Enthralling prospect of Ballyea and Clarecastle

IT’S not one of the all-time great rivalries in hurling, not even inside Clare itself. In fact, no-one can remember a single occasion in which their top teams have ever met before in any sort of game, never mind a county senior final.

Yet when Clarecastle and Ballyea meet on Sunday in Cusack Park in Ennis to decide the destination of this year’s SHC, the bite will be as intense as anything ever seen in this most passionate hurling county, or indeed anywhere in the country for that matter.

This isn’t just your run-of-the-mill townie/rural club battle, not just your usual David/Goliath contest, not even the normal ‘neighbouring clubs’ argument, though it is all of the preceding.