All Ireland SHC Quarter-Finals: Who will advance? 

WITH the elimination of the two Joe McDonagh Cup finalists last week, just six teams remain with a chance of lifting the Liam McCarthy Cup on the 23rd of July.

The structure of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship came under fire once again, this time after Tipperary’s 32-point hammering of Offaly.

While it is true that a side like Cork would have done a better job in a knockout game than any current Joe McDonagh team, what’s the alternative?

Do we play the 25 round robin games only to eliminate Waterford, Antrim and Westmeath?

This was one of the most gripping and intense Munster Championships in a long time, only because one of three top contenders would be eliminated as early as the group phase.

The final Munster fixture between Cork and Limerick was a knockout in everything but name. The team sent packing could have just as easily been Limerick, and if that were the case, I highly doubt there would be any complaints about the participation of Joe McDonagh teams in the All-Ireland series.

Now, as we head into the quarter-final stage, the games grow ever closer and much more difficult to predict. In a double header today at the Gaelic Grounds, Clare play Dublin before Galway meet Tipperary.

CLARE V DUBLIN 

This is the first championship meeting between the Banner and the Dubs since 2012, when they faced off in Phase 2 of the All-Ireland Qualifiers. Tony Kelly’s goal was the difference between the sides as Clare were victorious.

Dublin are objectively the weakest of the four quarter finalists, but they’ve had a relatively strong Championship to date. They started poorly with a draw away to Antrim, but beat Wexford and Westmeath. They drew with the Tribesmen in Round 5, giving them enough to qualify.

Clare will feel frustrated to not have received a bye into the semi-final after their one-point Munster final defeat to Limerick, but it’s hard to see the Banner as anything but favourites for this fixture. With the attacking quality of Tony Kelly, Shane O’Donnell, Mark Rodgers and Aidan McCarthy, Dublin will require a big performance if they are to advance to the semi-finals.

Donal Burke has the quality to make a difference, but outside of Danny Sutcliffe and Cian O’Sullivan, they lack the scoring threat to really mount a challenge. David McInerny and John Conlon have been big performers for the Banner, and with the breakthrough of Adam Hogan this season, I can only see this game going one way.

Verdict: Clare 

GALWAY V TIPPERARY 

Galway were incredibly unfortunate to miss out on the Leinster title after substitute Cillian Buckley’s goal at the death. Evan Niland and Conor Whelan have each scored 0-60 and 6-11 in the championship, and will be a real threat for Liam Cahill’s men.

The Premier have been outstanding this season, but they’ve had their injury woes. Jason Forde was the obvious loss, missing the games against Waterford and Limerick after his 16th minute withdrawal against Cork.

He’s scored 4-21 in three appearances, an average of 11 scores a game. Though Tipperary were poor against Waterford, avoiding the Munster final could be a blessing in disguise.

They managed to bypass Clare, instead facing the Faithful as a route to the quarters. Tipperary will need everyone to perform, but with the experience and hunger that they have, Tipp could be a real dark horse in the championship this year.

Verdict: Tipperary