Ahane's - Ger Mulcahy Can he achieve glory at the 23rd attempt? Come Championship time again Limerick's hurlers will be more determined than ever to set the record straight. The suckerpunch delivered by Offaly in the 1994 All-Ireland decider was a setback of huge proportions: the sort of kick in the teeth which takes a lot of getting over. The sad collapse of Tom Ryan's men in last year's Munster final was, in hindsight, predictable - a delayed reaction to having seen the Liam McCarthy Cup stolen from beneath their noses. Ironically, Limerick's Semple Stadium tormentors of 1995 may be the ones to show them the way, Clare put a plethora of disappointments behind them to go all the way last year. So surely Limerick can exorcise the ghost of the 1994 All-Ireland final. Methinks this present Limerick side is much too good to fade into obscurity; former county star Ger Mulcahy agrees. Ger Mulcahy hails originally from the south Limerick village of Dromin Athlacca, and first began to hurl with the club of the same name. Ger was still only fifteen years old when he won a Limerick Under 21 Championship with Dromin Athlacca in 1973. He went on to win a county Minor Championship in '74, breaking into the club's Senior team that same year. "The unfortunate thing from my point of view was that this was at a time when Limerick hurling was dominated by a great Kilmallock team which won three-in-a-row," he reflects. 1996 will be Ger Mulcahy's 23rd year playing Senior hurling in Limerick. The first thirteen years of his club career were spent with Dromin Athlacca and he has been with the famous Ahane club ever since. Ger married the former Vera Mackey in 1983 and transferred clubs subsequent to setting up home in Ahane. Ger's wife Vera is a daughter of John Mackey and a niece of Mick Mackey, both of whom played with Limerick's Senior team in the thirties and forties. John and Mick both starred on the All-Ireland winning teams of 1934, 1936 and 1940. Centre forward Mick was captain of the 1936 and 1940 teams. True to the family tradition, Vera herself went on to represent Limerick in gaelic games. She won an All-Ireland club medal the following year. She was a selector on last year's All-Ireland winning Limerick Junior camogie team. Ger and Vera Mulcahy have three daughters who play all sports. Lining out mostly at midfield, but occasionally appearing at centre forward or centre back, Ger has yet to garner a Limerick Senior Championship medal. Honours collected at club level have so far been confined to Minor, Under 21 and Intermediate (1978) Championships - all won with Dromin Athlacca. Souvenirs earned in the colours of Ahane have been conspicuously few and far between - but the general feeling these days in what was once the undisputed home of Limerick hurling is that the big time is about to be revisited. Ger Mulcahy is determined to help Ahane to a Senior Championship success before he retires. "I'd truly love Ahane to win the Limerick Championship in 1996," he admits. "We were beaten in the Senior county semi-final for the past two years. Losing to Patrickswell in last year's semi-final was a major disappointment. Because of the fact that Ahane was the mainstay of the county team in the 1930s, a lot of people are of the opinion that if Ahane could come back then Limerick will come back. Despite the fact that Ahane haven't won a county Championship since 1955, they've still won more Limerick Championships than anybody else. There's a great hurling tradition in Ahane and the club went through a really fruitful spell when we had great players like the Mackey's, the Herberts and Jackie Power(Ger Power's father). We have a good blend of youth at the club at the moment, and we could peak in '96. Hopefully we have learned from what happened the past two years and if the commitment remains as high as it has been so far this year then we'll take a lot of stopping," the former Limerick star promises. Ger Mulcahy represented Limerick at Minor level in 1975 and was a county Under 21 in '77 and '78. He first broke in the Limerick Senior panel in 1979. Limerick took on old rivals Cork in the 1980 National Hurling League final. The original game, played on May 4th, finished in a deadlock with the sides tied on a score of 2-10 apiece. In the replay a fortnight later, the Rebels emerged victorious on a scoreline of 4-15 to 4-6. Ger Mulcahy played in both finals. He remained on the country panel for the Championship campaign which followed and Limerick were to exact revenge on the Corkmen. "That was kind of the beginning of Limerick hurling's renaissance," he reflects. "We overturned our defeat in the League final with a great victory over Cork in the 1980 Munster final (2-14 to 2-10). I was no longer in the starting fifteen at this stage, but was still on the panel. Unfortunately we were beaten by Galway in the All-Ireland final. The following year we retained our Munster crown but this time Galway got the better of us in the semi-final after a replay." Ger remained on the Limerick Senior panel up until 1985, collecting a National Hurling League medal in '84. What was the highlight of his intercounty career? "It had to be winning the Munster final in 1980. Limerick hurling had declined a little after winning the All-Ireland in 1973 and this was the beginning of what we hoped was going to be another great Limerick team. We were very unfortunate to lose Pat Hartigan with an eye injury in 1979, but overcame that the following year. I really think that Limerick team was good enough to win an All-Ireland, but we didn't always have the luck of the draw." And regrets? "Not winning All-Irelands in 1980 and '81 were very obvious regrets. From a personal point of view, while I did get chances with the county team perhaps I could have got more. I seemed to fall out of favour at a very early age," notes the Ahane clubman who rates Eamonn Cregan as the best player he ever played alongside. "I remember watching him score three goals and three points in the 1973 Munster final. He was then moved to centre half back for the All-Ireland final and gave an outstanding display. He was a fantastic hurler." Another contemporary rated very highly by Ger Mulcahy was Leonard Enright who successfully made the conversion from midfield to become one of the first of the new breed of full backs. He cities Tim Crowley from Cork as one of his most difficult opponents and adds that "you couldn't help admire the brilliant stickwork of Cork's John Fenton." Ger Mulcahy has been involved at backroom level with both the Dromin Athlacca and Ahane clubs. He was also a selector with Limerick Under 21s in 1993, '94 and '95 Munster final. Ger Mulcahy realises only too well the effect which defeat in the 1994 All-Ireland final has had on Limerick hurling. "1994 was a very unusual year and we still haven't got over the shock of the manner in which we lost the final. I thought Limerick were great over the year, but were unfortunate to be caught in those last five minutes. They could be the dark horses in '96 however. They still have the same backroom team and may get those extra few players from the 1993 Under 21 team who could make all the difference by giving the team a better balance. "If they don't make it this year though there'll have to be a clear-out. The Limerick County Board currently has a five-year youth development programme in progress, with members of the '73 All-Ireland heavily involved; so hopefully we'll benefit from that in the near future. But I wouldn't write Limerick off this year. What happened in 1994 should be out of their systems now and everybody's going to be watching for Clare again and Jimmy Barry-Murphy's Cork." For the past four years Ger Mulcahy has been General Manager of TNT Express Worldwork in Shannon. TNT Express is an international freight company, which was established in Ireland in 1981. It has Irish depots in Dublin, Cork, Waterford and Shannon. Originated in Australia, the company imports and exports freight on a global basis. Altogether about two hundred people are employed in the Irish operation; forty of those are accountable to Ger Mulcahy in Shannon. "We're very much involved in sports sponsorship and currently sponsor Michelle Smith, Finn Harps soccer team and Dolphin Rugby club. Business is good at the moment and we're looking forward to increasing market share in 1996 and beyond", concluded the personable Limerick hurling stalwart. Written by the Hogan Stand 9th Feb 1996 Tweet

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