Best form needed to secure U-21 victory

WHAT a difference a year makes. Twelve months ago, as Clare finalised preparations for the opening round of the Munster U-21 Hurling Championship against Limerick at Cusack Park, there were hopes that the long wait for honours at this level could finally be ended. Yet followers were conscious of the many disappointments teams had suffered at this level over the previous 40 years.
History now shows that Clare won the Munster and All-Ireland titles in impressive fashion in 2009, so both titles will be on the line when they make the short journey to the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick next Wednesday next (throw in at 7.30pm) for their first game in the 2010 race.
Clare go into the tie with seven of the starting line-up from last September’s All-Ireland final win over Kilkenny available for selection, together with a further six players who played at some stage in last year’s memorable campaign.
“We really don’t know much about Limerick but the word is that they are much stronger than they were 12 months ago. Like ourselves, they have a number of players who are in their senior squad,” commented Clare manager John Minogue this week.
The Clare survivors from last year are Nicky O’Connell, Donal Tuohy, James Gunning, John Conlon, Darach Honan, Caimin Morey and Sean Collins, while Conor McGrath, Patrick O’Connor, Eoin Hayes, Cathal Chaplin, Liam Markham and Cillian Duggan all played at some stage in last year’s campaign.
Minogue says form doesn’t mean much when Clare and Limerick meet in any hurling championship tie.
“There is never anything between Clare and Limerick and at U-21 level, Clare haven’t a good record at the Gaelic Grounds. The opportunity to dethrone Clare is sure to be a huge motivation for Limerick,” he said.
He acknowledged, “Public expectation is high but things are a little different this year. Last year, we had most of the lads training with us all of the time. This year we really haven’t had the senior lads except for a recent challenge with Galway. When we line out on Wednesday, it will only be the second time that we will have had the full squad together and that doesn’t help. It is a disadvantage but it’s the same for other counties.”
Minogue added, “We have a lot of new people in the panel this year. Last year, there were a lot there from the previous year so we had a more settled group. It’s not like a senior team where you carry forward, as U-21 and minor teams change radically from year to year.
“We are missing the entire full-back line from last year of Eamonn Glynn, Cian Dillon and Ciaran O’Doherty, while we also have lost Enda Barrett and Colin Ryan. It is very hard to replace players of that calibre. It’s hard to replace that experience.”
The manager, who is again joined by Cyril Lyons, Alan Dunne and Sean O’Halloran, added that Clare are not as physically strong this year as they were in 2009.
Clare won’t name a team for Wednesday’s game until early next week. Nicky O’Connell is a major doubt due to injury and whether or not he plays will have a big bearing on what the line-up will be.
“In addition, we will be keeping our fingers crossed that all of the lads involved with the senior squad this weekend will come through without injury,” Minogue added.
In addition to the survivors from last year’s final team, Liam Markham, Cathal McInerney (both Cratloe), Diarmuid Nash (Scariff), Cathal Chaplin (Broadford) and Kevin Moynihan (Éire Óg) will be pressing strongly for places in Wednesday’s team.
As match time draws near, Clare fans won’t need reminding of the last time a county team made the journey to the Gaelic Grounds as defending Munster and All-Ireland champions. It was June of 1996 when Clare put their Munster and All-Ireland senior titles on the line.
A last-minute point from Ciaran Carey saw the Banner men stripped of those crowns.
On paper at least, the Clare U-21 panel looks strong enough to get this year’s campaign off to a winning start but failure to produce anything less than their best form may prove costly.