I think we may not be too far off the mid to late 90s when the big three went from 93 to 99 without winning the A/I over the next few years.
Hard to see Kilkenny winning it in the next two or three years. Tipp wonât be far off this year but you would feel that the window is closing fast as the Maherâs, Callinan, McGrath etc move closer to 35 than 30 and will leave big holes to fill. Cork look like they are coming again and will continue to improve but are still lacking a bit of dog in the forwards and another quality defender or two. If they can get over the line they might win a few but I think they will need a few more quality underage sides to top up the talent
Limerick and Galway look to be the two most likely to be in the mix consistently over the next few years. Galway seem to be doing a nice job retooling and donât seem completely reliant in core from the mid part of the last decade and have a nice crop of hurlers in their early 20s establishing themselves. Replacing Daithi Burke may well prove a tougher ask than replacing Joe Canning though.
The rest will remain boom or bust from year to year.