NOW THAT THE football championship has had its grand opening weekend, it’s hurling’s turn to step onto the stage.

The provincial round-robins get underway this weekend as Kilkenny look to complete a Leinster five in-a-row. They retained their crown last year with a dramatic injury-time goal against Galway in the final, but the script for the 2024 competition is yet unwritten.

All six teams will be in action this weekend before the Round 1 begins, let’s consider the key players who will have the most to say when the ball is thrown in.

Eoin Cody [Kilkenny]

Still only in his fourth year as a senior inter-county hurler, Eoin Cody is firmly cast as one of Kilkenny’s leaders. He was named team captain at the start of this year after a 2023 season which culminated in a brilliant All-Ireland final performance. He scored a goal from play and posed plenty of bother for the Limerick defence throughout the afternoon.

One particular sequence which showed him carrying the ball through a crowded area while also taking out Cian Lynch with a dummy handpass before winning a free summed up his influence for Derek Lyng’s side. He scored 3-23 in this year’s league as Kilkenny progressed to the final, although he did receive a sending off with two yellow cards in the semi-final against Limerick.

He was prominent again in the final against Clare, posting 1-4, including a 65th minute, goal to help Kilkenny rally from seven points down before eventually losing by two.

Johnny Glynn [Galway]

There has been plenty of discussion around the role that Johnny Glynn will play for Galway this year. The Ardrahan forward hasn’t featured for the county since 2019 having moved to New York.

However, the rumour mill first started churning after Glynn was invited into a Galway training camp before Easter in Portugal. His recall was based on his impressive club form last year. Henry Shefflin has since confirmed that Glynn has been included in Galway’s championship squad, which bolsters his attacking options for the rest of 2024.

Glynn, known for his strength and aerial prowess, played a key role in Galway’s 2017 All-Ireland triumph. He has been omitted from the Galway matchday squad this weekend  but those qualities he possessed in the past could account for the losing margin that affected them in last year’s final. 

Lee Chin [Wexford]

Wexford’s most experienced player will have a huge part to play in 2024 as they look to redeem themselves from last year’s campaign which almost ended in relegation. Facing the drop to Joe McDonagh hurling, Lee Chin produced a heroic 1-10 display as Wexford clinched an unlikely win against Kilkenny to survive.

Now under Keith Rossiter’s new management, Chin will be eager to ensure Wexford enjoy a more progressive championship. After winning the Walsh Cup, Wexford’s league produced an unusual set of results consisting of one win, one loss and three draws. Those Two of those draws were against league finalists Kilkenny and Clare, with Chin scoring a combined seven points across the two games.

Chin will be looking to get his 12th championship campaign off to a winning start against Dublin this weekend.

Cian O’Sullivan [Dublin]

Originally drafted in from the 2016 Leinster-winning minor team, O’Sullivan is one of Dublin’s most prolific scorers. He scored 1-28 in the league this year as Micheál Donoghue’s side were relegated to Division 1B, while previously finishing the 2023 Leinster championship with a tally of 2-8 to help Dublin into the preliminary All-Ireland quarter-final.

He added another 1-3 against Carlow and 11 frees in their quarter-final defeat to Clare, taking over the free-taking duties after Donal Burke was forced off with injury.

Dublin face Wexford, Carlow and Antrim in their first three games where O’Sullivan’s influence will be crucial in seeking out results before Kilkenny and Galway in the final rounds.

Marty Kavanagh [Carlow]

After scoring 1-8 to help deliver an incredible Joe McDonagh triumph after extra-time, Marty Kavanagh will surely be a top scoring threat for Carlow in the major leagues this year.

He topped the Division 2A scoring charts in this year’s league with 4-46 as Carlow reached the league final and secured promotion for 2025. Kavanagh also made history by becoming his county’s highest scoring player of all time when he reached a tally of 687pts [29-600] after their win over Down.

Carlow are one of the counties that are susceptible to the yo-yo effect between the championship tiers, but Kavanagh’s current form could help stave off the threat of relegation. However, they must travel to face Galway in Pearse Stadium in the opening round this weekend, where a win will be difficult to achieve.

Conal Cunning [Antrim]

He was Dunloy’s top-scorer with 0-7 when they were defeated by Ballyhale Shamrocks in the 2023 All-Ireland final, also setting up a goal for Ronan Molloy in Croke Park. Although Dunloy were outmatched that day, Cunning finished the club season on the club team of the year to underline his impact on the season.

Along with Evan Niland of Galway and Clare’s Aaron Rodgers, he finished as the fourth-highest scorer in this year’s league with 1-10 in Division 1B. His highest single-match tally was 1-10 against Dublin.

He pucked 2-42 in last year’s Leinster championship, including 0-9 in their draw against Dublin and 1-9 in their win over Westmeath.

Antrim will certainly be reliant on Cunning when their Leinster championship gets off the mark in Nowlan Park this weekend, but Kilkenny will be in no mood to cough up change, and will have their man-marking duties assigned to deal with Cunning.

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