Davy Fitzgerald: We answered a lot of questions today

A defiant Davy Fitzgerald claimed Clare were too good to be relegated and were the better team in Nowlan Park yesterday.

The Clare manager took pleasure in his team’s performance, particularly the showings of Shane O’Donnell and Tony Kelly.

Following the recent Davy O’Halloran-Nicky O’Connell controversy, Fitzgerald felt his team showed their spirit despite going down to Kilkenny.

“I think we were the better team. I really felt coming down here we were going to win. I knew playing against the wind, we’d be okay. It suits our style. A lot of questions were answered today. Tony Kelly is a great player. I might have tweaked one small little thing but I won’t be saying what that is.

“We have four All-Irelands won in 130 years… some people forget that in Clare. These lads don’t have to answer to anyone in my view. There has been a number of teams that won U21 and never went on to win senior. I’m so proud my lads have done that. A review of the National Hurling League will come after the end of next year’s competition but Fitzgerald has called for it to be brought forward.

“We are not happy about it,” he said about relegation, “but Cork went down there, Limerick went down there, Dublin went down there….

“I think the whole thing is up for review again anyhow so hopefully there will be a bit of sense seen.

“I don’t think we are a Division 1B team but if we are to play there we won’t have a complaint in Clare. But if we’ve to go down, we’ll go down, there’s no hassle. It’s all about from May onwards, that’s when the thing starts really heating up and we have work to do.”

Fitzgerald also bemoaned the eight-week gap until their Munster quarter-final against Limerick. “You don’t really want an eight-week break, trust me, because it gets to be a very level playing field then as well.

“The only poor half an hour I feel we had in the league was in the second half against Cork, they absolutely dominated us. But if you take any other part of the league, we easily could have got a result. We were there fighting, so the league was okay, I’m disappointed but proud.”