Lively Limerick now a real force

IT probably doesn’t seem either fair or fitting to mention the other All-Ireland quarter-final in Croke Park yesterday in the opening paragraph of this report, but given that Limerick will be meeting the eventual winners of the Waterford/Cork encounter and given that people will already have started their comparisons, here goes.

For excitement, for hurling, for atmosphere (second half especially), this wasn’t a patch on what followed. So, does that mean that Limerick have now gone as far as they can go in this year’s All-Ireland series, that they have no chance against Waterford/Cork in that semi-final? Absolutely not.

Understand what Limerick achieved in Croke Park yesterday. On the back of three big games against Tipperary in the Munster semi-final, on the evidence of a battling display against Waterford in the Munster final, a game that got away from them only in the final five minutes, they came into this quarter-final as favourites, never an easy mantle to wear. Additionally, they were up against a Clare team with much to prove, a team that was maturing nicely under the guidance of manager Tony Considine.