We’re often accused of being hurling snobs but when you witness what was produced in Portlaoise the other night, it just confirms what we have always believed

I expect Ballygunner to be primed, especially after last year’s disappointing defeat at the same stage.

It’s going to take a serious team to beat them now but I wouldn’t say that the Gunners are home and hosed yet.

Ballygunner are almost unbackable favourites but I give Clonlara a much better chance than the bookies and most neutrals.

Na Piarsaigh have some brilliant players but I was struggling to understand their gameplan yesterday for long stretches.

Enjoy the night lads. Whether I won an award, or didn’t, I always made sure I did anyway. For me, that was nearly always the best part of the All-Stars.

The north Tipp men showed incredible resolve throughout, especially after going behind so early.

If anyone saw me in my sitting room yesterday, they’d have thought I was a stockbroker on Wall Street trying to keep up with anything that moved.

I had nothing but respect for Jimmy. When he finished his playing career with Sarsfields, he went straight into refereeing, which is a great sign of a man, especially someone who was a decorated player.

Limerick have been experts at timing their run but all those years of conditioning have turned them into a machine that, eventually, just wears and grinds teams down