It was Declan Hannon who said it, sitting in the victors’ banquet with the Liam MacCarthy Cup in front of him: ‘We’ve all marched behind the band out the back garden when we were four, five, six years of age.’

It was Declan Hannon who said it, sitting in the victors’ banquet with the Liam MacCarthy Cup in front of him: ‘We’ve all marched behind the band out the back garden when we were four, five, six years of age.’

Jamesie O’Connor believes the round-robin format could be the key to a first Munster title since 1998 for his native county.

ON Wednesday, Seánie McMahon, Liam Doyle and I sat down with John Fogarty, of this parish, in Dromoland Castle. We rolled back the good times, regaled ourselves with old stories and rekindled those magical flames which burned in our hearts throughout our Clare careers (the details of the conversation appear elsewhere on the Irish Examiner website today).

Over 20 years on, Davy Fitzgerald still wants to win everything as badly as ever, writes Anthony Daly

Given my Clare loyalty and my Limerick connections to their underage Academy, I stole into Thurles yesterday like a thief in the night; head down, baseball cap pulled tightly down over my eyes, plain clothes, biro and notepad in my hand.

Brendan Bugler has described Clare’s Munster hurling championship record as ‘cat’ and insisted it’s ‘shit or burst’ time as they begin their latest campaign.

Aidan O’Brien’s exciting youngster Caravaggio is among the 10 two-year-olds in the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday.

Group 1-placed as a two-year-old, Washington DC made an impressive return to action when landing the listed Paddy Power-sponsored Patton Stakes in emphatic style in Dundalk last night.

Tommy O’Donnell, Donnacha Ryan and James Cronin return to action for Munster in tonight’s Guinness Pro12 clash with Glasgow Warriors on the 4G pitch at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock.

The day of a big championship game, a fair few of the Clare lads used to think I was on another planet, that I didn’t know what nerves were, that I was so relaxed I was nearly horizontal.

Jamesie O’Connor has questioned Cork’s ability to “cut teams apart” and feels they don’t have the same ability to create scores as his native Clare, Kilkenny and Tipperary.

An Easter Monday assignment in Cork is next on the agenda for David Marnane’s much-travelled stable star Jamesie and a successful outing could spell a trip to Singapore for the KrisFlyer Sprint.

When the need is greatest, the will is strongest. Munster forward CJ Stander regards next Saturday’s crunch Champions Cup match against Saracens as the sort of do-or-die "cup rugby" occasion players want to experience when they join the province.

Zebre 7 Munster 31: Munster got the result and — for 40 minutes at least — the performance they wanted in Italy which sends them into next Saturday’s vital Champions Cup clash with Saracens.

When it comes to dishing out plaudits, prop forwards are rarely if ever at the top of the pecking order.

To find out how a club with just 300 playing members will have five players on active duty in Sunday’s All-Ireland finals, go back to 1979.

Aidan O’Brien’s domination of the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes continued as Dick Whittington caused a minor upset in the Curragh feature.

The good times are back in Wexford. Win, lose or draw on Sunday, the Model must now push on to the next level

Aidan O’Brien’s American import Darwin got his career back on track with victory in the feature Belgrave Stakes at Fairyhouse yesterday.

Aidan O’Brien, whose horses have been struggling somewhat of late, received a timely Royal Ascot boost when Venus De Milo landed the Group 3 Munster Oaks Stakes at Cork yesterday.

Timeless Call secured the second Listed success of her career in the Midsummer Sprint Stakes at Cork.

Well before last Saturday Jamesie O’Connor was a Sky Sports man.

The sky didn’t fall in. And nobody drowned, except Offaly. You couldn’t pin that on the lifeguard in charge.

The dress rehearsal is complete and the cameras are ready to roll for the satellite broadcaster’s historic venture into Gaelic games coverage

ALLIANZ HL DIVISION 1A:

Backed into 1/2 favourite, the J P McManus-owned Shield delivered for Aidan and Joseph O’Brien in the two-mile bookigs@dundalkstadium.com Maiden in Dundalk last night.

Midway through the first half of the minor match a dark-haired young lady materialised in the press box, instantly standing out from the people in the vicinity by virtue of being both female and attractive.

Some of the Clare players who soldiered after the ‘97 All-Ireland final victory recall the ‘famine years’.

Talking to the men directly involved, there are a couple of common themes when it comes to the factors that have led to a renaissance at underage hurling in the counties of Clare and Limerick — and a reasonable amount of divergence.

MUNSTER SHC SEMI-FINAL:

Plans remain fluid for vanquished Epsom Derby favourite Dawn Approach.

Clare hurling legend Jamesie O’Connor believes that supporters of Munster’s hurling counties owe it to the players to attend games in this year’s championship.

Pineau De Re, ridden by Danny Mullins for his new boss Barry Connell, stormed to an emphatic win in the Toals Bookmakers Ulster Grand National in Downpatrick yesterday.

Mark Enright is likely to be handed the ride on William Hill Ayr Gold Cup top-weight Maarek on Saturday.

Stablemates Jamesie and Seanie could both be readied for a trip to Ascot next month after running with credit at Leopardstown on Saturday.

Jamesie is strongly fancied to give David Marnane yet another big sprint handicap in today’s Blue Square Bet Stewards’ Cup at Glorious Goodwood.

Henry Cecil will not be at Glorious Goodwood tomorrow to see Frankel go for his 12th successive win in the Qipco Sussex Stakes.

George Margarson is concerned the ground might be too soft for Excellent Guest in his bid to go one better in the 32Red Bunbury Cup at Newmarket today.