Limerick the fancy now for a sixth Munster title as Tipp and Waterford bite the dust. If it had been ugly Sunday, it was hard to see how Liam Cahill could go back in 2025 with the Premier. But the players did fight for him.

Clare just need to match whatever Tipp come with, and then try and wear it down, before showing that bit of extra panache up front coming down the stretch

This is an intriguing match for a variety of reasons, none more so than the strained relationship between the managers,

If Cork and Limerick hadn’t played out such a classic, this weekend would have been all about Carlow, who drew with Kilkenny.

It might only take one big win for Cork to breathe in energising and revitalising fresh air.

Nights like Saturday are what we dream of during those long winter evenings when we wonder if the summer will ever come.

Tipp were right there with the All-Ireland champions for the first 25 minutes. Limerick were playing good stuff, but only in patches...

On Monday evening though, a few of the lads in the pub were in agreement with me. By that stage, anger and disappointment had been replaced by introspection and a colder, harder perspective than 24 hours earlier when their blood was a lot warmer

Clare lost their shape but they also seemed to lose their way.

Hopefully the good times are starting to roll again for Clare.