It's the most wonderful time of the year
I stayed up last Sunday night to witness Rory McIlroy create history and claim his first Masters title and join the pantheon of greats to complete the grand slam of golf.
The excitement, the passion and the emotions on show for a golf tournament was like nothing seen in a long time for the sport. Now imagine you turned to one of the patrons there and said, 'you know this is nothing compared to the Munster Hurling Championship'.
I have said it before and I will say it again, the Munster Hurling Championship is the greatest thing the GAA have and I make no apologies for saying that. The tickets for the games were gone quicker than Oasis; well, sort of anyway. There is no game you can take for granted and to get out of this war zone is an achievement in itself worthy of a mini trophy.
I do feel that 2025 will give us a very exciting Leinster campaign with the progress and strides being made by Offaly, the new manager bounce for Antrim and Dublin, and Wexford showing us glimpses of their potential with victories over Clare and Limerick in the league, albeit against much weakened sides. But as a whole you just can’t compare the two in terms of intensity week-on-week and the battles we get in Munster.
I’m packing the tinfoil-wrapped ham sandwiches to head over the border myself on Saturday to Nowlan Park for the meeting of the top two teams in Leinster in the form of Kilkenny and Galway.
It should be interesting to see how both will approach this as chances are they will meet again in the final and maybe you don’t want to show your hand. Or maybe you want to send out a really strong message to the rest of the teams and your own fans that it’s shoulder to the wheel from the get-go and we want to rubber stamp our progress to the All-Ireland series as quickly and as efficiently as we can.
At the time of writing the team selections are unknown but if both go as strong as possible I think Kilkenny will have enough at home on day one to get the job done against a Galway team that have built a really strong spine to their team. It's a matter now of building around that spine in order for them to have success.
Elsewhere in the province, the other four teams contest games they'll all feel they can get something out of and that’s why I believe the battle for third place will be very interesting in Leinster.
Offaly take on the Dubs. The Faithful were given a big reality check against Waterford in the Division 1B final in terms of competing physically and speed wise at Liam MacCarthy level hurling. I'm sure they will take a lot from that game but ask anyone who has played there and they will say that Parnell Park is a really tough place to go to try and find your feet in championship hurling.
I’m sure Dublin will be hurting from how their league turned out, and they will be busting for road at the weekend to prove to themselves and others that they are better than what we saw in 1B. I think they will be in a much better place in terms of freshness and hunger to get the job done Saturday night.
South of Parnell Park, down Wexico way, the Wexford boys will be welcoming Davy back to Chadwick’s Wexford Park but I don’t think they will have any special 'Davy box' erected this time or even a sliver of a red carpet to welcome him back.
Keith Rossiter and his charges will be looking to get their championship off to the best possible start and they know if they want to progress then this game against Antrim is one they simply have to be winning.
At home, on the back of a great win away to Limerick in the league and their squad the healthiest it's been been all year, it's a case of no excuses now for Wexford. It’s time to step up and show us why they deserve more respect and this is the ideal platform for them to do that.
In Munster, well there is little to write that has not been written or said already. As a Tipp man I am travelling to Thurles more in hope than expectation on Sunday.
The reasons being only God and John Kiely really know where Limerick are at and the scariest debate I have had with lads recently is what exactly will Limerick’s team be, such is the wealth of talent at their disposal this year.
On any day at the peak of their powers they are still the best team in the country for me and I feel this is as strong as they have been in a few years, with the finishers from previous campaigns now good enough to be the starters.
Kiely’s record v Tipp does not make for good reading from a Premier perspective – the counties have played 15 times with 11 wins for Kiely and Limerick since 2017.
Tipp have given it everything this year and just faced a Cork team that were on a different level two weeks ago. I just hope this didn’t sting the group too much.
Like any Liam Cahill team these lads will give it their all on Sunday at home in Thurles and they will die with their boots on, but just in terms of where the two groups are at it would take a below-par Limerick and a mighty performance from the men in blue and gold to throw a serious spanner in the works on opening day. It could happen but it is hard to see it. And the next trip is back down to Páirc Uí Chaoimh for Tipp so this could be their year on the line on Sunday.
In Ennis then we have the rematch of last year’s All-Ireland final and the word ambush is very appropriate when it comes to the Banner men waiting in the long grass for the Rebels to arrive.
I was in Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg a few weeks back when Cork put six goals past the hosts and I thought Clare looked completely devoid of energy and fight that day.
Pat Ryan read absolutely nothing into that. But the whole country are talking about one team and one team only right now and it’s not the All-Ireland champions.
That alone should have been motivation enough for Brian Lohan to get his boys ready for war on Sunday on their home patch, following the humiliation when the sides last met.
Any player that needs firing up for this should not be pulling on a Clare jersey. The odds are stacked against them, many think this is a formality for Cork but I think there is a storm coming in Ennis and that we could see some red jerseys hitting the ground before any ball is thrown in.
A marker will have to be laid down as Cork have shown us if you stand back and watch them they will have the game wrapped up before half-time. Clare will bring the fight, the Rebels will bring the flare, the question is can Clare hang in there long enough for the home crowd to help get them over the line?
Haing witnessed Cork up close and personal a few times this year, I know they are ready to respond to whatever teams throw at them. For that reason I think the Rebels will win, but that it will be tight.
Mouthwatering ties await. The start of something great once again for hurling people.
Watch Clare v Cork in the Munster Hurling Championship on Sunday from 1.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app and listen to Sunday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1.
