Declan Hannon: It took two years to get our style of play right

The Limerick hurling camp is singing off one hymn sheet, but sometimes the county is a line or two behind. After beating Tipperary back in May, captain Declan Hannon looked embarrassed as he shrugged off supporters who tried to celebrate with him after he had given a post-match interview.

“Yeah, that was the first round of the championship. We had three games, at least, to go. Limerick supporters are fantastic, they really are, they travel the length and breadth of the country to support us. We are really appreciative of that. They do give us a real boost.

At the end of the day, we have to focus on the game. There is no point in us thinking how the lads are getting on above in the terrace or on the train journey up.

"We have enough on our plate to be dealing with training, getting ready for Cork the next day. I know the Limerick supporters will come out the next day, but we have our own job to do and that is what we are focusing on.”

The defeat to Clare in Ennis persuaded supporters that Limerick can’t afford to get ahead of themselves, as they might have in the past.

However, there is obvious harmony within John Kiely’s group, particularly in the way they have stitched together a fine blend of short stick-passing with clever diagonal supply into their inside line.

“Definitely, it does suit us, but we are two years trying to get it right, it just didn’t happen overnight,” the Adare man says of

Limerick’s style. “We are two years at it, and there were a few challenge games where it went wrong, but we just kept at it. We spoke about it earlier in the year, that this is where we are going. If you want to buy in, great. If you don’t, well there is the exit door.

“Everyone has bought into it and they have bought into the style of play that we are trying to implement, but games take their own shape as well, and you have to adapt on the field and we have done that quite well this year.”

Part of Limerick’s reassembly involved Hannon’s move to centre-back, where he played for Ardscoil Rís and Mary Immaculate College. It was one of Kiely’s first calls when he succeeded TJ Ryan in September 2016.

I remember getting a phone call about two years ago now and we discussed it. Anyone involved this year is going to do the best for the team, no matter where they are put, whether that is inside in goals or water-carrier or wherever that may be. See Paul Browne at the minute, who got a season-ending (knee) injury. He is still involved and doing all he can to help us out.

Hannon credits those around him with making the switch back to defence easier and the triumvirate of Diarmaid Byrnes, himself and Dan Morrissey again underlined their worth against Kilkenny last Sunday week, assuming control after shaky moments early on, when Richie Hogan excelled.

“We have shown throughout the league and championship before that when a team gets ahead of us or get a run on us, we just stay really composed,” says Hannon. “That is down to the hard work of all the players throughout the field, the likes of Tom [Morrissey] tracking back from the half-forward line. It is just working hard and helping each other out,” says Hannon, who agrees the bond the half-back trio — all over six foot — have is evident.

“That is from training and playing a lot of games together. The likes of William O’Donoghue came on the last day against Kilkenny in the last few minutes. He was

extremely composed on the ball when he came on. He just knew his job, similar to anybody that comes in.

“There could be an injury early the next day. Seán Finn went off early against Clare and we had to adjust, we didn’t adjust as well as we would have liked that day, but lads coming in know their jobs and they will do it to the best of their ability.”

It was Hannon who made way soon after the start of the drawn game against Cork in early June. Needless to say, his appetite for this rematch is huge.

“It is hard to contain your excitement watching that game, from a supporters’ point of view, watching the majority of the game from the stand. Looking on, you know the boys are tuned in and that they are ready to dig in, to work really hard, which is what we have done all year and what we are going to continue to do for the next couple of weeks.”

Hannon has had a mixed bag in Croke Park, being taken off the frees against Clare in the 2013 All-Ireland semi-final, but firing over five points from play the following year against Kilkenny. A Cork team without a defeat in Munster since 2016 is a team to be reckoned with, the 25-year-old notes.

It is going to be a ferocious challenge. Cork are unbeaten this year. They are the form team. They have been the most consistent out of any of the teams in the country, I think.

"They have set the standard really, really high, so it is going to take a mammoth effort from all of us in Limerick to try to keep pace with them. If we are there or thereabouts come the last 10 or 15 minutes, we will be giving it everything.”