Jamesie O'Connor says Davy Fitzgerald made the right decision by stepping down as Clare hurling manager.

The Sky Sports pundit believes the Banner had become 'stale' and predictable' under fellow 1995 and '97 All-Ireland winner Fitzgerald, who didn't have the full backing on his panel to carry on for a sixth year.

"To be honest about it, and it's only my opinion, we had become stale, the playing style had become predictable," O'Connor told Clare FM.

"It was easier for the big teams to play against and to defend against and to an extent by allowing the opposition to park an extra defender in front of Shane O'Donnell or Conor McGrath, we were in a way spiking our own guns. 

"I think the way the championship ended up, with the four best teams in the country going at it hammer and tongs, we had three fantastic semi-finals and a final when Kilkenny, even when beaten and not playing well, still managed to hit 2-20, a tally that we probably wouldn't come close to hitting against the better teams we faced this year.

"Our manager, our next manager, has to find a style that suits the players that we have."

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