Hurlers must rise to the occasion

THE Clare senior hurling management team has delayed naming the starting line-up for Saturday’s Division 2 final clash with neighbours Limerick until later in the week due to injury concerns to a number of players.
Forward Conor McGrath is given no more that a 50-50 chance of being fit for the final, having picked up a leg injury in last week’s U-21A county final in which his club Cratloe went under to Sixmilebridge.
“He didn’t train over the weekend but, instead, was with the physio. The injury is taking longer that we would have hoped to clear up but we remain hopeful that he will be ready for the game,” team manager Ger O’Loughlin told The Clare Champion this week.
The experienced Gerry Quinn, who has seen little action in this campaign, suffered an ankle injury when playing with his club in the Clare Champion Cup at the weekend and this has cast doubts about his availability. James McInerney was unable to play with Newmarket at the weekend and he also missed Clare’s big win over Carlow last time out due to a hamstring injury, which is threatening his availability for Saturday’s eagerly awaited final.
From the outset, these Shannonside neighbours were fancied to get to the final and while they have justified favouritism by getting there, Clare’s route has been quite rocky and they have been anything but impressive.
Limerick have won all of their seven games but Clare still managed to claim second place despite losing twice.
The teams met in the opening round in February and while Clare fans may not have been oozing with confidence ahead of that game, few were prepared for the dismal performance that their charges delivered as they suffered a nine-point loss (2-9 to 0-6).
On the day, Clare were outplayed in most sectors and they were fortunate not to have been more than nine points behind when the final whistle sounded. On a day when weather conditions were anything but conducive to good hurling, the home side managed just one point from play.
That particular game marked the first competitive outing for Limerick under their new management team headed by Cork man Donal O’Grady. Limerick didn’t participate in the Waterford Crystal tournament, as O’Grady choose to concentrate on training, which included a series of challenge games. The game also marked the return of most of the regulars, who had refused to play during the previous season while Justin McCarthy remained in charge.
It was all Limerick in the opening half and they led 2-4 to 0-1 at half-time. This led to many changes being made to the Clare line-up for the second half.
On paper, at least, Limerick look to have the more experienced outfit with the likes of Stephen Lucey, Seamus Hickey, Wayne McNamara, whose mother is Vera Killoughery from Ballyea, Donal O’Grady and Andrew O’Shaughnessy in their line-up.
In their last outing in this campaign, Clare were easy 4-28 to 0-8 winners over Carlow and the team for Sunday’s final is expected to be along the lines of that which lined out in that tie.
Goalkeeper Donal Tuohy and the full-back trio of Pat Vaughan, the team captain, Conor Cooney and Domhnaill O’Donovan are expected to remain in place. Despite easily overcoming the Carlow challenge, the half-backs experienced some anxious moments in that game and it remains to be seen if this will lead to changes in the area. Patrick O’Connor, Cian Dillon, Pat Donnellan, Brendan Buglar, James McInerney and Gerry Quinn are all in contention.
Nicky O’Connell will be at midfield with Cratloe’s Liam Markham, his partner last time out, and Sean Collins among those in contention to partner him. Among those certain to be in the attack are John Conlon, Jonathon Clancy, Diarmuid McMahon and Colin Ryan, while Conor McGrath will, if passed fit, be included. Darach Honan is another who will be pressing for a place in the line-up.
The favourites’ tag rests with Limerick. Their form throughout the campaign has been impressive, whereas Clare have struggled in a number of outings. For the most part, hurling meetings between Clare and Limerick are close affairs that produce plenty of talking points. Clare followers will be hoping this will be the case on Saturday and that their team can turn the tables on the favourites and avoid defeat in the final for the second year in succession.
It won’t be easy and it will require a huge improvement by Clare on the form they have shown to date in the campaign. A Clare win will be a surprise but, given the history between the Shannonside neighbours, it can be achieved.
This is how the teams lined out when they met in the opening round in February:
Limerick: Nicky Quaid; Stephen Walsh, Stephen Lucey, David Moloney; Wayne McNamara, Stephen Hickey, David Breen; Donal O’Grady, Paul Browne; Ritchie McCarthy, James Ryan, Niall Moran; Andrew O’Shaughnessy, Kevin Downes, Graeme Mulcahy.
Subs: Sean Tobin for O’Shaughnessy and Niall Maher for Moran.
Clare: Donal Tuohy; Eamonn Glynn, James McInerney, Conor Cooney; Domhnaill O’Donovan, Cian Dillon, Pat Donnellan; Nicky O’Connell, Colin Ryan; Fergal Lynch, John Conlon, Patrick O’Connor; Darach Honan, Diarmuid McMahon, Conor McGrath.
Subs: Cathal McInerney for McMahon, Mark Earley for Ryan, Caimin Morey for Lynch Cormac O’Donovan for Conlon and Sean Collins for Honan.