Hurling/Shinty international: Ireland 3-16 Scotland 5-7 (aet)
Joint manager Terence McNaughton hailed both the genius and equality on show in Ennis as Ireland retained the hurling/shinty international title after a dramatic encounter.
Over 100 minutes of frantic action was required to separate the teams as Ireland eventually shook off the Scots thanks largely to 3-2 from Kilkenny’s Eoin Cody.
That’s where the genius comes in as the Allstar nominee had the crowd gasping with a series of sumptuous scores.
Arguably his greatest piece of skill came late in stoppage time though didn’t yield a score as he held his man off with one head and narrowly missed out on a point after flicking the ball back over his own head with the other hand.
Aidan McCarthy, an All-Ireland winner with Clare this year, was the local hero, along with Ennis native Shane Meehan, and the pair contributed 10 points between them.
As for the equality, that was easy to spot with Ireland’s 20-man squad made up of players from all five tiers of the game, from seven MacCarthy Cup players down to players from Fermanagh and Longford who competed in the 2024 Lory Meagher Cup final.
“You had a young lad in our dressing-room from Fermanagh, Luca McCusker, sitting beside Eoin Cody - fantastic!” beamed McNaughton.
“You have the Morrissey brothers from Limerick there with what, five All-Ireland medals each? They’re household names. It probably means a bit more again to the players from the lower tiers.”
McNaughton was bowled over by the brilliance of Cody on the evening.
“Eoin was brilliant, he was flicking balls over his man’s head, he was moving the ball into space,” said the former Antrim player and manager.
“The good players who have the best stick work really show up and that’s where a genius like Eoin Cody comes into his own.
“I thought Dan Morrissey, Cianan Fahy, Gerard Walsh from Antrim, Cody, they were all outstanding.”
Scotland were desperate to regain the title after losing last year in Newry and led 2-4 to 1-4 at half-time.
Early goals from Rauridh Anderson and Daniel MacVicar got them going as Ireland racked up the wides - 23 over the entire game.
The hosts were more economical in the second-half and Cody’s second goal was followed by points from McCarthy, Offaly’s Killian Sampson and Meehan.
McCarthy and Meehan points left Ireland two clear at the end of the regulation 80 minutes before Lachie Shaw’s stoppage time goal for Scotland.
McCarthy forced extra-time with the levelling point from a free and Cody showed his class with 1-1 in the additional 20 minutes.
Ireland: E Rowland (Laois); B Conneely (Offaly), D Morrissey (Limerick); G Walsh (Antrim), C Fahy (Galway), K Sampson (Offaly) (0-1); C Taggart (Down), J Sampson (Offaly), S Meehan (Clare) (0-1); A McCarthy (Clare) (0-9, 0-4 frees, 2 65), M Keoghan (Kilkenny) (0-2), T Keyes (Laois); E Cody (Kilkenny) (3-2), C Darcy (Longford).
Interchange: E Cahill (Offaly) (0-1), S McBride (Donegal), L McCusker (Fermanagh), T Morrissey (Limerick), D Sands (Down), J Toher (Meath).
Scotland: S MacDonald; F MacRae, R Mabon; A Michie, B Morrison, C Cormack; S MacDonald (0-3, 0-3 frees), D Nixon, C Mainland; K Bartlett (0-4, 4f), R MacDonald, R Anderson (1-0); D MacVicar (1-0), C Morrison (2-0).
Interchange: C Sutherland, J Gillies, D Kelly, A MacDonald, L Shaw 1-0, B Delaney.
Ref: S Hynes (Galway).