Lar Corbett Retires

1916

A bit suprising I would have thought

Corbett decision stuns Tipperary

Lar Corbett has announced his retirement from intercounty hurling. Photograph: Lorraine O'Sullivan/InphoGAA: Tipperary hurling was in shock tonight with the news that Lar Corbett is to walk away from the county scene. The 30-year-old informed manager Declan Ryan in person and is believed to have circulated a text message to his Tipperary teammates to make them aware of his decision.


The 2010 hurler of the year, who scored a hat-trick of goals against Kilkenny in that year’s final as Tipperary reclaimed the All-Ireland after almost a decade in the wilderness, had yet to return to training with the county this year.

He was named in the Munster interprovincial squad for the recent challenge match against a Tipperary selection in aid of Breast Cancer Ireland, but did not feature in that game either.

It is understood that Corbett will continue to line out for his club Thurles Sarsfields but his decision to quit the Tipperary set-up will send shockwaves through the entire hurling community. He met with Ryan this evening to confirm he was calling it a day after letting his teammates know that he was unable to commit himself fully to the cause by sending a group text message.

His withdrawal comes shortly after boss Ryan cut seven players from an extended squad. Corbett now becomes the second player from last year’s squad to announce his intercounty retirement, following in the footsteps of fellow 2010 All-Ireland medallist Benny Dunne.

http://www.irishtimes.com/sports/gaa/2012/0206/1224311395033.html

Fireball07

That's a bit of a shock. Still at the top of his game imo.

Minister Boyce

Apparently he's to clarify the decision on Twitter. Nothing up yet though. He better keep the clarification short and sweet, he only has 140 characters! massive blow to tipps preparations

Hammer Archer

That's surprising alright. Supposedly work commitments are the reason for him pulling out. Hopefully his situation changes and he returns sooner rather than later.

KevIRL

Did he not retire just before the all Ireland final last year? Don't remember him playing in it anyway.

ft9

KevIRL wrote: »

Did he not retire just before the all Ireland final last year? Don't remember him playing in it anyway.

No, Jackie just had him in his back pocket.

Mountainlad

KevIRL wrote: »

Did he not retire just before the all Ireland final last year? Don't remember him playing in it anyway.

The claws are out...

Massive shock obviously, great hurler. I have kind of mixed emotions about it. Initial delight, starting to lean towards him being a loss to the sport, dunno what to make of it though. Hope he's not in dire straits financially though.

Red Crow

Hammer Archer wrote: »

That's surprising alright. Supposedly work commitments are the reason for him pulling out. Hopefully his situation changes and he returns sooner rather than later.

Work commitments my arse. Tommy Dunne and the rest of management have had a part to play. He just got engaged last week too.

Fcuking hell just as we got our act together.

drunkmonkey

Is he planning on heading to OZ or is the pub doing well. Tradesmen seem to leaving the premier at a rapid rate these days.

Red Crow

KevIRL wrote: »

Did he not retire just before the all Ireland final last year? Don't remember him playing in it anyway.

Lar Corbett> > > > >your county

Mountainlad

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Is he planning on heading to OZ or is the pub doing well. Tradesmen seem to leaving the premier at a rapid rate these days.

The quote from the OP suggests he's not leaving giving he says he's playing for the club still.

TheLynx

Lar got tired of Declan Ryan's preference for players from Clonoulty Rossmore, players like John O'Neill are not good enough for Tipperary, and bringing him on in the All Ireland just shows favoritism

mjp

Hes only back from OZ after spending the month of January there travelling with his girlfriend. Wonder did he get an offer of something better whilst over there.

If so i would have thought he would have come out and said so and put an end to all these roomers and assumptions that people are coming up with regarding his decision.

Interestingly Paddy Power pushed out Tipp's price from 6/4 to 15/8 as a result of the news and shortened Kilkenny.

Still think that come the summer we will see Lar gracing the pitch in Thurles in the blue and yellow of Tipp.

aidan24326

Very surprised at this.

