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Limerick Senior Hurling 2026

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Form would say Clare have little chance
Full back line still looks too loose, concede too many frees, a few injuries, best players are past their best.
They also seem to switch off for parts of games but even entire games
One thing for sure is they won't switch off any time v Linerick and if they all play to their best it will be a one score game that could go either way
The 4 week break has worked in our favour in the past I really hope we can get back to the intensity we showed v Cork from the off
If O Neill isn't fit it solves one selection headache - English comes in and Lynch moves to half forward line
But O Neill has been with Hego our most consistent performer this year

Yadse (Limerick) - Posts: 284 - 22/06/2026 07:57:40    2681093

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Form goes out the window when Limerick and Clare meet.

On a one off game Clare would always believe they can turn over Limerick.

Tony Kelly and Shane O'Donnell both looked to be coming back into form against Dublin and when they are on fire Clare always have a chance. In our recent history Limerick have rarely beaten Clare twice in a row. We really have to be on our game if we are to see them off this time.

I genuinely believe if we are on our game would beat us, if we are a fraction off it then all bets are off

LimerickandProud (Limerick) - Posts: 294 - 23/06/2026 11:06:37    2681413

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Replying To LimerickandProud:  "Form goes out the window when Limerick and Clare meet.

On a one off game Clare would always believe they can turn over Limerick.

Tony Kelly and Shane O'Donnell both looked to be coming back into form against Dublin and when they are on fire Clare always have a chance. In our recent history Limerick have rarely beaten Clare twice in a row. We really have to be on our game if we are to see them off this time.

I genuinely believe if we are on our game would beat us, if we are a fraction off it then all bets are off"
They will have to very careful in the contact against Clare after what happened and thank god Reidy seems to be ok. Absolute discipline will need to be place along side the ferocious work rate they usually produce.

Shane O'Donnell will more often than not look for the contact and we need to be mindful of it. If SOD is on the ball and there is open country down the line but a 5 foot gap between our two defenders you better believe he will go flying hard in to that 5 foot gap each and every time. Its just the way he plays.

I honestly thought the free given to Cork at the end of the Munster final should have been a free to Limerick as O'Mahony ran blind and straight into Hego which in my view was charging but very few agree or debate it. Body to Body is allowed and the onus is on the attacker to make an effort to go around the defender. Was he meant to run out of his way? If it was Peter Casey and O'Mahony ran into and levelled him and kept going would it then have been a free to Limerick?
If someone the size of O'Mahony came off so bad after colliding into Hego you can only imagine what would happen if SOD runs into him. Its a tough one for them negotiate but something they will have to plan for.

Fitzy01 (Limerick) - Posts: 501 - 23/06/2026 18:13:11    2681571

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Off topic I know.
Just want to wish the Minors best of luck this weekend.

Southsham (Limerick) - Posts: 756 - 24/06/2026 16:19:26    2681711

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Can I send on huge congratulations to management and players with minors today..if I'm being honest tipp were probably the better team but the effort and work rate was top notch from limerick..they never gave up even when it looked like game was moving away from them.
For me if a team gives their all with huge effort they will never be far away.they are a very balanced team with no real superstars in it..some outstanding displays from them..great to win a minor title after such a long gap..hopefully down the line possibly 3/4 of them will step up and make their way at senior level..

CTGAA10 (Limerick) - Posts: 2712 - 27/06/2026 18:33:36    2682231

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Big big win for Limerick hurling , definitely a number of these players will play senior in the not too distant future including Collins in goals , nelligan midfield , Crowe,waters , Fitzgerald & o brien in the forwards.

hurler32 (Limerick) - Posts: 872 - 27/06/2026 20:16:33    2682258

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Replying To CTGAA10:  "Can I send on huge congratulations to management and players with minors today..if I'm being honest tipp were probably the better team but the effort and work rate was top notch from limerick..they never gave up even when it looked like game was moving away from them.
For me if a team gives their all with huge effort they will never be far away.they are a very balanced team with no real superstars in it..some outstanding displays from them..great to win a minor title after such a long gap..hopefully down the line possibly 3/4 of them will step up and make their way at senior level.."
I did not see that win coming; it was only a few weeks ago I was lamenting the lack of success at under age
Full credit to the entire squad and management, that was a gutsy performance, they hung in there, defended like tigers and hit Tipp with a sucker punch goal
Tipp will be sore as they looked a slightly better team for most of it
While Nelligan was good, MOTM for me was the keeper, Collin's, with three fine saves. And Watters was their best player over the entire series
Hard to believe our best team of all time never won a minor AI. But nevertheless this one is most welcome

Yadse (Limerick) - Posts: 284 - 27/06/2026 20:18:02    2682259

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Limerick have definitely a nice batch of players coming on after the present senior team , having a team win an all ireland minor medal gives great confidence to this bunch and will ensure Limerick are close to the top at senior level for a number of years to come . The Limerick u14s are supposed to be an exceptional panel as well by all accounts .

