Kerry did what they had to on Saturday. The Kingdom travelled into the leaders' den and beat Antrim on their own turf to secure a rematch with the same opposition in the Joe McDonagh Cup final on 4 June.
But the same prize is not on offer to both counties.
They will both contest All-Ireland preliminary quarter-finals. But if Antrim win the Joe Mc, they replace Laois in the Leinster SHC next year.
If Kerry win, they will have to beat Tipperary in a relegation play-off to earn promotion, rather than Munster expanding to six teams, as Leinster did for 2022.
"It doesn't make sense," Kilkenny great Jackie Tyrrell told the RTÉ GAA podcast. "There is definitely a double standard.
"They need to look at that and change it.
"For a competition that you’re trying to promote and drive that you still have to play a play-off.
"If they do beat Antrim it will leave a sour taste in their mouth if they’re beaten by Tipperary then.
"They’re not really rewarded for Joe McDonagh, there’s no progression for them. And that’s what we need in hurling. Giving our weaker teams a chance to get up to Liam MacCarthy, test themselves against the best and try to move on."
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Tyrrell acknowledges that his native province is less cut-throat at the moment but says that can be a negative as much as a positive for Leinster sides.
"I do accept that Munster is an awful lot more competitive [but] that’s just the dynamic of it.
"You can use it to your advantage. If you do come out in the top three in Munster, by God you’re going to have been tested.
"You look at Kilkenny now, they don’t know where they are going into a Leinster final.
"But are we going to get the best four teams in the All-Ireland semi-finals? Yeah. Will the All-Ireland winners be the right team? Yeah.
"I don’t think you need to go messing if you want to retain the provincial championships, which I think there still is a strong appetite for."
Listen to the RTÉ GAA Podcast at Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