We don't know his exact situation and he obviously has his reasons but it'll be a big blow to Tipp if he sticks to his decision. He should have had at least another 2 or 3 good years in him.

But the demands being placed on county players now are making it increasingly difficult for lads to commit to it, especially as they get a bit older and maybe have more reposnsibilities in terms of work/marriage/mortgage/kids and all the rest of it. A shame to see one of the top forwards in the game gone at such a relatively young age, but top level GAA is increasingly becoming a game for lads in their early to mid 20s.

Something needs to be done to curtail the enormous demands being placed on players by ruthlessly ambitious and well paid managers (and I mean that in general not specifically in relation to Corbett).

MrJoeSoap

Surprised, disappointed and saddened. Great player.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPhLCJZ57X0

nkay1985

Jesus that's a massive shock and a huge blow to Tipp. I'm sure the real reasoning behind the decision, whatever that may be, will come out sooner rather than later.

Pride Fighter

That's a shock and a loss to hurling, I wish him well for the future.

finbarrk

Yeah, a big surprise. Has he still the pub in Thurles?

STIG83

That's a shock!!
Great player to grace a pitch, made ribbons of Waterford in last years Munster final.

DEFTLEFTHAND

I have an awful feeling that this great Tipp team is going to be eroded in the current economic climate with lads having to leave for work.

User Friendly

Retired or just taking a break?????? doubt very much he is retired.

MrJoeSoap

User Friendly wrote: »

Retired or just taking a break?????? doubt very much he is retired.

He's 31 this year, not beyond the realms of possibility that he could come back but it's a bit late in the day for a player in his position to be taking a break.

It seems implausible that a man who made the Munster final his own private property last July should walk away from inter-county hurling.

But that was the stark reality sending tremors across the hurling landscape last night as Declan Ryan and his Tipperary management team came to terms with Lar Corbett's decision to retire. I understand the Thurles Sarsfields man spoke to Ryan for almost two hours yesterday at the manager's home in Clonoulty before circulating a text to team-mates, announcing his departure.

The reasons behind Corbett's extraordinary decision, just six months after scoring a breathtaking 4-4 from play against Waterford in the provincial final, were not immediately apparent last night.

In a brief telephone conversation last week, he told this writer how much he was "looking forward to getting stuck back into training", having just returned from a three-week holiday in Australia during which he attended a friend's wedding.

I had phoned on foot of rumours, triggered by that holiday, that he was thinking of emigrating Down Under.

Corbett was one of three members of the Tipp team that foiled Kilkenny's five-in-a-row bid in 2010 who appeared on a subsequent 'Late Late Show' revealing the fact that they were all unemployed.

He has, since, taken over management of a pub in Thurles, but it is known that he has long been concerned about the need to forge what he considers a viable career path.

Members of the Tipp panel are currently required to train five nights a week and the 30-year-old 2010 Hurler of the Year, who recently got engaged to his girlfriend Elaine, may simply have found the commitment overpowering.

Yet, Corbett's decision comes as a thunderbolt to the beaten All-Ireland finalists as he has been, arguably, the most electrifying forward in hurling this past three years. He famously scored a hat-trick of goals against Kilkenny in the 2010 All-Ireland final and his personal Championship haul in 2011 was a remarkable 7-9, good enough to earn him a third All Star.

Corbett did not hurl underage for Tipp, but made the senior county panel as a 19-year-old under the tenure of Nicky English and was on the team that won that year's All-Ireland in 2001.

His early inter-county career was hampered by recurring hamstring problems and he really only found his best form under Liam Sheedy.

Since then his performances have, consistently, been breathtaking.

It is known that some players found the transition from Sheedy's intense style of management to Ryan's more laid-back approach a mite disconcerting, yet Tipp looked to be taking everything in their stride last year until out-gunned by a stoked-up Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final.

Corbett had an anonymous game and was left deeply frustrated at being held scoreless by Jackie Tyrrell.