OpenStand (Limerick) - Posts: 778 - 28/06/2026 13:02:47    2682388

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I certainly don't want to come across as negative but I was already thrilled with the minors even before the final. I thought they were going to be beaten by Tipp but after a number of years of very poor performances in both minor and under 20 grades, I was honestly delighted to be in the final and show serious progress. The boys obviously didn't think that was enough and went one step more. Unbelievable. I actually thought in possession gave as much as we got against Tipp but they seemed to be better at getting the scores. For young boys they never left their heads drop and they kept fighting. This is a huge boost for underage because everyone started to question if things had gone stale in the academy, had we the right approach. Hopefully over the next few years we will keep being competitive. Well done to mullins and the management team too. After the first round loss against Waterford, everyone knuckled down and clearly the team believed in everything he did.

Mads (Limerick) - Posts: 392 - 28/06/2026 15:56:04    2682435

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Brilliant win on Saturday by a very dedicated, skilful team that never threw in the towel. The goalkeeper has really recovered from the Munster final, the backs are very sticky and honest, the midfield has 2 beautiful ball players who also work hard while the forwards have a nice combination of players a big man, real pace on the inside and a classy free takers who contributed a lot from play. It would be great to back this up with another good minor team next year- not necessarily winning an AI and that would help build a senior team for the next decade. The worries around underage for the past few years is understandable but in my view the management's have been weak and not up to standard. I saw the u20s this year and the set of forwards they had would have been excellent with a Kinnerk coaching them. Getting a Mark Foley or a Ciaran Carey or someone of their ilk involved with minor and especially u20 and the management team they would bring with them would drive standards The biggest challenge Limerick face at the moment is just getting out of Munster as all 5 counties have now won a minor in the last 6 years and seems to be a different level of competition from Leinster.

updwell (Limerick) - Posts: 963 - 28/06/2026 18:54:51    2682550

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Replying To updwell:  "Brilliant win on Saturday by a very dedicated, skilful team that never threw in the towel. The goalkeeper has really recovered from the Munster final, the backs are very sticky and honest, the midfield has 2 beautiful ball players who also work hard while the forwards have a nice combination of players a big man, real pace on the inside and a classy free takers who contributed a lot from play. It would be great to back this up with another good minor team next year- not necessarily winning an AI and that would help build a senior team for the next decade. The worries around underage for the past few years is understandable but in my view the management's have been weak and not up to standard. I saw the u20s this year and the set of forwards they had would have been excellent with a Kinnerk coaching them. Getting a Mark Foley or a Ciaran Carey or someone of their ilk involved with minor and especially u20 and the management team they would bring with them would drive standards The biggest challenge Limerick face at the moment is just getting out of Munster as all 5 counties have now won a minor in the last 6 years and seems to be a different level of competition from Leinster."
Its no challenge getting out of Munster at minor, only 1 county doesn't each year, and theres nearly always an ordinary group in any given year.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 20329 - 28/06/2026 21:15:14    2682656

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Replying To Viking66:  "Its no challenge getting out of Munster at minor, only 1 county doesn't each year, and theres nearly always an ordinary group in any given year."
Well the county that didn't get out this year were the AI champions last year and beat this years AI champions do the standard is very very high. If Waterford were in Leinster this year they probably would have made the provincial final.
For the sake of hurling nationally the minor needs to be the top 10 counties all in 1 group and that would eventually even out the standards. The way it is now the 5th best team in Munster could well be the 5th best team in the country.

updwell (Limerick) - Posts: 963 - 28/06/2026 22:19:25    2682697

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Replying To updwell:  "Well the county that didn't get out this year were the AI champions last year and beat this years AI champions do the standard is very very high. If Waterford were in Leinster this year they probably would have made the provincial final.
For the sake of hurling nationally the minor needs to be the top 10 counties all in 1 group and that would eventually even out the standards. The way it is now the 5th best team in Munster could well be the 5th best team in the country."
Totally disagree with you.
Every county will have a totally different minor team next year and every year. Just because lenister had a poor year this year you can not change things.

