How sick are Cork this week?
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Depends on how much they win or lose by. Then we will find out
Not as sick as they’ll be on Sunday evening.
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Since the Cork game Lynch has been stationed in front of Byrnes and Hannon on puckouts to help cut things off. No one stands in front of Hayes because no one, for basically the whole year, has pucked a ball down his wing.
It is at the expense of Lynchs own game, but they obviously feel it is worth it. I would prefer Lynch back centre forward if DOD is fit, but hard to see who they would drop given Flanagan is already trying to get back in.
DOD might have to come in from the bench, be a nice sub to have I agree we have missed him for distribution to Gillane
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I found myself nodding in agreement with your post upto this.
Darragh must start to release Cian to 11.
A fight out between CON and Reidy for the Mul/Casey role.
Who ever loses out is a fantastic sub to bring in alongside O’Brien
Clare v Kilkenny
Reasons for pessimism:
Kilkenny are the masters of the four week break between provincial final and all Ireland semi finals. They have started the last two semi finals razor sharp in their hurling and workrate. Hard not not to see them being at a similar pitch this year - they also appear to be timing their run well after some injuries early in the championship.
They look a bit better than last year with Keoghan and Donnelly going really well while Carey and Kenny are improvements on last years team.
TJ will nail pretty much every free he gets. We will probably be at 75%.
Workrate in the middle third was still an issue for Clare against Wexford. Kelly and Fitzgerald being the main culprits, both are simply too passive in the tackle and you won’t get away with that against Kilkenny.
While we are creating goal chances we are not particularly clinical at taking them.
Our keeper and full back had decent days out against Wexford but both have been very jittery all Championship and will be targeted by Kilkenny.
We are still making too many back breaking unforced errors. Last year in the first half we gifted Kilkenny three points from poor line balls and a gift of a goal. We are still making them.
Reasons for optimism:
Last year we went into the match with a full and centre back who were not close to match fit and neither had any impact on the match. This also necessitated in us starting with a sweeper as we simply hadn’t any other options on the bench to start.
While we were woeful in the Munster final it was mainly self inflicted and we were just too tentative with and without the ball. That can be fixed.
While the sloppy goal allowed Kilkenny to stay afloat last year when we had all the momentum, it was their bench that won it down the stretch. Kenny, Padraig Walsh and Buckley added energy in the middle third while Richie Hogan and Walter Walsh both won/bought important frees with their experience.
Two of them are retired and Kenny starting means that they haven’t the same class off the bench.
Last year Clare only had viable subs in the full forward line - this year Rory Hayes, Cian Galvin and Darragh Lohan all started multiple championship matches and are capable cover down the stretch in defence. Ryan Taylor is likely to make the 26 but I think it is a stretch to expect him to make any kind of impact but there are options for late on when lads are out on their feet that we didn’t have last year.
We look to have a better balance between ball winners, workers and finishers with Shan and Reidy in the side. Also looked to be trying to be a bit more cohesive against Wexford with lads giving the pass rather than taking on the shot in the first half when it was 15v15.
Richie Reid at centre back is a potential weak link which will mean that Kilkenny will have to rejig if SOD is there with Carey or Butler detailed to man mark.
Duggan caused a lot of trouble for them last year too, be interesting to see what approach if taken to curtail him this year.
Leen is a far more composed hurler than Rory Hayes and has been very impressive coming into the side and definitely strengthens us at the back.
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Cork are still reliant on 9 or 10 of the players who started the final debacle in 2021. It’s hard to see how they’ll have improved enough to beat Limerick twice in the one championship season. Limerick may have regressed ever so slightly from that peak but Cork will still be starting Patrick Collins, Niall Collins, Rob Downey, Sean O’ Donoghue, Tim O’ Mahoney, Mark Coleman, Darragh Fitzgibbon, Seamus Harnedy, Patrick Horgan and then Shane Kingston off the bench. The likes of Alan Connolly and Ciarán Joyce have certainly improved the team in the meantime. Deccie Dalton and Brian Hayes hurling well too (Dalton was on the bench in 21’) but it’s hard to see a collective who weren’t good enough to win one under Kingston suddenly transformed under Pat Ryan.
From a positive perspective though, you’d have to be encouraged that they’ve gone toe to toe with Limerick in the past two Munster championships and seriously threatened them even in defeat in 23’.
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Piss off with your so called positivity
Leader seem to be agreeing with me and Nash is fit
I’m lumping heavily on him for MOTM
I like byrnes. He’ll be targeted
More than Kyle so he’s a better chance of making big plays plus he’s on frees.
Barrett for Cork and Tom Morrissey for Limerick are big prices.
Is the The Clare Times guy?
https://twitter.com/IrishTribuneIE/status/1808488059555488244?t=p4dWYrIyMq4O0TKq9nlnCw&s=19
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Class take from Gillane at the end of that clip. He was right to highlight it.
Yes.
Nasty stupid targeting of an amateur player
He’s taken the Buff Egan approach to using capital letters
The spine is now made up of young players - E Downey, Joyce, E Twomey (if fit), Barrett and Connolly.
Hayes has made a good impact, and Dalton brings something different to the HF line.
If Twomey was fully fit, only 8 of 2021 would be starting on Sunday. However, you are right that the likely guys to spring from the bench on Sunday are from 2021, namely O’Flynn and Kingston.
I still think we are short a couple to put it up to this Limerick side in Croke Park. Limerick by 6 is my inclination.
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Cork will do it. Massive momentum combined with blinding pace can get us over the line. You’re spot on about our spine, huge difference. Goalkeeper is the big worry.
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Deep down you know what’s coming.
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