By John Harrington

Jamesie O’Connor believes the return of Colm Galvin to the Clare hurling panel is a huge addition for the Banner County.

The Clonlara club-man sat out the 2020 championship to rest a troublesome groin injury.

Brian Lohan’s team have had a slow enough start to the year with just one win from three League matches, but O’Connor still thinks they’ll be a force to be reckoned with if they can get their best team on the field.

“The big thing for Clare is can Brian Lohan get his best 15 players on the field and Galvin is a class player,” says O’Connor.

“He's been huge for Clare. He's probably underrated in terms of the impact he has on the team so he was a massive loss last year. Obviously, John Conlan is back. Tony Kelly's obviously carrying an injury. We know how important and vital he is. David McInerney has been carrying a knock that he's struggling with so Clare can't afford to be without those guys.

“If Brian has his best 15 players available - we've got some good young players that maybe might break into the team this year - Mark Rodgers is a quality player - we have a chance. But we don't have a luxury of riches at the moment and having Colm Galvin, Ian Galvin, John Conlan, David McInerney, Tony Kelly - those guys available, in-form, and fit is vital for us to have a chance. But we have a chance.

“Aaron Cunningham had a really good chance in the game against Waterford last year. Stephen O'Keefe pulled off an unbelievable save and I think it would have brought it back to one or two points. Waterford went back down the field and got a point and it was back to six or whatever and that was the game there and then.

“If Aaron stuck that goal that game was really in the melting pot. Clare might not have been as far away as we think so it certainly isn't easy for the players giving the noise, the external noise that's been there and obviously the covid controversy a couple of weeks ago didn't help either but vital to get Galvin, David McInerney, Tony Kelly, those guys in particular back for the Championship. That goes without saying.”

O’Connor doesn’t believe people should be reading too much into what we’ve seen in the Allianz League so far this year in terms of trying to predict what might happen in the championship.

“I think it's very early days,” he says. “It's unlike last year when lads were coming in match fit off the back of a club campaign. They don't have that match fitness [this year].

“I know there's been a certain level of criticism of the refereeing, too many frees, and the distance the ball is travelling. Maybe all those concerns are legitimate. But I still think that you have to take that, the fact they're still not fully match fit and they're arguably still not where they want to be come the 26th of June to the 3rd of July.

“I'm inclined to take some of the flak that's been thrown with a little bit of a grain of salt. I think some of those things, particularly the referees. They haven't had a Fitzgibbon Cup campaign, or they haven't had five or six league matches or schools matches or clubs matches. So I think it's going to take time again for them to adapt.”