Liam Sheedy: There has been no Limerick collapse so they can go through the gears again

I’d imagine John Kiely will be heartened by the fighting spirit his team has shown in losing by the minimum to Clare and battling to the bitter end to secure a point last Sunday

SURROUNDED: Gearóid Hegarty, Cathal O'Neill and Darragh O'Donovan with Seamus Kennedy of Tipperary. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie

It’s easy forget now, but we have doubted Limerick before heading into a game with Cork. Just a year ago, heading into the first outing in the Munster round robin, we were contemplating a Limerick team that had shown below average form in the league. Could they reignite that fire and deliver the three in a row of All-Irelands and fourth Munster on the spin? Not everyone was sure.

The doubts lasted at least 10 minutes. Concern looked to be real when Cork hit them for an unanswered 1-2 within six. But Limerick had other ideas and powered into the game and were four clear by the break before cruising into familiar autopilot in a 2-25 to 1-17 victory. That set the tone for them to go unbeaten for the remainder of the season and pitched them close to the summit in terms of all-time great teams.