That said, there had been little indication that a man who has scored 26 Championship goals for Tipp, was considering his future. He did pick up a minor injury in training last week, but it was thought to be of little consequence.

Corbett was named in the Munster interprovincial squad for the recent challenge match against a Tipperary selection in aid of Breast Cancer Ireland and he made an appearance off the bench.

One insider admitted last night: "Lar has always been a bit of a free spirit who very much has his own mind, but I can honestly say nobody saw this coming. We are all absolutely devastated. Everyone is in a state of shock."

It is thought the Tipp management were reluctant to force the issue yesterday, but hope some form of resolution might be attainable in the coming weeks.

In his text, seen by the Irish Independent last night, Corbett explained to Tipp's other panel members that he "cannot give the 100pc commitment that is required" for the coming season.

He texted "Well lads, I'm sorry to say that I have withdrawn from the Tipp panel. I know this may come as a shock but, after careful consideration, I know that I cannot give the 100pc commitment that is required.

"I did not want to give this news by text but I could not ring everyone. I hope my decision will not affect the friendships I have made over the years.

"This decision was one of the hardest yet. I do not have all of the panel members' numbers so can you please pass on as I want you, the players, to be the first to know. I look forward to the second Sunday in September when I will be shouting on the players and the team I love. Larry."

Tipp, who begin their National League campaign later this month against Kilkenny, got the most difficult draw imaginable for this year's Munster Championship, drawn in a preliminary round game against Limerick, with the winners due to face Cork.

If Ryan cannot now persuade Corbett to reconsider, Tipp's summer odds look certain to lengthen appreciably. And one of the most spine-tingling sights in hurling will be confined to memory.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/hurling/corbett-leaves-tipp-in-state-of-shock-3011394.html

User Friendly

Right,so there we have it,he has withdrawn from the squad,not retired.

StephenHendry

big blow to our hopes of winning the all ireland this year he has withdrawn so hopefully has a change of heart in the near future. great player for both club and county.

randd1

Not going to do our chances of retaining Liam any harm. If he's gone best wishes and thanks for the memories (even the heartbreak of 2010 was great to watch).

Just wonder if he's got disillusioned with the county scene. The effort going into it combined with working is enormous. You'd wonder if the lack of reaction from the Tipp fans last year after they lost when a poor crowd showed up coupled with the boos and taunting he got at club games because of the All-Ireland (I was there, it wasn't nice) caused him to ask is it worth the effort anymore.

Mountainlad

He signed of as Larry...why do people call him Lar? Nicky English calls him Larry as well!

premierstone

TheLynx wrote: »

Lar got tired of Declan Ryan's preference for players from Clonoulty Rossmore, players like John O'Neill are not good enough for Tipperary, and bringing him on in the All Ireland just shows favoritism

No offence but that is pure sh*te, firstly it is not Declan he had a problem with and secondly John O'Neill is the most exciting young talent in Tipperary hurling. Didnt Declan Ryan drop Timmy Hammersley from hte panel last year, what club is Timmy from???

premierstone

User Friendly wrote: »

Retired or just taking a break?????? doubt very much he is retired.

Thats the key here, he has at no stage said he is retiring, he has withdrawn from the panel for the 2012 season, I would imagine he will be back, its just a question of whether he is willing to do so under this management team or he will wait till next year.

Mountainlad

premierstone wrote: »

No offence but that is pure sh*te, firstly it is not Declan he had a problem with and secondly John O'Neill is the most exciting young talent in Tipperary hurling. Didnt Declan Ryan drop Timmy Hammersley from hte panel last year, what club is Timmy from???

Who did he have a problem with?

Agree, John O'Neil is talented and he only came on for about 5 minutes max.

premierstone

Mountainlad wrote: »

He signed of as Larry...why do people call him Lar? Nicky English calls him Larry as well!

