How refreshing it was to finally see a good honest championship match. The games to date in this year’s campaign have been either one sided affairs or ones of poor quality. So with the World Cup just about to get underway the GAA got a great boost when Waterford and Clare did battle in Thurles last Monday.
Talking about the World Cup the GAA themselves scored a couple of own goals last weekend; Firstly judging by the attendance at Thurles it seems that it’s not only the players who don't like bank holiday Monday games. Also before last Sunday’s Westmeath and Wicklow football encounter they ran out of change at the ticket booths, seems when they do get a big crowd they can't cope. Another inquest on the cards there!
There was a lot of ambushing in the football championship last weekend with underdogs Sligo, Monaghan and the wee County Louth all taking big scalps. For 60 minutes of the Munster hurling semi-final it looked like a Clare side who had performed so poorly in the Division 2 league final could join them by pulling off a shock. Sitting down to view the game I certainly wasn't expecting very much. I thought the slippery underfoot conditions would lead to another stop start game. Clare started with seven debutants. Maybe it was this factor that nearly 50 per cent of the team were seeing senior championship for the first time that had many people thinking that this tie could have been lopsided. Many predicted it would have been a step too far too soon for the young Banner side. Ultimately this was the case but not before they gave everything for the Banner cause. The Deise men got the perfect start when Molumphy and Mullane swung over the first two scores. The young Clare side looked nervy early on but once the three C's Collins, Clancy and Conlon registered three on the trot the Banner boys threw off the shackles and hurled without any fear. They were hunting in packs and battling as their lives depended on it. Some of last year’s Clare U21 stars are quickly coming of age and announcing themselves on the bigger stage. Waterford's Eoin Kelly may have landed his first score in the 13th minute to square up matters but it didn't dampen the Banner men's spirits as they hit the Deise for five unanswered scores to open a sizeable gap as well as the eyes of the nation. The margin could have been more only for some poor shooting selections. It looked as if Waterford didn't know how to handle their unexposed opposition, it must be noted that a lot of them were squaring up to each other for the first time. I'm sure the Clare lads would have been admiring the marquee names on the Waterford team over the years, but in doing so they also knew their style of play. It was a major challenge for the Deise men early on to adjust to the style of play that the young Clare men posed. Not knowing what way a player turns, strikes and in general goes about his duties is a major disadvantage.
2010 seems to be the year of the big full-forward. You have Aisake down in Cork, Joe Canning in the West, Big Dan in Waterford and now Darach Honan on the edge of the square for Clare. Honan who won the U-21 player of the tournament last year was a major handful for the Waterford defence all afternoon. His goal gave the Banner men a great boost just before half-time. It looked like Clare would carry a six point lead into the interval but their inexperience cost them dearly as Waterford narrowed the gap with two late efforts. We all know how passionate Waterford manager Davy Fitz is about the game of hurling. Fitzy may be a proud Clare man but on this occasion he certainly wanted to get one over his former playing colleague Ger (Sparrow ) O'Loughlin who is in his first year in charge of his native county. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall in the Waterford dressing room at half-time. In fairness whatever Fitzgerald said or did (we all know from YouTube what he is capable of ) worked as his team reappeared in a different mood. The introduction of Declan Prendergast also had a huge bearing on the outcome of this game, not only did he contribute three excellent points from his wingback position but he also put the shackles on Sean Collins who was destroying the Deise men in the first-half. Slowly but surely Waterford were getting the upperhand and it was the aforementioned Prendergast who levelled proceedings in the 46th minute. Both managers emptied the bench. The Clare subs acquitted themselves quite well, but it was the introduction of the two Prendergast brothers that swung this tie in Waterford’s favour. They shot five points between them and more importantly it seemed to rise the spirits of their colleagues. Clare weren't blown away but you could see that bit of experience that the Waterford men had gained over the years was kicking in. Ken McGrath entered the fray later on and with his first touch landed a very important score. It was fitting that Declan Prendergast who ended up as man of the match landed the insurance point. Waterford now await the winners of Cork and Limerick in the Munster final - for obvious reasons the Rebels should be their opponents. The Deise never fear the Cork men, they'll enter the game as underdogs which will suit. Davy Fitz still has a couple of problems he hasn't sorted out - the fullback position and due to injuries it's likely that some of his impact subs will have to start which will limit his options on the bench. They'll have to improve but I certainly wouldn't be writing them off. It has the makings of a cracking Munster final. Moral victories don't count for much in sport but when the dust has settled Clare will also look back on this game with fond memories. They'll improve from this experience and no one will be looking forward to meeting them in the qualifiers.
Dublin advanced to a semi-final date with Kilkenny when they outscored Laois on Sunday. I wasn't around last weekend but judging by the match reports Laois could have pulled off a shock if they had taken some of their missed opportunities. Anthony Daly's post match interview where he questioned some of his player’s bottle may be an honest assessment but I'm sure it was dished out to keep the heat off them ahead of the semi-final. The Dubs always play better when given no chance, no matter what will or won't be said there is no way Kilkenny can take them for granted on June 20.