Newyorkkat (Kilkenny) - Posts: 199 - 29/06/2026 00:20:17    2682734

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Replying To updwell:  "Well the county that didn't get out this year were the AI champions last year and beat this years AI champions do the standard is very very high. If Waterford were in Leinster this year they probably would have made the provincial final.
For the sake of hurling nationally the minor needs to be the top 10 counties all in 1 group and that would eventually even out the standards. The way it is now the 5th best team in Munster could well be the 5th best team in the country."
Thats not the way minor works. The players change every year. Munster minor is pretty easy to get out of. Only one team fails to get out, and in any given year theres always a team that underperforms for whatever reason, they are 15-17 years old, only children at the end of the day, or a team that just isnt good enough for the year thats in it.
Couple that with the Munster counties having "home" preliminary QFs and QFs every year, in a ground thats not more than around an hour away on a bus and that they usually have played in at some stage coming up, and really its not that surprising they do well in the AI series.
For our lads on the day playing in Semple it involves a possibly quite long car journey to Ferns, followed by an around 3 hour long bus journey on roads that dont suit a bus, when you include a stop to stretch the legs and use the toilet etc. Corks bus hopped up the M8 at 120kph, and they didnt need a rest stop. The only Munster county that would have as long a journey is Kerry, and they have never qualified for a preliminary QF or QF, and dont play in Munster anyway.

Viking66 (Wexford) - Posts: 20329 - 29/06/2026 08:26:13    2682753

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Excellent win and great credit due to the team and management. Nelligan and Crowe have been the mainstays. Over the championship I thought Hennessey, Waters, O'Sullivan and Bennis all looked good as well. Aside from the end of the Galway match Rian Horgan never really caught fire but has been one of the best at club level - Gavin O'Brien also only came to life at the end of the final but is a serious prospect. The 2025 minors recovered from a bad start to be very competitive and had some excellent players also - we should have a good crop of u20s over the next year or two.

McFan88 (Limerick) - Posts: 456 - 29/06/2026 08:31:59    2682754

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Congratulations to the Minor's. After the Munster Final this year I thought they had come on leaps and bounds from the first day they played Tipperary (when it was really men against boys). While Tipperary looked a bit ahead of Limerick in the physicality and first touch stakes, we stuck in there in tough windy conditions and got the result. I think time will prove that there are some exceptional talents on both the Limerick and Tipperary teams.

As regards the last couple of years underage teams, I am not as worried as lots of people (including Babs Keating). I genuinely believe there is talented players who will come through from those teams.

I do believe that the some of the Minor and U20 management teams and their selections in the last couple of years have been questionable. I don't believe its a coincidence that once we went back to manager a with proven track records (i.e. Diarmuid Mulllin) success had followed. I would do whatever it takes try and bring Leo O'Connor back as U20 manager as well

LimerickandProud (Limerick) - Posts: 294 - 29/06/2026 12:14:22    2682816

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Replying To Viking66:  "Its no challenge getting out of Munster at minor, only 1 county doesn't each year, and theres nearly always an ordinary group in any given year."
And you want that for senior??

Tadhg2020 (Limerick) - Posts: 757 - 29/06/2026 12:29:37    2682820

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Replying To updwell:  "Well the county that didn't get out this year were the AI champions last year and beat this years AI champions do the standard is very very high. If Waterford were in Leinster this year they probably would have made the provincial final.
For the sake of hurling nationally the minor needs to be the top 10 counties all in 1 group and that would eventually even out the standards. The way it is now the 5th best team in Munster could well be the 5th best team in the country."
Im not sure you understand what you are proposing here.
You are advocating the end of the munster championship. You cant just apply that logic to one grade. If its applicable at minor it will be applicable at all grades. I hope you dont want that. I know I dont. The Munster Championship is far too important

Tadhg2020 (Limerick) - Posts: 757 - 29/06/2026 12:32:38    2682821

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Replying To Tadhg2020:  "Im not sure you understand what you are proposing here.
You are advocating the end of the munster championship. You cant just apply that logic to one grade. If its applicable at minor it will be applicable at all grades. I hope you dont want that. I know I dont. The Munster Championship is far too important"
No I'm only saying underage to put them all into 1 group. The top 2 Munster teams in group still play a Munster final and top 2 Leinster teams play their final. Next 2 best place teams qualify for quarter finals against provincial losers. It's fairly obvious Munster teams are stronger at the moment and hurling needs everyone to be strong and competitive.

updwell (Limerick) - Posts: 963 - 29/06/2026 13:52:13    2682865

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Replying To Tadhg2020:  "Im not sure you understand what you are proposing here.
You are advocating the end of the munster championship. You cant just apply that logic to one grade. If its applicable at minor it will be applicable at all grades. I hope you dont want that. I know I dont. The Munster Championship is far too important"
Incorrect, all grades have a different format at present...

McFan88 (Limerick) - Posts: 456 - 29/06/2026 13:55:30    2682867

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