As we wave goodbye to the inaugural Munster senior hurling championship round robin this weekend, John Fogarty makes some observations on the old and the new in Sunday’s final round.

Waterford County Board chairman Paddy Joe Ryan has emphasised that Walsh Park in Waterford city is the only venue that will be upgraded as per the wishes of officials in Croke Park.

Mark Coleman, though still a teenager, has developed a penchant for making history.

There can’t be many upsides to losing an All-Ireland final but it was put to Kevin Moran yesterday that their loss to Galway had at least avoided the spectacle of John Mullane riding a horse through Waterford City in his birthday suit.

For the 72,022 in attendance and those in the southeast corner of the country, the small print may not be as important as the headlines, so we’ll start with the big takeaway from yesterday’s game, writes Michael Moynihan.

When defeated in a big game you cannot wait to get a crack at the same opposition, seeking revenge. There’s a matter of pride and unity of purpose involved. This is a powerful stimulus which provides a strong incentive for a committed response.

Cork ran riot at times against Tipp but Waterford will question how much Tipp really tested them, writes Anthony Daly.

Previewing Kilkenny in the championship is increasingly difficult, says PM O’Sullivan. 

A decent first-half showing in which they built up a seven-point interval advantage secured Waterford a second successive All-Ireland semi-final meeting with Kilkenny.

A new initiative aimed at supporting people moving to the heart of west Waterford has been launched.

It was a brilliant team performance by Waterford and another illustration of superb management from Derek McGrath and his crew, writes Anthony Daly.

Stradbally (Waterford) 0-5 Nemo Rangers (Cork) 1-13: Once showered and changed, the Stradbally players made the short walk from Fraher Field to The Park Hotel for a couple of well overdue pints.

The dressing-room that Waterford found themselves in at half-time is a place I know so well in a big game in Croke Park. You’re giddy. Excited. 

Like all good teams, whatever the sport, Kilkenny set up to be very difficult to beat. 

For natives of Mullinavat, Waterford is town, 11 miles away. For natives of Ballyhale, seven miles north, Kilkenny is town, 13 miles away. 

Brian Cody knows the man down the sideline this Sunday better than most. The Kilkenny manager was invited down to De La Salle College to speak to the school team a few years ago by Derek McGrath.

When GAA historians reflect on the changes that hurling has undergone, will they mark down Sunday, May 3, 2015 as the day when the conventional game with the traditional positions of six, two, six finally died?

The fans in Nowlan Park yesterday were treated to wonderful entertainment.

Waterford 0-22 Wexford 0-16

Offaly 1-14, Waterfrord 2-18: The previous four league meetings between these two counties were evenly shared, the latter three decided by a goal or less.

Waterford SFC final: The best footballers in Waterford will be on show tomorrow when Stradbally and The Nire collide for the seventh time in 13 years at Fraher Field.

Waterford 2-22 Laois 1-15

Waterford will go to the Disputes Resolution Authority next week in an effort to allow Shane O’Sullivan to line out against Cork in the Munster senior hurling championship.

The Waterford senior hurlers have trained in secret this week, defying the ban imposed by county board chiefs.

Case for the prosecution.

Clare 2-20 Waterford 1-15

Clare 2-20 Waterford 1-15

The Waterford team to start against Clare in this Sunday’s Munster SHC in Thurles shows 10 changes — several of those injury-enforced — from the side that started against the same opposition last year.

Tony Browne appears to have ended any lingering doubts surrounding his intercounty future after appearing for Waterford as a second half substitute in a challenge against Tipperary last night.

Waterford 1-14 Tipperary 0-16

Kilkenny 2-15 Waterford 0-16

Kevin Moran, inset, will captain the Waterford senior hurlers for the 2013 season.

Former Waterford football star Eddie Rockett is set to return to the county squad.

Castlehaven 1-05 Stradbally 0-07

Don’t think Stradbally are making up the numbers when they make the long drive from Waterford to Clonakilty tomorrow.

Stradbally 2-02 Nire 0-08

Coveted like a neighbour's wife, the Michael Moynihan End of Hurling Season Awards are back for 2012.

Cork showed good character in coming from behind to beat Waterford.

A game which began and ended with the ball crashing off the woodwork saw Cork take this All-Ireland quarter-final with a driving finish and a late flurry of points.

Cork dual star Eoin Cadogan has rejected suggestions that playing football is affecting his skill levels in hurling. The Douglas clubman pointed out that contrary to general belief, he has played little intercounty football in 2012.