‘Niall was playing senior for the club when a few of them weren’t even born’

Sixmilebridge were the popular favourites to pull in a third Clare county senior hurling title in five years, but Clooney-Quin didn’t read the script. The underdogs, in a first county senior final for three-quarters of a century, put it up to the ’Bridge that first day.

In the replay, however, a few astute changes helped the champions to a six-point win. Sixmilebridge manager John O’Meara was worried after the drawn game, but now feels the replay “will certainly stand to us” ahead of this weekend’s Munster club meeting with Ballygunner.

“The drawn county final was a very intense game, as was the replay, and it was great to come out the other side. I think that extra game will be of benefit to us in terms of sharpness and so on for the match on Sunday.