LohansRedHelmet (Clare) - Posts: 2475 - 29/05/2023 14:24:17    2482579

Great game yesterday. While our efficiency still needs improving there was great performances all over the field and I feel we fully deserved our win. At 7 points up we should have closed out the game with the Cork goal bringing them back into the match. This was a fairly similar trend for Cork over there last 3 games where they went 7, 8 points down before pulling back the lead but ultimately losing out to Clare and Limk and getting the draw with Tipp. Waterford beating Tipp was a huge bonus. 2 weeks is a fairly short turnaround given that intense battles over the last 4 games but I feel the group will be energised by yesterday's win.

journeyman (Limerick) - Posts: 109 - 29/05/2023 14:40:18    2482596

daveboy (Limerick) - Posts: 1125 - 29/05/2023 15:30:03    2482631

Great game and a great win yesterday Limerick. Cork did well to claw their way back at the end, but I just felt ye had the game by the scruff and weren't letting go; the self-belief was evident.

festinog (Galway) - Posts: 3097 - 29/05/2023 16:04:13    2482650

On balance, I'm really pleased with the step improvement in performance yesterday. We wasted a lot of possession and blew at least 3 other goal opportunities but at least you can see the trend in the right direction. I thought we gifted Cork a number of soft scores but you also have to give Cork credit for forcing some of those mistakes. My man of the match was Gillane who has the hardest job in hurling at the tip of the spear but he's movement and aerial ability are amazing. He makes the ball stick which is a massive attribute. I assume that David McInerney will be moved back to mark him in the Munster final which will be a battle worth the admission on it's own.

I'm very pleased with Hegarty yesterday. He scored 3 points and laid off ball for a few more. If he can continue to trend upwards in performance levels, he's going to be a big opportunity for Limerick. Cathal O'Neill scored a brilliant goal and made another but he also coughed up ball and he will learn and improve from that. I still see him starting against Clare with Cian coming off the bench. I hope that there's more minutes in Cian and that he'll also start to trend upwards as well. If that happens, Limerick are really in business.

I need to check the stats but it's obvious to me that we lost the free count by a massive amount. We scored 2 points from frees plus a penalty (what a penalty by the GREAT DIARMUID BYRNES) but Cork got 13. My memory is that we only had 5 shots at goal from frees in the entire game with the first coming in the 32nd minute. Am I right in that? How does any team go that length of time without getting a scoreable free?

I have no problem at all with the frees that the ref gave to Cork. They were all fouls and some were very avoidable and need to be cut out. But I saw multiple occasions when a Cork player fouled but the referee ignored the foul and then penalized a Limerick player in the same sequence. It seems to me that the ref basically referred one team and allowed the other to do what they liked and still got some big calls wrong. It's an impossible job to ref a county senior hurling match these days and I suspect that the Munster final will be referred in a totally different way to yesterday. I'm adamant that our referee yesterday did not have a good day at the office.

I noticed that Dan went centre back when Declan went off. I'm hoping that Declan is ok because he clearly slowed a few minutes before he left the field and he's a massively important player for us. However, once Dan went centre back, Cork started to win high ball in our full back line and we ended up putting Dan back in at full back to stop the rot. The lesson there is that Dan has to stay at full back for the remainder of the year. If someone needs to go centre back, it should be Kyle.

Speaking of Kyle, we still have that option of pushing Kyle into centre forward. Would you do it in a Munster final that is not a knock out game? It's an opportunity even though I suspect that they will stick with him as a wing back.

The great thing about yesterday is that before the match, the nation held its breath with hope that Limerick would be knocked out. After the match, the nation is aghast that the Big Mean Green Machine is wide awake and starting to feel good about itself again.

Even if we lose the Munster Final, we will have a quarter final against Dublin (at least that's how I think it works) and with due respect to the Dubs and the McDonogh teams, you have to fancy Limerick to come through that quarter final. So the odds are that Limerick will now be in a semifinal by one means or another and someone is going to have to beat us in Croke Park. That will be the Leaving Certificate test.

Happy Monday.

Dealer (Limerick) - Posts: 835 - 29/05/2023 16:15:33    2482654

cityman73 (Limerick) - Posts: 775 - 29/05/2023 16:37:03    2482660

I'm after hearing it will be confirmed for cork later on tonight..madness of the highest order if true..hope it's all wrong..imagine 30 thousand trying to get through Charleville/buttevant oh my lord..nearly want to be leaving both counties on Saturday and not be in a hurry home til Monday..also is there not a few different festivals on in cork that weekend..it's a fantastic stadium,brilliant surface but a nightmare getting in or out..

CTGAA10 (Limerick) - Posts: 2208 - 29/05/2023 16:59:21    2482669

Well done Limerick. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the game on gaago.ie, and getting the bonus of Tipp losing to Waterford, and Limk making the Munster final capped it all off. I think Limerick were 6-7 points a better team than Cork but weren't ruthless enough when they went 7 points up. Limerick clearly aren't firing on all cylinders yet, but hopefully moving towards it. Far too many turn-overs and handling errors (even by the usually rock solid Kyle Hayes) but these are things that I know Kiely & Co. will work on. Put it like this: Isn't it great to be still in the championship, in the Munster final, even with so many errors and 15 wides?

The final will be dog-eat-dog stuff, but I can see Limerick winning it by 4-5 points, provided they cut out the errors and get the scoring radar fully back on track.

foreveryoung (USA) - Posts: 1903 - 29/05/2023 17:38:18    2482685

KnockaineyAbú (Limerick) - Posts: 96 - 29/05/2023 18:23:51    2482712

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 11734 - 29/05/2023 19:04:54    2482725

daveboy (Limerick) - Posts: 1125 - 30/05/2023 10:29:57    2482793

Strange that decision was deferred last night at Clares request ?
Would Clare play in Limerick altogether with 50% of tickets going to each county . The Ground is 2 miles from the clare border and would save a lot of supporters particulary Clare fans from longer travel and Clare did beat Limerick there already this year!
If we were all serious about carbon footprint Gaelic Grounds would reduce a lot of travel for those attending be it Thurles or Cork.

OpenStand (Limerick) - Posts: 671 - 30/05/2023 10:59:14    2482807

daveboy (Limerick) - Posts: 1125 - 30/05/2023 11:36:24    2482830

LohansRedHelmet (Clare) - Posts: 2475 - 30/05/2023 12:05:30    2482840

clooney (Clare) - Posts: 880 - 30/05/2023 12:08:01    2482843

OpenStand (Limerick) - Posts: 671 - 30/05/2023 13:07:41    2482867

Limerick confirmed

LohansRedHelmet (Clare) - Posts: 2475 - 30/05/2023 13:48:41    2482886

daveboy (Limerick) - Posts: 1125 - 30/05/2023 13:54:09    2482888

Munster final is in Limerick. 1.45 Start

Limerick2018 (Limerick) - Posts: 75 - 30/05/2023 14:01:02    2482893

Oldtourman (Limerick) - Posts: 4317 - 30/05/2023 14:02:27    2482894