Tag Archives: Clare Senior Hurlers

Clare county board has said no-one connected in any capacity with it or the senior hurling camp attempted to lobby the central hearings committee on Ian Galvin’s behalf. Galvin’s appeal against the controversial red card he received against Cork was due to be heard on Monday, but it was deferred amid claims that members of the committee had been lobbied with a view to influencing the case. The committee has since imposed a one-match suspension on Galvin, who will now miss Sunday’s Munster SHC clash with All-Ireland champions Limerick in Ennis. Galvin was contesting his red card against Cork last Sunday week, in a case originally due to be heard last Monday night only to be delayed in controversial circumstances for three days. On Wednesday Clare County Board chairman Kieran Keating said that no one connected with the board had made any attempt to influence the proceedings. “It wasn’t anyone on our executive or anyone connected with us. I don’t …

Following a perfect start, Clare are now focused on reaching a Munster Final as they prepare to welcome Limerick and Waterford to fortress Cusack Park over the next fortnight. That’s the view of back-to-back All-Star Tony Kelly who on Sunday became Clare’s highest ever championship scorer with 9-240 in just 45 appearances after raiding for ten points against Cork to surpass Niall Gilligan’s previous record of 21-197 (in 56 championship matches). “We’ve our eyes on the Munster Championship like every team in it so we’re not going to get away with this win. It was a great result and we’ll enjoy it but we’re fortunate to have a week to regroup and prepare for Limerick in two week’s time. “It’s in our own hands now where we want to go in the Munster Championship and it’s all about replicating those performances so far and even bringing them up a notch or two.” Having been last of the 11 counties into …

John Conlon is not only revelling in his new role at centre-back but Clare’s longest serving current player is also on track to reach another milestone of 50 championship appearances before the round-robin series is elapsed. Having carved out his reputation as a powerful attacking force that has totalled over 100 points for the Banner, the Clonlara stalwart has subsequently demonstrated his true class over the past twelve months by seamlessly reverting to defensive anchor. And following two victories in the space of seven days in Thurles, Conlon understandably doesn’t want Clare’s momentum to stop. “We’ve come to Thurles a lot over the years. In the 14 years I’ve been playing against Cork, I think it’s very rare that we’ve come out with a win, if any, so to come out today and bring out that type of performance is brilliant. We said we needed to back up the Tipp performance and we certainly did that today. “It was great …

There were a lot of fanciful dates been thrown around in Semple Stadium in the aftermath of Sunday’s second successive victory about the last time Clare beat both Tipperary and Cork in the championship. 1955? ’56?, the truth is much closer as Brian Lohan and Co. managed to not only overcome Cork and Tipperary to win their second Munster title in three years in 1997 but doubled the dose in the All-Ireland decider against the Premier. Exactly 25 years later, doubling the dose was a significant objective for Lohan the manager and his side as having ambushed Tipperary, it was all about matching that hungry display to exact full revenge on the Rebels who had knocked them out of the All-Ireland series last July. “The lads were just right today, the first half in particular they really worked hard, put in a great shift, played some brilliant hurling and got some great scores so I’m delighted with how the lads …

Eoin Brennan previews Clare’s crunch encounter with Cork in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship Round 2 at FBD Semple Stadium There was a major brainstorming session going on in the Ó Riain Stand between Cork’s management team of Kieran Kingston, Diarmuid O’Sullivan, Noel Furlong and Pat Mulcahy at half-time in last Sunday’s Clare and Tipperary in Semple Stadium. It’s unlikely that they were discussing Ed Sheeran’s back catalogue, it’s much more likely by their animated gestures that their focus was on Clare who at that point had laid waste to their hosts Tipperary to lead by 13 points. Having witnessed Tipperary’s rousing display against Waterford, Kingston and Co. probably came to Semple Stadium to further analyse Colm Bonnar’s side but they left early with only the Banner in their thoughts. The thing is that Cork, particularly under Kingston, have invariably had the Indian sign over Clare in recent seasons. After all, following Clare’s 2013 All-Ireland triumph, the Rebels have edged …

THERE was huge frustration among Clare hurling fans this week, as people seeking to purchase tickets for Munster championship games faced significant difficulties. With Covid restrictions now relaxed pre-championship anticipation is at its highest in a few years and with thousands of people all going online simultaneously, Ticketmaster was hit with technical issues meaning fans couldn’t make their purchases for a period of time. Tickets were also available from Centra and SuperValu stores and some of these outlets also saw huge demand and long queues for tickets. Clare’s first two games are against Tipperary and Cork, both in Thurles, and with Semple Stadium being as large as it is, there was little concern about any potential sell out there. Clare’s final game is against Waterford and it had been notified in advance that these tickets would only be available from county boards at a later date. The really problematic fixture, however, is Clare versus Limerick, which is due to be …

Eoin Brennan looks ahead to tomorrow’s NHL clash with Limerick in Cusack Park, with the All Ireland champions possibly ripe for the plucking When Limerick overpowered Clare in their own home patch to secure the first silverware of 2022 six weeks ago, few could have predicted that the back-to-back All-Ireland champions would be still seeking their next victory upon their return this Sunday. After all, while Clare are in the midst of an injury crisis which is far from resolved yet, even with less than half of their full strength side, Limerick’s superior physicality, movement and understanding was patently clear in that Munster Cup Final display in Cusack Park. The statistics speak for themselves as John Kiely’s side had almost 50 shots at the target, with their impressive 27 point margin matched by a staggering 19 wides. However, far from being the launchpad to vie for a third National Hurling League crown in four seasons, successive reverses to Wexford, Galway …

The times and venues for the Munster Senior, Minor and U20 Hurling and Football Championships have been confirmed this afternoon, writes Ivan Smyth. The Munster Hurling Championship reverts to the round robin format this year. Clare start their campaign against Tipperary on April 24 as they travel to FBD Semple Stadium, with that game throwing in at 2pm. One week later, on May 1, Brian Lohan’s charges return to Thurles as they face Cork with that game also starting at 2pm. The game was initially due to be held on Páirc Uí Chaoimh but has been moved to Thurles with Ed Sheeran set to play in the Cork venue on April 28 and 29. Two weeks later, Clare host All Ireland champions Limerick in Cusack Park with that game scheduled to throw in at 4pm. In the final round of fixtures, which takes place on May 22, Waterford travel down to Ennis with no time confirmed for that game. The …