Banner from heaven gives the rest food for thought

CLARE have proven over the past few weeks that they can compete for major titles and a Munster Championship is very much within their grasp now.

They have the players. They matched Limerick, the standout team in the game over the past number of years, in a lot of areas on Sunday.

I wasn’t convinced that Clare could compete with them physically but they were able to match them for intensity throughout, particularly in the middle third.

There were suggestions Limerick wouldn’t be giving it their all with a spot in the Munster final all but assured but the team they put out definitely gave it 100%. On the day, I felt Clare were the better side and they’ll grow in confidence from here.

The full-back line was impressive. Paul Flanagan was on top, Conor Cleary did well and Rory Hayes is one of the best defenders in Munster right now.