Cratloe manager Joe McGrath says his side "worked savagely hard" to come away from Walsh Park with a first ever Munster club SHC victory.

The double Clare champions looked to have the job done when they led by 2-4 at 0-2 after playing against the wind, but they had to withstand a second half comeback from 14-man Ballygunner before securing their passage into the next round.

"We've been doing that all year (starting with wind) so we said we wouldn't break with the pattern. We had three or four chances in the first half we didn't convert, and a nine or 10-point lead would have been huge," McGrath said in the Irish Examiner.

"We said at half-time we'd knuckle down and we might have rode our luck when it came down to two points, but when push came to shove we worked savagely hard. "

The Tipperary native added: "We came down here in 2009 and didn't win, so we had a bit of an agenda. To come down to Walsh Park and beat a team like Ballygunner - we had our backs to the wall in the last 15 minutes and we finished the stronger team.

"We held the ball great and found the man outside. Obviously when they lost a man it made it that bit easier, but it takes composure and experience to play that game. Whether it's the football I don't know, but they know they can hold onto the ball."

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