No let-up from free-scoring Tipperary

Tipperary 0-28 Clare 0-21: “I’m not joking, we’re doing nothing different,” insisted Michael Ryan after this latest piece of evidence that the crown weighs lighter on Tipperary’s heads than previous times.

But applying the same standards as the victorious 2016 season may just be the exact reason why the All-Ireland champions sit pretty at the top of Division 1A with three wins from three games. Tipperary are playing like they still have plenty to prove.

Here, they began with just seven of the side that started the All-Ireland final. Hurler of the year candidate Seamus Callanan and All-Star James Barry, who were named on the bench, were forced out with bugs but it didn’t matter as their team-mates had enough to see off Clare in an entertaining clash.