Not really sure anyone I have talked to that would have been in and around the Tipp scene would have always refered to him as Larry aswell.

premierstone

Mountainlad wrote: »

Who did he have a problem with?

Agree, John O'Neil is talented and he only came on for about 5 minutes max.

It was'nt Declan and it wasnt he's own club man after that I really couldnt say

Mountainlad

premierstone wrote: »

It was Declan and it wasnt he's own club man after that I really couldnt say

You mean it wasn't Declan! :P

premierstone

Mountainlad wrote: »

You mean it wasn't Declan! :P

Sorry yes, my typing is in bits, its the shock, I havent eaten since about 7 yeasterday evening

MickySticks

John Mullane looks like he's retiring too.

http://www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=161589

User Friendly

MickySticks wrote: »

John Mullane looks like he's retiring too.

http://www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=161589

It says he is taking a break.....nothing about retiring,like Lar,Mullane still has a lot to offer at inter county level

TheLynx

John O'Neill is not good enough to play for Tipperary, and Declan bringing him on in the final chasing a Kilkenny lead is one of the stupidest decisions from Declan Ryan along side playing John O'Keefe on Henry Shefflin, these stupid decisions will not be the last we see from Declan Ryan. I fear for Tipperary this year if John O'Neill gets more game time with Lar leaving

premierstone

TheLynx wrote: »

John O'Neill is not good enough to play for Tipperary, and Declan bringing him on in the final chasing a Kilkenny lead is one of the stupidest decisions from Declan Ryan along side playing John O'Keefe on Henry Shefflin, these stupid decisions will not be the last we see from Declan Ryan. I fear for Tipperary this year if John O'Neill gets more game time with Lar leaving

He was the fifth sub brought on and it was in the very closing stages, we werent chasing the game either it was over after about 10 minutes and KK had another gear if needed.

The only other subs remaining on the bench were :

Darren Gleeson - sub goalie
Stephen Lillis - corner/wing back
T Stapelton - half back
J Woodlock - midfielder
B O'Meara - Forward
P Kerwick - Forward

Now considering P Kerrwick had missed the entire year through injury and had no competitive hurling done that would surely have been a far bigger risk, that leaves it a straight choice between B O'Meara and John O'Neill and Buggy was in woefull form at the time with he's club and had been injured for alot of the year, thankfully he seems to be shown well again but I fear he is a ''winter'' hurler and wont appreciate the firmer ground. Quite frankly anyone that cant see the talent and intelligence O'Neill has as a hurler is either very blinkered, biased or should take up a new hobby.

And your reference to John O'Keefe is also flawed, ask yourself these two questions, who sent every single ball straight down to Shefllin and secondly did B Maher do any better on Shefflin, if anything Declan Ryan was too hasty in taking O'Keefe off and should have switched him to the other wing.

This is all horribly off topic btw but dont try and cast aspertions over a great like Declan Ryan when there is absolutely no evidence to support it, and for the record I have absolutely no alliegances to Clonoulty Rossmore and am infact from the North of the county.

shalleeman

premierstone wrote: »

He was the fifth sub brought on and it was in the very closing stages, we werent chasing the game either it was over after about 10 minutes and KK had another gear if needed.

The only other subs remaining on the bench were :

Darren Gleeson - sub goalie
Stephen Lillis - corner/wing back
T Stapelton - half back
J Woodlock - midfielder
B O'Meara - Forward
P Kerwick - Forward

Now considering P Kerrwick had missed the entire year through injury and had no competitive hurling done that would surely have been a far bigger risk, that leaves it a straight choice between B O'Meara and John O'Neill and Buggy was in woefull form at the time with he's club and had been injured for alot of the year, thankfully he seems to be shown well again but I fear he is a ''winter'' hurler and wont appreciate the firmer ground. Quite frankly anyone that cant see the talent and intelligence O'Neill has as a hurler is either very blinkered, biased or should take up a new hobby.

