CLARE travel to Semple Stadium in Thurles on Saturday for their fourth championship game of the season and, for the third time in this campaign, they will wear the favourites’ tag. However, forward Darach Honan looks set to miss the game due to a leg injury, which forced his early retirement from the action last week.

CLARE County Board chairman Michael McDonagh is adamant that if outgoing Clare senior mentors Ger Keane and Michael Neylon want to remain on board for 2014, he will back their candidature.

FORMER Ennis boxer Cian Dalton is presently enjoying some success on the professional scene in the US.The light heavyweight has had two fights, both of which he won, with one ending with a KO.

THE Clare underage hurling board will not continue with the U-14C hurling championship until they receive clarification from the County Hearings Committee on how they reached their decision to grant Bodyke’s request.

COMMENT

Laois 3-17   Clare 0-10 COMPETITIVE and industrious for 25 minutes, Clare were compliant and devoid of any semblance of resolve thereafter. Graham Kelly kicked the home county 0-6 to 0-2 ahead 10 minutes before half-time, leaving it looking as if Clare would compete with Laois at the very least.

Kilmurry Ibrickane 2-8   Cooraclare 1-11 ON a sweltering Sunday evening in Doonbeg, a Keith King-inspired Kilmurry Ibrickane won their third successive O’Gorman Cup and their sixth since the competition was established in 2006. Cooraclare played some decent football themselves, with Cathal Lillis their stand-out man at full-forward. His movement, pace and ability to kick scores from play ensured that Darren Hickey had a trying hour at full-back.At the far end of the field another young forward, Niall Hickey, was Kilmurry’s most dangerous inside forward, scoring their first goal and playing a central role in their second, along with kicking classy points from play and frees. Before the throw-in, the teams were led around Shanahan McNamara Park by Scottish piper Jamie Galloway, who himself was briefly led by O’Gorman Cup Committee chairman Michael Neenan. Cooraclare played with a reasonably helpful first-half breeze and led 0-7 to 0-4 at half-time. Lillis, John Looney from frees and Enda Considine kicked Cooraclare’s first-half scores, …

Kerry 8-25   Clare 1-10 THE Clare ladies’ Munster Senior Football Championship campaign concluded in an abrupt 36-point defeat in Scartaglin last Saturday. On top of a 12-point defeat to Cork a week earlier, the latest result capped an awful week for the sport in the county.