Former Tipperary senior hurling manager Liam Sheedy believes that Waterford had All-Ireland champions Limerick 'on the ropes' at the weekend but that the defending champions will be stronger for the test.
Limerick won their opening game in the Munster SHC after coming out on top in a thrilling contest at the Gaelic Grounds, emerging 0-19 to 1-18 victors.
The Treaty County played most of the second half with 14 players following the dismissal of Gearoid Hegarty for a second yellow card and were able to withstand a late Waterford fightback to maintain their perfect start.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Sheedy believes that Waterford will look back on the game as one that got away from them.
"I think Waterford will be very disappointed," he said. "They had the All-Ireland champions on the ropes yesterday for long periods.
"Obviously, there was the sending off midway through the second half but in fairness to Limerick they rallied and they got their three points.
"They missed that penalty and there was seven minutes injury-time and you thought going down the home straight Waterford had chances. They had 13 wides in total over the course of the game.
"Davy will wake up this morning knowing he had a really good chance of being the first man to beat Limerick in four years in the Munster Championship. He’ll definitely see it as a missed opportunity.
"He’s got to get his troops ready because they've got to play Cork in Cork next weekend which is now a must-win game."
While not exactly a wake-up call for Limerick, the game served as a reminder that the defending champions can be vulnerable and for Sheedy, it is a game that will serve Limerick boss John Kiely well ahead of a busy week.
"John Kiely felt maybe they were being put on a pedestal and maybe other teams aren’t getting the respect they deserve," Sheedy said.
"In some ways I think John will be thrilled, he’s got a chance to get his team grounded.
"They weren’t in their pomp yesterday but there’s no question about it, when this team are in their flow, they’re very hard to beat.
"Training on Tuesday night will be very interesting for John Kiely because I’ve not doubt he’ll be looking for a much bigger performance on Saturday night when Clare come to the Gaelic Grounds."