And your reference to John O'Keefe is also flawed, ask yourself these two questions, who sent every single ball straight down to Shefllin and secondly did B Maher do any better on Shefflin, if anything Declan Ryan was too hasty in taking O'Keefe off and should have switched him to the other wing.

This is all horribly off topic btw but dont try and cast aspertions over a great like Declan Ryan when there is absolutely no evidence to support it, and for the record I have absolutely no alliegances to Clonoulty Rossmore and am infact from the North of the county.

And what is your opinion on David Young coming on as a sub? Judging from your knowledge of hurling ( or lack of it) one would have to guess you are from Toomevara

DublinGAA96

I could be totally off when I say this, but I think there's more to it than 'work and business commitments'. I mean,for a man of his status it should be no bother attracting people from Tipp and the hurling world into his bar. I don't think we've heard the full story yet.

premierstone

shalleeman wrote: »

And what is your opinion on David Young coming on as a sub? Judging from your knowledge of hurling ( or lack of it) one would have to guess you are from Toomevara

There are more clubs in the north than Toom and you are completely wrong I am not from Toom, David Young is too slow and when he gets turned is a liability a half back line of Padraic Maher, Conor O'Mahoney and Young is fine when they are attacking the ball but run at them or turn them and they will all struggle, Young far mor than the other two, I have seen most of Tooms game in the last few years and I would say he is the third best half back on that team, which is amazing really.

ShamoBuc

Super hurler and I reckon we haven't seen the last of him. His last game was an AI final v KK and he was held scoreless - I very much doubt he will want to have that as his last performance in a Tipp jersey, we'll see him again later in the year.

willietherock

From a Cork perspective, this is great news. From a hurling perspective it's a big blow to lose one of the most recognisable faces off the sport, the best goal getter and one of the top three forwards in general.
It also, when all is said and done, means KK will win this yrs All Ire.

MrJoeSoap

willietherock wrote: »

It also, when all is said and done, means KK will win this yrs All Ire.

5/4 Paddy Power
6/4 Bet365
6/5 Ladbrokes
6/5 Betpack
11/8 Boyles
6/4 Betfair

premierstone

I would be fairly suprised if we dont se Lar before the summer is out tbh, that said I would still say KK will win the AI regardless.

Username_Taken

Could it be in relation to the next in line for captaincy, maybe?

He is a senior member of the panel after all. A fabulous player.

MrJoeSoap

Username_Taken wrote: »

Could it be in relation to the captaincy, maybe?

He is a senior member of the panel after all.

That rumour is going round for John Mullane and I think it is nonsense in both cases. You don't play inter-county for a decade and then storm off when you're not made captain, and Corbett doesn't strike me as that kind of a player at all.

premierstone

Username_Taken wrote: »

Could it be in relation to the next in line for captaincy, maybe?

He is a senior member of the panel after all. A fabulous player.

No its nothing to do with that, if it was that surely Cummins would have more reason for a gripe than Lar, lets just say there was a difference of opinion between Lar and a member of the managment dating back to last September, I had assumed it had blown over, but it would seem that on Lar's return from Austrailia it has raised its head again and Lar has probably called their bluff in a way, I have no doubt he will be back but whether its under this management or not is the big question.

User Friendly

Username_Taken wrote: »

Could it be in relation to the next in line for captaincy, maybe?

He is a senior member of the panel after all. A fabulous player.

Thats down to the county champions to nominate a captain, didnt drom/inch win the tipp championship 2011?

OAOB

User Friendly wrote: »

Thats down to the county champions to nominate a captain, didnt drom/inch win the tipp championship 2011?

Tipp changed their rules for picking a captain a few years ago, its now up to the management team who gets it

User Friendly

OAOB wrote: »

Tipp changed their rules for picking a captain a few years ago, its now up to the management team who gets it

I guess that was because Redser was nominated a few years ago:pac::pac:

ixus

He shipped some very heavy hits during the All-Ireland final from the Kilkenny lads right from the off. Put him out of the game really.

Is it possible he has just lost the hunger for it?