We play the last round of provincial championship games and what a weekend of action ahead. Five matches: two in Munster and three in Leinster.
There are so many permutations that we'd need an hour to list to them.
Predicting results in Leinster this season is foolhardy and both the Kilkenny-Wexford and Galway-Dublin games have a proper winner-takes-all/semi-final feel to them.
In Nowlan Park, Kilkenny won’t need reminding that Wexford have beaten them for the last two years. A point divides the sides at the top of the table.
Galway have seemed stagnant this summer, and their native son, Dubs manager Micheál Donoghue will know their number. Having said that, the Dubs just don’t travel well. This fool predicts home wins after huge battles in both.
After all the excitement, Leinster will end up with a Galway-Kilkenny final and the Cats going for five in a row. That has a bit of deja vu about it.
At the bottom of the table, Carlow have to travel to Corrigan Park in Belfast. The loser drops through the trapdoor into next year’s Joe McDonagh Cup.
It’s a pity to lose either from the top tier but home comforts should see Antrim live to fight another year.
In Munster, the outcome looks a little more certain.
Clare need to beat Tipperary to make the Munster final. Incredibly, if Tipp lose they will have won just one of their last 12 round-robin games. Clare should have enough to accomplish that mission.
At the same time, Waterford play Limerick at the Gaelic Grounds. It’s tempting to say Waterford have hurled well this summer, and they have, that Limerick are perhaps not where they were, and they’re not.
But we tend to make the mistake every year of comparing Munster Championship Limerick with our last memory of the year before, which is All-Ireland final Limerick.
That’s the team that kills off opposition by scoring at least 30 points, as they have in each of the last four finals.
Limerick get better as they go along, and at home this Sunday the usual marginal gains should see them through.
That outcome would leave us with a Limerick and Clare Munster final in two weeks’ time.
Much to look forward to but enjoy this weekend while we have it, as it could be the peak hurling weekend of the summer.
In the six weekends since 21 April, the GAA will have crammed in 25 senior hurling championship matches.
In the next eight weeks, to the All-Ireland final on the 21 July, there will be just nine games. And then hurling leaves the stage.
In the same eight-week period, some 26 football championship games will be played out.
Very little oxygen. Iománaíocht go deo.
Dónal Óg Cusack was speaking on RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland
Watch the conclusion of the provincial hurling championships, Galway v Dublin (2pm) and Limerick v Waterford (4pm), on Sunday on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, Tipperary v Clare on RTÉ News Channel (4pm), follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on Sunday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
