The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
The meeting of Clare and Waterford in the opening round of the league will have no bearing on what will happen when championship time comes around, Waterford manager Michael Ryan believes.
For the second year-in-a-row the counties have been drawn to meet in the first round of the provincial championship at the beginning of June. Waterford were victorious last time.
“It will make no difference as the championship is three or four months down the road,” Ryan told The Clare Champion.
The upcoming league campaign will be a very tough one, it will be very competitive, he said.
“Every one of the six teams will be going out to win and all will be under pressure to win. Winning the first game will be very important,” stated Ryan who is starting his second year as Déise boss having taken over from Clare’s Davy Fitzgerald.
He noted that in addition to Clare’s All-Ireland U-21 success last year, “they won that title a few years ago as well and those players are all around 24 now. On a given day, they can beat most teams. Everything is on the day.”
Ryan heads into the new season without the experienced John Mullane and Stephen Mollumphy. Mullane’s recent announcement that he was stepping down from inter-county hurling came as a surprise. He has been one of the game’s outstanding forwards during the past decade.
“Of course they will be a loss,” he said but he hasn’t given up hope of getting them back during the season. On the credit side, however, he welcomes back the un-related Shane and Brian O’Sullivan.
“It’s great to have them available and we hope to have Dara Fives available as well. The upcoming league will be a very tough one, very competitive and winning the first game will be very important,” he noted.
Commenting on his team’s targets for the league, Ryan said the aim is to get to the knockout stage.
“There is no point in going into the competition aiming to just stay in the division. We will prepare well and we will be going down to Clare in a few weeks seeking a win,” he said.
Waterford were knocked out of the Munster pre-season Waterford Crystal tournament but, he says, “It isn’t the end of the world although it would have been nice to have got a few more games. Like all teams preparing at this time, we play challenge games”.
Ryan, who steered Waterford ladies to numerous Munster and All-Ireland football titles in the ’90s believes “home advantage has to be worth something, provided, of course, you perform.”
“We will have home games against Cork, Tipperary and Galway. Last year we had two home games, one of which we won.”
He pointed out his panel includes 12 new players with an average age of 23.
“A lot will depend on how we cope up front and we are keeping our fingers crossed that John Mullane will change his mind and make a return to inter-county action.”
Like the managers of the other teams in the division, he agreed “Kilkenny won’t be easily beaten while Tipperary will improve under Eamonn O’Shea. Remember, Clare were in the league semi-final last year and, as I said, they have a lot of very good young players coming through”.
Waterford’s league schedule
Sunday February 24, away to Clare
Sunday March 10, at home to Cork
Monday March 18, away to Kilkenny
Sunday March 24, at home to Tipperary
Sunday March 31, at home to Galway
