One of the best posts of the day.
Hurling is now a possession based game centred on throwing & steps & minding the ball. Clare don’t really mind it despite taking steps/throws.
Waterford are mixed up.
Tipp & Galway are playing 2015 hurling.
KK seem to be bringing this into their game more but the difference is they have a long term plan to get high balls in on top of Nash. You need to keep him plugged in to beat LK.
Just a quick word on Clare, they have definitely gone back a bit this year. I thought we were very good (although we never killed them off) but a couple of their big players didn’t do enough (in my opinion) and that was the worst they’ve been tactically against Limerick. Generally, they have matched up fairly well against us but today, they were completely outplayed. They have character, for sure, and did miss goal chances & frees but they never really looked like winning at the same time.
Kelly & Fitzgerald scored a few points each in the first half but it was all loose ball after work had been done elsewhere. Kelly, in particular, doesn’t look right at all. Just not in the game at all and he normally goes to town against us.
In fairness to Duggan, he took the fight to Limerick. I thought Rodgers was excellent too, won some great ball (although he should have stuck that goal chance). SOD started well but just wasn’t fed enough. Maybe they could have brought him out to the wing sooner.
Cathal Malone was unusually quiet, Conlon wasn’t great either, I don’t think.
They really really struggled on puckouts. Limerick’s movement on puckouts was so much better today though, very impressive.
There’s obviously still going to be a time and place for that, just to keep teams honest in their structure but possession based game really means you don’t waste possession. Which the majority do, and Clare did today in abundance. But goals don’t win games any more. Points do, you have to be able to work it into good shooting positions and crucially not turn it over. There was two points today, Byrnes had one where a careless use of possession saw the ball sail over the Clare bar seconds later.
This again.
They drop some amount of balls short.
Shefflin went off and got EOS in. Lohan has to see that they have a sideline weakness and add to his team to address it. If he does he’s the problem.
That didn’t work out well for Shefflin.
He has changed his back room team on numerous occasions but it’s down to the fact they are always short a couple/big moments/errors that lets them down.
Logan has changed backroom team a number of times? If he has then I am incorrect and maybe he has tried to address it so I should take back my criticism of him.
Limerick are absolutely huge and will kill most teams that keep possession, Waterford tried it a few weeks ago and got broke up . Whoever is going to beat limerick will need to score a rake of goals .
Bugler and Corbett replaced Moran and Treacey over the winter.
The 2021 final against Cork probably the occasion where they really buried an opponent. Although they’ve had plenty of other results that would be borderline routs like the game against Waterford in 2018 and the Tipp game this season. They have reverted back to the pack a slight bit since that final in 2021.
They absolutely rinsed Waterford and Clare in 2019, bate Clare by 10 in 2020, also beat Waterford by 11 in 2019, another hiding for Cork in 2022, tipps worst Munster final defeat in 2019 plus another hiding this year
If you can’t hold your own physically you’ve no hope, not overpower them just be able to get plays off. I me if someone rattles three goals in in the last ten minutes they might beat them but that’s fantasy stuff. They are not lacking in a full back line or goalie. You have to meet them where they are with smart use of possession, then give them something to worry about as Cork did with hard running and a varied attack. Can they do that again when the secrets out?
I would say the most important thing is that you can’t get cleaned on your own puckout. Cork absolutely wiped us out on their puckout in the first half. Clare really struggled today, even with the wind and we penned them in in the second half; Duggan was really the only outball.
Limericks movement in the forward line from minute 1 to the last minute was relentless, they never stopped. In the 2nd half Clare had O’Donnell and McCarthy then Rogers standing on the edge of the square. No movement from them at all. Easy for the Limerick backs.
Limerick have buried a lot more teams than the great Kilkenny team did. You can’t really count leinster in that era. The 2008 final really left a massive impression when they went out and ended the game in a whirlwind almost immediately but limerick beating Cork in the final was just as comprehensive. And they’ve had only minor problems since.
@woolie another deep dive into kinnerk please
To be fair, our movement hasn’t been as good as that all year. Today was one of those where you would really appreciate being there to watch the movement of the forwards.
One additional point, I thought Conor Leen was excellent too, when the other two in the full-back line struggled a bit.
As I alluded to earlier, the wind was a factor and Limerick forced Clare long. It didn’t matter who they had at the edge of the square. They couldn’t get the ball in there
I don’t think so .