Tomorrow afternoon in Thurles, Colm Bonnar will become the ninth Tipperary manager that Brian Cody has faced since he took charge of Kilkenny in November 1998.
Indeed, with Liam Sheedy having enjoyed two three-year stints at the helm, Bonnar’s appointment represents the 10th different Tipperary administration that Cody has opposed as he moves into his 24th season in the job.
Nicky English was appointed in Tipperary at about the same time as him and, at that stage, Championship meetings between the two counties had become rare. Indeed, Cody never played Championship hurling against Tipp.
When they faced off in the 2002 All-Ireland semi-final, with Kilkenny beating the reigning champions in a classic encounter, it was just their second Championship clash in the previous 31 years.
English stepped down afterwards and Cody had seen off his first Tipperary manager.
Tipp went into something of a tailspin thereafter as Kilkenny hoovered up All-Irelands and, while League ties between the counties remained frequent, it would be the 2009 All-Ireland final before their paths crossed in Championship again, with the Premier revitalised under Sheedy.
Across League and Championship encounters, he enjoys the best record against Cody with each of his spells producing a 50% win rate. It’s actually matched by his predecessor Michael ‘Babs’ Keating but Keating’s sample size is much smaller as it takes in just two League games compared to eight meetings in League and Championship for the Portroe man.
When Sheedy was succeeded by Declan Ryan after ruining Cody’s five-in-a-row ambitions in the 2010 All-Ireland final, Tipp looked to be in position to flip the rivalry on its head but it didn’t materialise as they lost all four encounters on Ryan’s watch, with the 2012 All-Ireland semi-final loss their biggest in Championship hurling since the 19th century.
Éamon O’Shea and Michael Ryan fared better but still only managed a single victory each.
With Limerick now the pace-setters, a League victory over Kilkenny doesn’t carry the same weight as before, but it would still be a welcome shot of confidence for the new Tipp regime tomorrow.
At 67, it’s safe to say that Cody is closer to the end of his Kilkenny tenure than the beginning, but has he time to see Bonnar off too?
TIPPERARY MANAGERS THAT BRIAN CODY HAS SEEN OFF
Nicky English 1999-2002
Record v Kilkenny
1999 NHL: Kilkenny 3-14 Tipperary 1-13.
2000 NHL: Tipperary 2-9 Kilkenny 2-14
2001 NHL: Kilkenny 1-12 Tipperary 0-15
2002 All-Ireland semi-final: Kilkenny 1-20 Kilkenny 1-16
Played: 4, Won: 0, Drew: 1, Lost: 3. Win Percentage: 0%
Michael Doyle 2003
Record v Kilkenny
2003 NHL: Kilkenny 2-16 Tipperary 2-19; Kilkenny 5-14 Tipperary 5-13 (final)
2003 All-Ireland semi-final: Kilkenny 3-18 Tipperary 0-15
Played: 3, Won: 1, Drew: 0, Lost: 2. Win Percentage: 33%
Ken Hogan 2004-05
Record v Kilkenny
2005 NHL: Kilkenny 3-18 Tipperary 2-16
Played: 1, Won: 0, Drew: 0, Lost: 1. Win Percentage: 0%
Michael ‘Babs’ Keating 2006-07
Record v Kilkenny
2006 NHL: Tipperary 0-10 Kilkenny 0-19
2007 NHL: Kilkenny 2-13 Tipperary 3-13
Played: 2, Won: 1, Drew: 0, Lost: 1. Win percentage: 50%
Liam Sheedy 2008-10
Record v Kilkenny
2008 NHL: Kilkenny 1-10 Tipperary 1-15 (semi-final)
2009 NHL: Kilkenny 5-17 Tipperary 1-12; Tipperary 4-17 Kilkenny 2-26 AET (final)
2009 All-Ireland final: Kilkenny 2-22 Tipperary 0-23
2010 NHL: Tipperary 1-14 Kilkenny 0-13
2010 All-Ireland final: Tipperary 4-17 Kilkenny 1-18
Played: 6, Won: 3, Drew: 0, Lost: 3. Win Percentage: 50%
Declan Ryan 2011-12
Record v Kilkenny
2011 NHL: Tipperary 1-10 Kilkenny 1-17
2011 All-Ireland final: Kilkenny 2-17 Tipperary 1-16
2012 NHL: Kilkenny 2-17 Tipperary 0-15
2012 All-Ireland semi-final: Kilkenny 4-24 Tipperary 1-15
Played: 4, Won: 0, Drew: 0, Lost: 4. Win Percentage: 0%
Éamon O’Shea 2013-15
Record v Kilkenny
2013 NHL: Tipperary 2-17 Kilkenny 1-19; Kilkenny 2-17 Tipperary 0-20 (final)
2013 All-Ireland qualifier: Kilkenny 0-20 Tipperary 1-14
2014 NHL: Kilkenny 5-20 Tipperary 5-14; Tipperary 1-27 Kilkenny 2-25 AET (final)
2014 All-Ireland final: Kilkenny 3-22 Tipperary 1-28; Kilkenny 2-17 Tipperary 2-14 (replay)
2015 NHL: Tipperary 2-22 Kilkenny 1-13
Played: 8, Won: 2, Drew: 1, Lost: 5. Win Percentage: 25%
Michael Ryan 2016-18
Record v Kilkenny
2016 NHL: Kilkenny 2-17 Tipperary 0-18
2016 All-Ireland final: Tipperary 2-29 Kilkenny 2-20
2017 NHL: Tipperary 2-17 Kilkenny 3-14
2018 NHL: Kilkenny 2-22 Tipperary 2-21; Kilkenny 2-23 Tipperary 2-17 (final)
Played: 5, Won: 1, Drew: 1, Lost 3. Win Percentage: 20%
Liam Sheedy 2019-21
Record v Kilkenny
2019 NHL: Tipperary 0-17 Kilkenny 0-18
2019 All-Ireland final: Tipperary 3-25 Kilkenny 0-20
Played: 2, Won: 1, Drew: 0, Lost: 1. Win Percentage: 50%
Liam Sheedy record v Kilkenny across two spells
Played: 8, Won: 4, Drew: 0, Lost: 4. Win Percentage: 50%
