Sunday July 9

Munster Senior Hurling Championship Final

Clare v Cork, Semple Stadium, 4pm

By Cian O'Connell

This should be a fascinating decider down south at Semple Stadium. Cork, gathering momentum briskly, have defeated Tipperary and Waterford. Clinical and confident Cork’s newcomers have adapted to the Championship stage with commendable composure.

Clare, without a provincial decider appearance since 2008, wanted to make an impact in Munster. Amazingly Clare haven’t hurled in the Championship at Croke Park for four years. A win on Sunday would sort that issue so they will thunder into the contest too.

Shane O’Donnell’s opportunism was vital against Limerick. It wasn’t a pretty match, but that scarcely bothered Clare, who left Thurles knowing that they were back in the Munster showpiece for the first time in a decade. That was satisfactory enough.

How Cork coped with the different challenges posed by Tipperary and Waterford bodes well. The Tipperary tussle was open and fluid, Cork had Conor Lehane, Shane Kingston, and Patrick Horgan in polished and prolific form in attack.

Then against Waterford the game demanded different qualities, but there is a good blend to the Cork set-up. Youth and experience dovetailing nicely with Damien Cahalane, Mark Ellis and Seamus Harnedy prominent. Mark Coleman, Darragh Fitzgibbon, and impressive substitute Michael Cahalane occupying central roles.

Clare’s Gerry O’Connor and Donal Moloney guided Clare to Munster glory at minor level in 2010 and 2011, and at Under 21 in 2012, 2013, and 2014.

It is a significant record in Munster Finals. “Yes, 70 or 80 per cent of them would have been there along the journey with us, but this is a different ballgame, a different challenge,” Moloney says.

“The focus and preparation is the same. They have always done us proud, have always served us very well and whatever occasion was thrown at them, they coped extremely well with it. And I have no doubt that will be the case again.”

Considering the rapid rate at which Colm Spillane, Coleman, Fitzgibbon, Kingston, Meade, and Cahalane are developing Cork are gathering belief.

Manager Kieran Kingston, though, is refusing to get carried away stating that this Cork adventure is only commencing. “I want to stress that we are only starting out on the journey, we’ve done nothing,” Kingston remarked on Wednesday evening.

There is a sense of mission about Clare too with the Banner boosted by the fact that captain Patrick O’Connor and Conor McGrath came through their Semi-Final triumph over Limerick unscathed following injury.

Podge Collins and Tony Kelly will drift deep to try to craft chances for a Clare inside line featuring McGrath and O’Donnell.

Potent threats exist in the two full forward lines. At the opposite end Alan Cadogan and Horgan can finish. Supplying them with sufficient rations of possession is what Clare and Cork intend to do. An action packed 70 minutes awaits.

CLARE: Andrew Fahy; Seadna Morey, David McInerney, Patrick O'Connor; David Fitzgerald, Conor Cleary, Oisin O'Brien; Colm Galvin, Cathal Malone; Tony Kelly, Podge Collins, John Conlon; Shane O'Donnell, Aron Shanagher, Conor McGrath.

CORK: Anthony Nash; Stephen McDonnell, Damien Cahalane, Colm Spillane; Christopher Joyce, Mark Ellis, Mark Coleman; Bill Cooper, Darragh Fitzgibbon; Seamus Harnedy, Conor Lehane, Shane Kingston; Alan Cadogan, Patrick Horgan, Luke Meade.