Big-match inexperience won’t hinder Clare, insists Donnellan

Clare captain Pat Donnellan says Waterford have the upper hand in terms of experience, but he and his colleagues are facing the weekend’s Munster SHC clash with confidence.

“You treat the year in two different parts, you’re trying to build for the league and go as far as you can in that but you’re also trying to peak for the championship, obviously.

“We were at a bit of a peak for the Kilkenny game and then a bit of a trough afterwards in order to build up again for the championship.

“The weather’s been a bit of a pain for the last couple of weeks but training’s gone well, very consistent, very solid, and hopefully we’ll be right.”

Tomorrow’s opponents have the edge when it comes to big-day experience.

“A lot of them would have played in Munster finals and All-Ireland finals, for the last couple of years, so they’d have the upper hand in terms of experience. But you have to get experience from somewhere.

“Every team starts at the bottom and works their way up. It’d be nice to have lads on the panel who’d been in All-Ireland finals and so on but we have lads who’ve been there a while and who’ve played in Munster finals, on big days.

“It’s an advantage if you have it but if you don’t you’re not going to think it’s a disadvantage, if I can put it like that. They have the upper hand there but it’s days like Sunday that will give us that experience.”

Clare have one man with plenty of experience in their corner.

“You can’t beat having a guy involved who’s managed teams to Munster finals and the All-Ireland series.

“Davy (Fitzgerald) knows what that’s like and he can plan the training and the day of the match for inexperienced lads.

“But he can only do so much. He can get the preparation right, then it’s up to the players to do the job on the pitch.”

Fitzgerald has introduced a slightly different playing style to the Banner.

“It takes time to get any kind of plan for a team together, or for a bunch of players to gel together, to have a feel for how they play. We’re a young team so we would have that energy, that kind of vibrant style on the field that would let your legs do the work.

“It’s something we’ve tried to do in other years but maybe our preparation and intensity has been a little higher this year in comparison.”

Donnellan says Clare hope for a repeat of their performance against Limerick — the end of that game if not the beginning.

“We’d be disappointed with how that game started, but it was great to finish it well, and generally in games the team that finishes better will win unless the other side are totally out of sight. There were things we took out of that game — finishing well, staying with the game plan, doing what we’re supposed to do. But we know if we start that way the next day . . . the intensity the next day isn’t going to be comparable to the league.

“Everything has to be up, you have to cling on and hope you’re with Waterford going into the last few minutes and hope we can win then.”