California dreamers Holden and Fennelly back to lead Ballyhale charge against Ballygunner

Blame Colin Fennelly.

Two-time All-Ireland winner Joey Holden retired from hurling with Kilkenny in November 2021 and had planned to spend most of this year travelling with his girlfriend Laura.

They passed the summer in San Francisco, where Joey played for Na Fianna alongside his friend and Ballyhale Shamrocks clubmate, in addition to watching The Cats' July All-Ireland final defeat together in a bar at half eight in the morning.

"I had my Kilkenny jersey on," Holden, the last man from the county to lift Liam MacCarthy, told RTÉ Sport ahead of this Sunday's AIB All-Ireland senior club championship semi-final clash with Ballygunner.

"When we got that goal near the end we leapt up. I thought we could nab this but Limerick just got the scores to get them over the line."

Meanwhile, Fennelly's determination to help Ballyhale secure the first ever Kilkenny five-in-row was planting the idea of Holden returning home in time for the club championship.

That he did, only for his father Patrick to die in September, the day before the county quarter-final was due to be played with Clara.

"I was away in America for the summer, and ultimately, the plan was to keep going through central and south America," says Joey.

"But first of all the hurling was one thing that brought me back. It was egging away at me to try and get back to do the five-in-a-row.

"Colin was mad to get back and he was keeping his fitness going. I wasn't I suppose but something just kept egging away at me, and ultimately we made the decision to come back to see if we could get the five in a row for the Shamrocks in our 50th year [as a club].

"He probably knew my fitness would pick up quick enough because we were training over there anyway. He was just so driven to get that