Treaty victory would be a real miracle

HOW do you preview this without mentioning the war? Due to a combination of circumstances, the rights and wrongs of which have been debated ad nauseum, Limerick go into this game with practically an entirely new squad from last season, green and untested in the championship.

In the opposite corner, a vastly experienced Cork side, newly energised by Denis Walsh and his management team, encouraged by their big quarter-final win over Tipperary, and playing in the familiar comfort of Páirc Uí Chaoimh. What odds Limerick, then?

The only chance they have – the ONLY chance – is if they absolutely tear in to Cork, play like men possessed, play as though their very lives depend on it; certainly the status of Justin McCarthy as manager depends on it.