"I'd no idea to be honest, it doesn't come into it at all. It's not about anything we've done in the past."

Brian Cody guided the Cats to a 15th provincial success but all that matters to him is the next game.

"We knew it was coming. We knew the first few minutes (of the second-half) were going to be crucial. Kilkenny are renowned for coming out..."

Galway expected Kilkenny to come out with all guns blazing, says Micheal Donoghue, but they couldn't do anything about it.

"I kind of mis-hit it and that maybe put the 'keeper off. But sure it counts the same as a screamer!"

As long as the green flag is raised, Kilkenny's Jonjo Farrell doesn't mind how they go in.

"If we're straight we didn't perform in the Munster semi-final and we are hurting after that. People can say what they want. I don't think one game makes us a bad team. We made mistakes. Waterford deservedly beat us, but we are better than we played that day."

Davy Fitzgerald and Clare successfully negotiated the first step on their road to redemption.

"This year was a stand-still year. I am not making any excuses. It is thoroughly disappointing, there was a huge amount of work put into it and we were comprehensively beaten."

2016 will go down as a year to forget for Seamus 'Cheddar' Plunkett and the Laois hurlers.

"We're delighted to win and the manner in which we withstood the Dublin challenge but I wouldn't be jumping up and down against Ger."

It was job done in Pairc Ui Rinn on Saturday evening as far as Kieran Kingston was concerned.

"Yeah, we're gutted, we came down to win. We came down to put up a good performance tonight and win the game … it's hard to put into words how you feel after a performance like that."

The Dublin hurlers and Ger Cunningham are out of the Liam MacCarthy Cup running.

"I'm fully aware that we have to improve. It's a quick turnaround. We have a few lads with a couple of knocks and tired bodies from during the week with the 21s. But it's a good win, I'll take it any day, nine points."

A Munster derby against Clare is next up for TJ Ryan and the Treaty County.

"Devastated isn't the word, there's no doubt about that. We played a lot of really good hurling in the first-half but I really felt today that it was there for us and we just didn't take it."

It was one that got away as far as Westmeath manager Michael Ryan was concerned.

"I didn't know myself until half-time, when someone said we'd scored a goal. And then I just saw some of the supporters getting on to Johnny Ryan coming in, but we just got on with it."

Model County boss Liam Dunne played down the controversy surrounding goalkeeper Mark Fanning's 24th-minute penalty.

"I'm in until 5.30 this evening anyway! I haven't thought past that. They mightn't want me here, that's the other thing. I had a huge backroom team, it's not just me, and we'll stand back and take a look at ourselves."

Eamonn Kelly won't be rushed into making a decision about his future as Offaly senior hurling manager.

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