Fitzgibbon and Coleman showed great maturity when the game was on the line

The sun was beaming down on the Limerick powerhouse’s fantastic complex, their U12s were having a great battle with Ballincollig, while youngsters from Carrigtwohill and Blarney were there enjoying the ‘hurling fanzone’.

Some of the calls – leaving out Shane Kingston for the more physical Aidan Walsh and replacing rookie centre-back Tim O’Mahony with Mark Ellis, who hadn’t even been on the bench a week earlier – were bold. Yet there was a logic to their approach, to counter Limerick’s physicality and swarm the middle third.

The leadership of Seamus Harnedy, Bill Cooper and Eoin Cadogan was colossal, while Patrick Horgan – despite hitting seven wides uncharacteristically – proved again why he’s the wristiest forward in the country.

Fitzgibbon was everywhere too, getting fouled for three frees, but more tellingly getting the hook in on Lynch as he drove towards the goal in the latter stages.
