Banner bidding to grasp chance

It’s 20 years since Clare claimed only the second Munster senior football title in the county’s history and in theinterim, provincial final appearances have been rationed to the Banner County.

1997 and 2000 brought defeat but the chance to participate in a decider is apparent again for Clare tomorrow night in their semi-final clash against Limerick in the Gaelic Grounds.

“The panel and everyone in the backroom team have been looking forward to this game for a long time,” admitted manager Micheal McDermott. “With Cork and Kerry on the other side of the draw, it was always more favourable this year. It’s a big plus when we’re only 70 minutes away from a Munster final. But there’s a huge obstacle against Limerick as our record hasn’t been great against them in recent years. They won’t fear us but we’ve taken an awful lot of positives out of our league campaign despite not being promoted.”