McGrath: 'An Element Of Shock' To Tipperary All-Ireland Final Comeback

Tipperary star John McGrath admitted there was an "element of shock" after his side steamrolled Cork in the second half of last month's All-Ireland hurling final - while he also threw some light on the squad's celebrations with Sharlene Mawdsley.

The Loughmore-Castleiney star was speaking to the media on Monday after being named PwC GAA/GPA Player of the Month for July in hurling.

The Premier County capped a transformative campaign under Liam Cahill by lifting the Liam MacCarthy Cup after overcoming the much-fancied Rebels in stunning fashion in July's decider.

Cork appeared set to go one better than last year's final loss against Clare, especially after heading into the half-time break six points to the good.

But Tipp were a different animal after the restart and went on to make it the ultimate game of two halves as goals rained down on the Canal End they were attacking.

They outscored Cork in the second half by 3-14 to 0-02, thanks in no small part to full forward McGrath, who had a personal tally of 2-03 on the day.

The second half blitz was enough to flip the script upside-down and hand Cork a third All-Ireland final loss in five years, with Tipp's 15-point winning margin just one shy of the 16-point hammering the Leesiders suffered in the 2021 decider against Limerick.

Tipperary's transition from a side who had failed to win a single Munster fixture in 2024 into All-Ireland champions was one which came about speedily, much like their second half bonanza itself - and McGrath admitted it was scarcely believable in the moment.

"It's hard to put your finger on it, all the permutations you're thinking of in the weeks leading up, winning, losing, all crosses your mind.

"The manner in which we won, I don't think anyone in their wildest dreams would've come up with that scenario, so there certainly was an element of shock. We knew we were relatively well up but to see the final score, it was hard to believe that had happened.

"Sport can be funny, everything started to go right for us and the exact opposite for Cork, hitting the post, the crossbar. Them bits of luck are needed along the way, and our lads absolutely powered into that last 35 minutes. To save that 35 minutes for an All-Ireland final, it's the kind of thing you hope will happen, but how often will that come to fruition?"

Tipp celebrated in style once they arrived home, with more than 45,000 fans greeting them at Semple Stadium in Thurles on the Monday following the final.

And after a long night toasting the win, there was even time for athletics star and Newport native Sharlene Mawdsley to get involved, with a viral video showing her racing a former Tipp ace.

Relay hero Mawdsley - whose partner Mikey Breen starred at corner-back for Tipperary in the decider - went viral after racing Buggy O'Meara on the street into the early hours.

While the clip amused thousands who saw it in the aftermath, McGrath laughed and revealed he was already catching up on sleep when it was unfolding.

"It wasn't anyone on the squad anyway! [who challenged Sharlene Mawdsley]. I was thankfully at home in bed at that stage. I'm not exactly sure of the exact lead-up to the events of it, but it made for a good video anyway."