John Horgan on hurling: Physicality will be key as new season starts for Munster counties

Four of the five Munster championship counties have already began the journey that they hope will end on the podium of the Hogan Stand next July.

Tipperary, Waterford, Limerick, and Clare were in action last weekend in the opening round of the pre-season competition, the Munster League and it will be Cork’s turn to embark on the same journey tomorrow night when they encounter Limerick at the Gaelic Grounds.

The status quo has prevailed in four of the five counties on the managerial front with the only change being here on Leeside, Ben O’Connor taking the reins from Pat Ryan.

In fact, there has been no great upheaval on the manager front nationally, the return of Miceal O’Donoghue to the Galway hot seat generating the biggest talking point.

There might have been some speculation in Clare and Limerick on whether or not Brian Lohan and John Kiely would stay on board but both will be very visible again on the sidelines over the coming months.

Lohan, despite a desperately poor attempt by his Clare contingent in trying to retain the Liam McCarthy Cup that they won in 2024, obviously believes that the new season will be much better and that, firstly, they will be there or thereabouts in the race to be in the first three in Munster which would subsequently raise hopes in the Banner County.

The question to be posed up there is can some of their vastly experienced, successful players be able to reinvent themselves 13 years on from defeating Cork in the 2013 All-Ireland final.

The likes of John Conlon, Shane O’Donnell and Tony Kelly have big miles on the clock but the former great full-back, Lohan must believe that there still be enough fuel in their tanks to be a force again.

They didn’t get out of the province last season and were relegated to Division 1B of the national league but it could be stated that in the Munster arena, the margin between success and failure was wafer thin.

OUTSIDERS

They are probably slight outsiders to be in the first three in the province this time with Tipperary, Limerick and Cork perceived to be ahead of them in that battle but the expectation is that they will be a formidable opponent for the other four counties.

They will be operating out of Division 1B of the league and they will be top of the list for promotion b back to the top flight. And whilst it was only a pre-season game with Limerick in the Munster League last Saturday, their one-point win with a very experimental team won’t have done any harm in the confidence stakes.

To Limerick, one can be very certain that John Kiely still fully believes that there is one last hurrah in the players who, despite falling short in the past two seasons will still have the hunger again to mount another big challenge.

These Limerick players have been there and done that, have five All-Ireland medals tucked away and will go down as the ones that history will prove were responsible for the county being ranked as one of the greatest of all time, if not the greatest.

The return of Caroline Currid is viewed as being very significant within and outside the county and the message would surely have to be, Limerick have not gone away, you write them off at your peril.

Down through the ages retaining the MacCarthy Cup has proved to be a huge task and Tipperary are one of the counties who have found that out.

They had a superb 2025 after the travails of 2024 and nobody can question their right to the ranking of the country’s top team entering the new season But every new campaign brings a different set of challenges and success one year guarantees absolutely nothing the next.

SUPERB

Liam Cahill did a superb job last time, all the more so because of the low base that the county was operating from, some even calling for Cahill’s head at the end of the previous season.

But the infusion of new blood to accompany the more experience operators provided the perfect blend and the management ensured that two huge setbacks to Cork in the league final and in the round-robin game in the province was not going to define their season.

Their defensive strategy against Cork in the All-Ireland final, their use of the sweeper system was a masterstroke that Cork failed to counteract.

Are Tipp capable of retaining their crown? Yes, it would have to be said but at the same time getting out of the province will be their biggest concern as it will be for the other four counties.

Tipp might not get out, Cork might not, similar with Limerick, Clare and Waterford but isn’t that the great beauty of the provincial round-robin system, especially in Munster where very little divides any of the five counties and anyone can beat anyone else on any given day.

Waterford’s record, unfortunately for them, has been woeful since the format was introduced, failing each time to emerge and with just four victories, two draws, and 18 losses from the 24 games they have played. But they can never be taken lightly and down in Walsh Park where Cork are travelling to this season they are capable of taking down the best.

One has heard it suggested that the county should be represented by the Ballygunner starting 15 but that’s pure nonsense because outside of their contingent there are some fine players like Tadhg de Búrca, Jamie Barron, the Bennett brothers among others who can mix it with the best.

Austin Gleeson, it seems won’t be involved because of ongoing injury worries.

Cork and Tipperary must visit the Waterford venue this season, neither will fancy that prospect but Peter Queally’s men will relish it.

Waterford are going to be outsiders again in the province but one of these fine days they are going to come through and if Ballygunner triumph in the All-Ireland club final it will up the ante all the more in Deise land.

Finally, last but certainly not least, one of the biggest of questions to be answered in the province is, can Cork make it back to All-Ireland final day for the third year running.

That in itself is going to be a massive task because the road to get there is littered with danger and new team boss Ben O’Connor will be fully aware of that. It’s a wait and see situation where the league is concerned for them and is there going to be any mental fallout from last July.

The thinking is that there won’t be and if a few of the players who are going to be trialled over the coming week in the Munster League show promise an already strong squad can be further deepened.

And as we have stated in an earlier column, competing physically with the other leading contenders will be a priority.

Munster will be what it has been for the past number of years, a battleground where only the fittest of the fittest will survive.