By Séamus Leonard
These Munster neighbours will renew acquaintances in Thurles on Saturday, with a place in the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship quarter-finals at stake.
Clare have had the upper hand in recent meetings between the sides, including a 0-21 to 1-16 win in the Allianz League Division 1B final in April.
The Banner can also claim to have faced tougher opposition this summer, having lost narrowly in their Munster semi-final against Waterford before overcoming Dublin in a qualifier last weekend.
The win over the Dubs was all the more impressive given the dismissal of Nicky O’Connell early in the second half. But the paucity of the Dubs display should also be factored into an assessment of the progress of Davy Fitzgerald’s charges.
Clare supporters will have been pleased that it was promising teenager Tony Kelly who netted a crucial goal in Ennis, as it underlined the potential Fitzgerald has at his disposal.
But young potential does not guarantee success at senior level, and Clare need look no further than Sunday’s opponents for evidence of that.
The Treatymen won three All-Ireland U-21 titles in a row from 2000 to 2002, but that crop failed to land even a single Munster title at senior level.
While Limerick have not enjoyed such underage success since, they are still churning out able hurlers, with the likes of Graeme Mulcahy and Declan Hannon among the latest exciting prospects to come from Shannonside.
Laois and Antrim did not put up much resistance in Limerick’s qualifiers to date, but the 14-47 total John Allen’s charges racked up in those games is not to be sniffed at. Wins are wins, and, along with the impressive showing they put in against Tipperary in the Munster quarter-final, Limerick should not want for confidence.
And they will also be keen to end the run of reverses they have suffered at the hands of the Banner.
Verdict: Limerick
