Liam Cahill has called on former All-Stars Austin Gleeson, Tadhg de Burca and Jamie Barron to lead by example on Saturday afternoon when Waterford face Clare in an All-Ireland SHC quarter-final.
De Burca was his side's standout performer in the Munster final defeat to Limerick, Barron worked tirelessly and Gleeson played very well in parts, scoring three points, but was less effective in the latter stages.
"For this Waterford team to progress in the championship, all players will have to step up," Cahill, in his first campaign as Déise boss, told RTÉ Sport.
"Our more established players will really have to come to the table this Saturday.
"That’s Austin Gleeson, Jamie Barron, Tadhg de Burca, all guys with big reputations."
In Saturday's All-Ireland SHC quarter-finals, Galway and Tipperary renew rivalry and first-year managers Liam Cahill of Waterford and Clare's Brian Lohan go head to head. @MartyM_RTE hears from the camps. #GAA #RTEGAA pic.twitter.com/tlqrxzplHs
— RTÉ GAA (@RTEgaa) November 19, 2020
Waterford surprised many observers by holding their own with Limerick for the majority of the game, even taking the lead briefly before the provincial holders pulled clear to win by four points.
Now, with a day’s rest less than their opponents, Cahill hopes they can work even harder at Páirc Ui Chaoimh.
"The Munster final was a good performance," he said. "We had to play as well as we did to give ourselves a chance.
"But we’re a little bit disappointed as well that when the opportunity arose to win the match, we weren’t able to take it.
"We need to up our ante again to have any chance of getting to the latter stages of this championship.
"The matches get tougher each weekend so we just hope now we can recover in time and be ready for Clare.
"We really have to bring everything we brought from a tenacity and energy perspective against Limerick into Saturday."
It’s no surprise who the Tipperary native thinks will be the main threat to his team on Saturday – sharpshooter Tony Kelly has scored 1-45 in three games, 1-18 of that coming from play.
"Clare have shown that they are getting better game by game and a lot of key men are coming to the fore," said Cahill.
"Tony Kelly is in the form of his life. Shane O’Donnell is rekindling all the form he showed a number of years ago. David McInerney is back now from suspension.
"They are a formidable side and it will take our all to get a result."
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Watch Galway v Tipperary live on RTÉ2 from 1pm Saturday, listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1 or follow our live blog on RTÉ Sport Online and the RTÉ News app. Highlights of that game and Clare v Waterford on The Sunday Game (9.30pm RTÉ2).
