Christy O'Connor: When the dancing stopped, Clare relieved to be still upstanding

Banner got what they came for but they’ll know that this was far more stressful than they wanted or needed it to be - they got off a staggering 47 shots but their conversion rate was just 53%.

WINNER WINNER: Clare’s Mark Rodgers scores a 65 to win the game. Pic: James Crombie

DESPITE the euphoria and the mass pitch invasion from the Clare supporters at the final whistle — the sense of relief had still siphoned out the delirium — the dominant emotion amongst the home crowd was restricted more to bushfires of contentment than any huge explosion of elation.

The music was blaring, but nobody was really dancing. It was more like a soul gig than a rave. The dancefloor was still busy but that was due to a flare-up between members of the management teams, plus a few Waterford players. Waterford had issues with the awarding of the late ’65, but they mostly felt cheated from leaving with nothing after having given everything.