Jamsie is on bbc. I recorded their coverage and watched it back this morning.
You could be on the ball there
Barrett could do untold
It will be an interesting game and I think if Clare are still in it heading into the final quarter that we will be hard to beat. Cork have momentum but also a huge expectation on them now, while for Clare after the last couple of years of coming up short and the no show of the Munster final it is almost seen as a free shot.
Narrative is interesting, Cork after 2013 were our bogey side, four wins on the trot against us and it looked like this group of hurlers were destined never to beat Cork again. Since then, we have won 4 out of the last 5 encounters and only for a huge save by Patrick Collins at the death in 2021 it could easily have been 5 in a row. But they count for little on Sunday week.
Cork have performed outstandingly against Limerick twice this year, but can they hit that level again against someone else? Clare were kind of similar in 2023
Cork have given three very flat performances in this years championship and while they looked good for 40 minutes in PUC v Clare, they folded easily enough once Clare went up through the gears in the last 30 minutes.
Some teams have struggled for energy after putting in big performances v Limerick, but I donât think that will be an issue for Cork, if anything I think trying to keep the hype down might be a tougher task.
They are on the face of it better balanced now than last April and have improved since then and in Fitzgibbon, Barrett and Connolly they have three lads who are very dynamic and if on the front foot will cause any team problems, while Brian Hayes has added a real directness to them inside, albeit he seems to really go to town v Limerick but has been held relatively in check in other matches, which one shows up Sunday week could have a big bearing.
I think it quite possibly is a final that will be decided by match ups. Cork have benefitted from knowing what way Limerick would line out and play both days and went after the same areas mercilessly while Clare will go man for man they do have options to rejig and go after the match ups they want. Clare diligently going man for man with the cork half forwards in PUC caused the cork puckout to malfunction as Collins simply did not have free runners to hit on the far 65 and the whole thing fell apart when the windows werenât there for Collins.
The game boils down to who can curb the key men in each forward line. If Barrett is getting on ball and driving at Clare then Cork will have the platform to really get at us, but on the otherhand, do Cork have anyone who is capable of breaking even with Peter Duggan 1 v 1 under puckouts? Can either Downey brother win an individual match up against Shane OâDonnell if Clare are capable of getting a foothold?
The question for Clare is do they keep Conlon at six or look to go match up based in the half backline? They have been pretty flexible this year in this regard and I wouldnât be overly surprised to see Davy Mc start on Barrett with Conlon possibly picking up Harnedy.
Despite Taylorâs performance off the bench, I think he will be held in reserve again as his engine and hard running will be a big asset off the bench after 50 odd minutes. Galvin and Shanagher off the bench could be key again as they offer something very different from the lads they replace and add a target man and movement inside.
Iâd expect the same 15 to start and I think Duggan and SOD are the two real key men for Clare and I think we look like we have learned some key lessons from the Munster final which were evident when we got into our flow early on v Wexford and in the second half v Kilkenny.
It is hard to see a huge uptick in form from Tony Kelly in two weeks but we live in hope. Iâm a fan of Tim OâMahoney and I think he might suit TK more than the physicality of Paddy Deegan. David Fitzgerald is also the other man maybe under a bit of pressure, I thought he was coming into things at the start of the second half v Kilkenny but there have been too many times this year he has been content to being on the periphery of things. The output of both aside from the scoreboard is a concern.
Iâd expect Cleary to pick up Hayes, Cleary has had two low key very solid performances after a disappointing Munster campaign, he pretty much took Chin and TJ Reid out of it as puckout options in the last two matches.
Hogan will take Connolly - this will be one of the real key ones of the game, can Clare get the pressure out the field to consistently make it 50/50 deliveries between the two? If so, there isnât a forward in the country I worry about Hogan on.
Leen to take Horgan.
Cork will surely go with Joyce on Duggan, this leave Fitzgerald v Coleman on the other wing. Fitz has the size and pace advantage but Coleman is a clever hurler and fine stickman. Can Fitz keep him going backwards and also not switch off when Coleman goes forward? we need him to give his most prominent performance of the championship so far.
