Waterford as you said don’t have enough players presently up to standard. Matters not helped in that regard by Jack Fagan, Neil Montgomery and Callum Lyons opting out this year. Last year, Austin Gleeson, Conor Gleeson and Shane McNulty opted out. Aussie the only returnee and his season a complete write off with injuries and complete loss of conditioning.
You have 6 players there, 5 of whom started the 2020 All Ireland Final and Conor Gleeson came on as a sub that day. Of the Limerick team that started the 2020 All Ireland Final, I reckon it’s only Graeme Mulcahy (who steeped away at 34 or 35) who’s not still involved. County with the smallest pick in Munster cannot sustain that many unavailable players and such problems with player retention.
Could it be that there’s a lack of player buy in to make up of current management? The current manager was part of the Davy set up prior to this year.
It should also be noted that Waterford had stonewall penalties in both halves yesterday not awarded. If the match referee had dealt with matters correctly, two goals and resultant cards to offending Cork players could have lent a very different dynamic to proceedings. There was very little prospect of tough calls against the home side yesterday, with the Cork public still moaning over a free they could have got at the end of the All Ireland Final last year for a jersey pull.