Defiant McCarthy says charges will be ready for Clare

NO ifs, buts, or excuses from Waterford, with the dressing room remained shut for almost half an hour after the game.

Manager Justin McCarthy addressed his players and spelt out the importance of picking up the many shattered pieces of a demoralising defeat and preparing for the big challenge Clare will provide at Semple Stadium next Sunday.

But it was a defiant and determined McCarthy who insisted that come Sunday’s Munster Championship opener, his side would be fit and ready, mentally and physically, to face the might of the Banner. “The league is over”, McCarthy said. “We reached the final, didn’t perform as we wanted to, and that’s the end of the matter.”