering Premier folk. The tide was to turn, however, with the appointment of Michael “Babs” Keating as manager of the Tipperary senior hurlers in 1986, and the following year in Killarney a blood soaked Richard Stakelum, finally with cold silver in Tipperary hands, declared the “Famine” over. Galway would prove to be Tipperary’s new nemesis for the next two years, beating them in the ’87 semi and ’88 All Ireland final. The Premier finally had their measure in August 1989, and a few weeks later they steamrolled a brave, swashbuckling Antrim side that had blitzed Offaly in their semi final. A week later, the county’s u21s added another All Ireland Cup to the top table. The “Famine” was certainly over now. Having soldiered through lean times Tipperary hurling supporters were now feasting like kings… (CLICK ON ARTICLE TO ENLARGE)