Iâd expect Cork to put Eoin Downey on Aidan Mc and OâDonoghue picking up SOD or Rodgers depending on which one is inside. OâLeary to follow Reidy, although I wonder could we see Reidy start at 11 and look to drift into pockets of space if Downey is going to hold the middle. He did a fine job of this role when they last met on Ciaran Joyce.
Cork are righlty favourites, they have given two of the performances of the championship, but we have more than a punchers chance here if our main men perform and we can limit the amount of self inflicted wounds we so often like to give ourselves. Our recent good run against Cork has been built on the workrate and aggression in the tackle of our forwards wearing down the cork backs and not allowing them to build from the back, it will probably be what decides this match as well
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Thatâs correct
Who was the blonde in the blue dress taking photos of the managers on her phone, looked vaguely familiar
Best of luck in the final. Great win in the semi, Clare the better team on the day and over the full 70 minutes. We couldnât live with ye in the second half. I think Cork have all the momentum but Clare are coming in under the radar for this one, perfect for ye.
Thatâs the GGA social media/communications woman. Those phone clips get uploaded to the GAA insta for all Croker games.
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Cork
Ticket Allocation per Affiliation
Senior Affiliation = Stand (26), Terrace (16)
Intermediate / Premier Junior = Stand (22),Terrace (12)
Junior A = Stand (16), Terrace (10)
Junior B / C = Stand (10), Terrace (8)
Clubs with Player on the Panel = Stand (12),
Terrace (8) extra per player
e.g. Ballinhassig GAA Club (PIHC (34) & JAFC
(26) & 1 Player (20)) = 80 tickets
https://twitter.com/TulachSheasta1/status/1811085141009199378?t=G5QD_avczzKwV6w18I932w&s=19
For Clare and Cork posters on the lookout for ticketsâŚ
Careful lads, the treasurer could have this all sewn up
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Whisht.
Wonder how many tickets are up for this?
150-250 in and or around would be my guess
itâs a tough one but what is the rationale for the GAA to allocate more tickets to a senior club than to an intermediate club?
Wouldnât it be better to base the distribution on the number of club members?
There could be a junior club with more members than a senior club. 
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After reading that fine post I make Clare favs
Agreed. Some lads are just fucking weirdos who want to be really close to intercounty players all the time.
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Clare havent really put a full performance together over the course of the championship.
They will have to reach new heights to win but its probably not beyond them. The fact that that immoveable object Limerick who they havent been able to pass for so long are gone does make their task easier. Iâll put it this way if Limerick had gotten over Cork they would have been overwhelming favourites with not many giving Clare a punchers chance. Not so now.
On the other hand Corks graph has been rising all the time. They havent hit their ceiling yet and there is defintely more to come. Hayes, Connolly and Barrett could do serious wreck yet if all 3 fire on the same day. Hard to beat the same team twice in the championship or so they say. Cork accomplished that feat now its Clares turn. Cork have only had 1 real personnel change since that game down in the Pairc with Coleman in for Twomey but some of their players have matured beyond all recognition since then as has the Cork game plan. Its hard to find any similarities between Corks first 2 round robbin games and what has transformed since. Totally different animal.
Iâm sure Cork will have a plan for O Donnell but as with Aaron Gillane this is merely damage limitation territory. O Donnell is HOTY so far. By same token Cork planned for a defender in Kyle Hayes they might have something up their sleeve to a lesser extent for Adam Hogan. Remarkable that a corner back can exert so much influence. For Clare to win I feel they have to start Taylor instead of Fitzgerald. The latter is handy for 2 or 3 loose points but is too passive and standoffish in his general play. Taylor on the other hand could have 15 - 20 possessions and dictate the game. Should be a cracker of a final.
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Last chance saloon for a lot of the Clare lads and Lohan, unlike a much younger Cork group that will be pushing for a few years yet.
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