Mind games beginning as Clare prepare for Shannonside derby

I was at Limerick minor training on Tuesday night when the banter began. Our strength and conditioning coach, Mikey Kiely, was involved with Limerick IT’s Fitzgibbon team and he had the story that Clare could only name 23 names for the programme early in the week. Between injury and illness, Clare reportedly couldn’t even muster a 24th body. I laughed to myself. ‘That smacks of Davy beginning the mind games early’, I said to Mikey.

Tomorrow’s game is massive but both counties have always been trying to get one over on the other before a ball is even pucked. In my time, we didn’t know the Limerick players. The only time we ran into them was when we crossed swords on the pitch but the scene is so different now, with social media, and so many players going to college together. It means the mystery is harder to conceal. Still, the desperate search for any edge adds even more intrigue to a rivalry this intense.

Clare won’t have any trouble getting enough able bodies on the field but there is so much young talent in both counties now that they could both field second teams against one another and it would be a dinger of a match. Barry Nash, Richie English and Tom Morrissey have really stepped up this spring for Limerick. Conor Cleary has got an extended run with Clare while Oisín O’Brien’s form with LIT has been so impressive that he has come from nowhere into the team. He didn’t even start for the Clare U21s last year. Clare have had their difficulties in the full-back line and a springer like O’Brien could be just what they need.