John Horgan on hurling: Tipp against Clare could be the game of the season

A free weekend for the Cork hurlers, some time off to reflect on what has been a very satisfying Munster championship campaign so far.

In fact, it could not have gone any better, three fine victories, two of them against two of the counties that are considered to be their main rivals for provincial and All-Ireland glory.

Those two are going to be in the thick of things tomorrow and Sunday, Limerick hosting Waterford at the Gaelic Grounds and Tipperary welcoming Clare to Semple Stadium.

Outside of Waterford who are all but out of the equation regarding qualification for the All-Ireland series, the other three have to raise the bar that much more if they are going to have an extended summer of hurling.

In golfing parlance, this is very much 'moving weekend' when you can put yourself in a very advantageous position to get into the top three in the province with a victory or conversely be under all sorts of pressure going into your final game which a loss would do.

Already, with just a point from their two previous outings, Tipperary find themselves in a very vulnerable position and a loss to Clare would put them in tons of trouble in that chase for a top-three finish.

It might be unthinkable for last season's All-Ireland champions to be out of the reckoning just over halfway through the month of May but that's exactly what happened to the county replaced as the country's top team in 2024, Clare.

If this is a moving weekend in Munster, the most important one as well. When it's done and dusted the picture will be much clearer regarding who joins Cork to take on Leinster's best in the All-Ireland series.

Given how desperately poor Clare were in their capitulation to Limerick, Tipperary, on home turf, will be getting the nod to keep their season alive.

In saying that, Tipp's defence of the MacCarthy Cup hasn't gone too well either, being second best to Cork in Thurles and subsequently only managing a draw against Waterford in a game that they held all the aces in when they led by 11 points at half-time.

Even in the game's dying embers, when they still led by three points they still failed to close the deal.

All the pressure is on the Premier County tomorrow night, they lie a point in arrears of Clare in the table and a loss would make their final game of the round-robin series against Limerick on the Ennis road a near impossible task as far as qualifying is concerned.

A loss for Clare would, of course, not extinguish their chances but they would have to defeat a Cork team that is already almost certainly in the Munster final.

If that was the case there might be a suggestion that Cork might not be as concentrated on winning as they were in their three previous games but that's balderdash. 

This Cork squad under Ben O'Connor will not be allowed to ease the foot on the accelerator.

Limerick, at home to Waterford and on the back of how well they performed against Clare, will be firmly favoured to bag the points against a county who just cannot manage enough in any season to get them out of the province.

At the same time, Limerick won't be taking anything for granted, they will want four points on the board before facing Tipp in the final game of the round-robin format.

At this juncture in time the only certainty in advance of this weekend is that Cork are safely berthed in the All-Ireland series and probably too in the Munster final.

Tipperary and Clare have had time to reflect on their last games, Tipp squandering that big advantage and Clare being battered by Limerick. It goes without saying that both must be miles better this weekend, Clare in particular.

BOUNCING BACK

However, teams have recovered from heavy defeats in the round-robin in the past. Cork last season against Limerick being one. And Clare have the forwards to really put it up to Tipp, Shane O'Donnell, Tony Kelly, Mark Rogers and Peter Duggan but they are conceding too many scores at the other end.

Nobody really knows, having played two games, where Tipp are really at but it's safe to suggest that if there is not an overall improvement throughout the field their Summer could be very short.

Being All-Ireland champions and playing at home you'd still fancy them but it may all go down to their last game against Limerick before we'll fully know their situation.

Limerick, though, on the evidence against Clare are motoring again and doing what they did in Cusack Park will have restored their mojo.

Waterford have given their three games to date a good shot, maybe could have got something in the loss to Clare and they took Cork the full distance last Saturday night.

They are not short of character but it's a huge ask now to defeat Limerick where the probability is that their support levels will drop.

The smart money has to be on Tipp and Limerick to get through the weekend.

While all of that is unfolding in Thurles and in the Gaelic Grounds, Cork will be relaxed but, at the same time, very interested onlookers. Clare will be on Leeeside on Sunday week and if they don't do the business against Tipp their season will be resting on that encounter with Cork.

One thing is certain in all of this, there are no dead rubbers on the horizon and it will be going right to the wire.

HARSH

It was interesting to read the papers and the media analysis of the Cork performance in Walsh Park.

There was some negativity about them, a few frees not being converted, and too many wides, 12 over the 70 minutes.

But it must be factored in that the wind was very difficult at times to negotiate.

It was also noted that a few of the forwards didn't function to their full capabilities but the result was not disputed and the win was deserved, all the more so without two of the best defenders playing the game.

There will always be room for improvement, you will rarely if ever get all the players receiving an eight or nine mark for their performance.

Defensively, the starting six on Saturday night should certainly get the nod again and the training during the week and next may determine if there's a change or two up front.

At this juncture, the consensus seems to be that Cork and Limerick will contest the Munster final. We'll all be a lot wiser on Sunday night and it's a very foolish to be presuming anything in this Munster championship.

To conclude, we'll turn to Leinster and the events of last weekend.

Offaly, well done to them in holding Kilkenny after doing likewise against Dublin and to Kildare for putting the frighteners on Galway for a lengthy period.

That province has certainly become far more interesting and the Cats are far from where they used to be and want to be.