We thought this league might deliver more than last year in terms of more meaningful games and it's so far so good.
There was a great battle in Nowlan Park with honours even at the end, a good showing from Tipp and Clare and Limerick just being Limerick.
What a nice way to start this campaign for the All-Ireland champions, not much limelight, took care of Antrim, will do similarly against Westmeath at the weekend getting business done without too much outside focus.
It's ideal preparation for the team trying to make history this year, because when the limelight comes on them, it probably won’t go off until the year is over. Such is the joy of being the best team in the country, everybody wants to nitpick every minute detail about them.
Being in 1B is an easier road to try and secure that Division 1A status in 2025. Realistically, if they beat Dublin it’s a done deal for Limerick and Galway. Tipp have that box ticked already and should now be safe to secure one of those top-three spots so how will they approach the rest of this league now?
On Sunday at 3.45pm in Semple Stadium, Eamon O’Shea will try do something for the first time, coach a team to beat Tipperary. There is nothing but respect for him in his native county and we’d all love to see things go well for him with Galway but not at Tipp’s cost.
Will Liam Cahill go for this and send out another message after their impressive performance against the Dubs in Parnell Park?
The learnings from previous seasons will have to be to make sure there is enough in the tank to compete at the business end of the year, and I think the panel is stronger and better equipped this year to do just that.
There is a wider spread of players to choose from and I’m sure someone will be getting the tap on the shoulder at training this week to say 'Here’s your chance now, against a top team, at home and in front of what should be a big crowd. Take this chance, prove you can mix it with the best', because if it’s left to the Antrim and Westmeath games to get your chance it’s hard to see how the trust can be there for the battlefield that is the Munster Championship.
Whoever gets their chance this Sunday, I hope they grab it with both hands. I like what Tipp are about, I like the look of competition within the group and some young guns putting up their hands now saying I want that jersey.
I really thought Cork would hop off this league campaign but if they don’t get something against Kilkenny on Saturday night by the banks of the Lee their campaign could be over before it has begun. It’s a massive game for Cork, it’s a game that will show us just how badly they want to progress in this league.
Kilkenny will be Kilkenny and give it their all. Nine of the starting XV from the All-Ireland final last year did not even feature last Sunday. I’d imagine we will see a few of those guys in action this Saturday night.
But what Cork team will we see Saturday night? The Cork that like a nice game of hurling - you score, we score and we’ll see how it ends up - or a Cork team that are going to send out a message to say last year we were close, this year we’ll be better and we want to give this league a serious rattle?
Cork need to step up their approach in my opinion. You can’t just canter through these games and hope it will all click come championship.
There are games in the league that teams need to go after, that they need to win to create that buzz in training, to create momentum for the group, Saturday night against Kilkenny in their newly named home ground is one such game for Pat Ryan’s men.
A win for the Banner men on Sunday would almost guarantee them safety as they will view the Offaly game as a gimme for them.
Pre-game last Sunday you’d have worried for a Clare team without their greatest ever in Tony Kelly, John Conlon and Shane O’Donnell but Mark Rodgers looks to be relishing the burden of expectation and there will be lots of help for him all around the field.
Clare have the hurlers, the physicality, the class to mix it with any team. My concern for them is that while they put up big scores on a regular basis, they also concede big scores.
In last year’s Munster Championship, they conceded on average 28 points per game. Against a poor Cork performance for the majority of that game last Sunday they gave up 2-19.
Where’s the issue here? Is it poor defending? Is it the lack of pressure on the quality of ball being delivered in, players not tracking the runners? I’m not sure but in terms of defenders they have some of the best in the likes of Conor Cleary, Adam Hogan, Paul Flanagan, Diarmuid Ryan, David McInerney and John Conlon to name a few.
If these high scores keep getting shipped, it’s an area they will have to look at to see what is the best solution because I feel Clare need a cup on the table this year to justify just how good this group are but conceding 28 points per game could be a major factor in preventing them doing so.
Inter-county hurling action is back and the crowds are talking with their feet.
It’s been a great start to be fair. More of the same this weekend please, before hurling takes a break next weekend with some teams knowing we’ve done all we can and others wondering what are we going to do now with nothing to show from two games. Panic stations? Not at all but it will leave these groups with more questions than answers.
Finally, a massive well done to all involved with St Joseph’s CBS in Nenagh who became Harty Cup champions for the first time in their history last weekend, and for the third year in a row we have a first-time winner of this famed competition.
Outside of Munster schools it may not get the same kudos, especially when the likes of St Kieran’s in Kilkenny win All Ireland Colleges titles for fun, but it is such a famed competition and carries so much history with it. To have a first-time winner for the third year in succession is a testament to the work going on in these schools, Tulla, Cashel and Nenagh.
There is brilliant development taking place in the feeder clubs for these schools, with 11 clubs involved from North Tipp with the Nenagh school.
Eleven clubs who now have Harty Cup medal winners in their midst, many of those clubs for the first time.
A fantastic achievement and once again proving that success is not limited to the traditional big guns, put in the work, keep putting it in, have patience, believe in the process and success can be experienced by all.
Watch Cork v Kilkenny in the Allianz Hurling League on Saturday from 7.15pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to updates on Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1.
Watch highlights on Allianz League Sunday on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 9.30pm, follow a live blog every Sunday afternoon on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to live updates on Sunday Sport.
