Hurling 2024

[johnnycool]

Strong Clare team announced...

Will they hit the heights of last year or will a resurgent Tipp have enough firepower to down the banner?




I'm going with Tipp on this one, I think they'll get more goals than Clare but there will be goals at both ends, forwards on top unless John Conlon can shore up that defence.

I think Clare will shade it

Tipp are one of the few teams who actively go hell bent for goals and whilst ably assisted by some poor puck outs (one wasn't the keepers fault) they need them to get enough scores to win out as their defence is pretty porous as well, especially with Cathal Barrett traipsing out the field after Tony Kelly.

Clare will be up against it going to the Gaelic Grounds, but with Limerick being pushed all the way by Waterford who hit some terrible wides in the last 10 minutes they'll need to get something from that as it'll be hard to get a 3rd spot with 2 defeats from 2.

Waterford had a bit of a kick in them, DeBurca is a big loss, but they do have real cover in defence. They went toe to toe in the physicality stakes with Limerick and weren't that far away in the end. Limerick had a bit of dirty diesel in the tank and will know they must do better for Clare's visit.

Waterford now go to Cork and like Clare, 2 losses from 2 is something they don't want, but I think they'll win in Cork if Davy keeps the attacking mindset and maybe push up on a weak enough Cork defence who Waterford have had the better off in recent years.

Kelly spent most of his time at full forward and is clearly not 100%

He is a fine hurler but he doesn't like the close attention of a man marking back like what Cathal Barrett is,give Kelly space to run onto a ball and he will run riot.

Foudy is coming in for a lot of criticism for the goals

the first one, Conor Cleary should have concentrated more on the ball and less on John McGrath when it was in flight and he would have stopped it.

the second one saw John Conlon fail to receive a straight forward puck out in space in the right wing back back position

the third one was a comedy of errors in the Clare Goalmouth

4 was a penalty

5 was Seanie Ryan on in his debut after 20 seconds burying it

Waterford will be kicking themselves, the usual story of rushed wides with them

Whilst you have a good point to make on that, a keeper in that position has to assume no one is going to touch the ball and get his angles right, it went straight in from 60 odd metres from a lineball... If Cleary catches or blocks it then all good, if McGrath gets a flick then it's in the lap of the gods, but to allow it to drop in with no one touching it is poor keeping IMO. There's been plenty of questions on Cleary also the last few years but it looks like they've no one else for No3.
The second was Conlons fault all day long, puck out was straight into his hand, should be bread and butter at this level, 4 and 5 the keeper had no chance.

[seafoid]

Verney on a blueprint to beat Limerick https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig9x9uXOTYQ&4350s

[seafoid]

Interesting hurling discussion https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oxlv-K1CNyQ&t=3600s

[Franko]

Strong Clare team announced...

Will they hit the heights of last year or will a resurgent Tipp have enough firepower to down the banner?




I'm going with Tipp on this one, I think they'll get more goals than Clare but there will be goals at both ends, forwards on top unless John Conlon can shore up that defence.

I think Clare will shade it

Tipp are one of the few teams who actively go hell bent for goals and whilst ably assisted by some poor puck outs (one wasn't the keepers fault) they need them to get enough scores to win out as their defence is pretty porous as well, especially with Cathal Barrett traipsing out the field after Tony Kelly.

Clare will be up against it going to the Gaelic Grounds, but with Limerick being pushed all the way by Waterford who hit some terrible wides in the last 10 minutes they'll need to get something from that as it'll be hard to get a 3rd spot with 2 defeats from 2.

Waterford had a bit of a kick in them, DeBurca is a big loss, but they do have real cover in defence. They went toe to toe in the physicality stakes with Limerick and weren't that far away in the end. Limerick had a bit of dirty diesel in the tank and will know they must do better for Clare's visit.

Waterford now go to Cork and like Clare, 2 losses from 2 is something they don't want, but I think they'll win in Cork if Davy keeps the attacking mindset and maybe push up on a weak enough Cork defence who Waterford have had the better off in recent years.

Kelly spent most of his time at full forward and is clearly not 100%

He is a fine hurler but he doesn't like the close attention of a man marking back like what Cathal Barrett is,give Kelly space to run onto a ball and he will run riot.

Foudy is coming in for a lot of criticism for the goals

the first one, Conor Cleary should have concentrated more on the ball and less on John McGrath when it was in flight and he would have stopped it.

the second one saw John Conlon fail to receive a straight forward puck out in space in the right wing back back position

the third one was a comedy of errors in the Clare Goalmouth

4 was a penalty

5 was Seanie Ryan on in his debut after 20 seconds burying it

Waterford will be kicking themselves, the usual story of rushed wides with them

Whilst you have a good point to make on that, a keeper in that position has to assume no one is going to touch the ball and get his angles right, it went straight in from 60 odd metres from a lineball... If Cleary catches or blocks it then all good, if McGrath gets a flick then it's in the lap of the gods, but to allow it to drop in with no one touching it is poor keeping IMO. There's been plenty of questions on Cleary also the last few years but it looks like they've no one else for No3.
The second was Conlons fault all day long, puck out was straight into his hand, should be bread and butter at this level, 4 and 5 the keeper had no chance.

Definitely

Always follow the original flight of the ball

It's not far from the top in terms of standing orders for goalkeepers

[marty34]

IIRC did Jack Grealish (the Galway one) not score a goal last year with a long high ball in and it deceived the keeper.

Happens more often than you'd think.

Maybe more difficult is there's a few lads in front of you where if nobody is near the keeper then it should be dealt with handy enough.

[seafoid]

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/gaelic-games/2023/04/26/sean-moran-time-for-the-gaa-to-get-their-heads-around-dangers-of-concussion/

Football and hurling are not collision sports in the same sense as rugby but they increasingly involve ferocious contacts. Players are bigger and stronger. In the words of one intercounty referee from a couple of years ago, "if you're 6ft 2in and spending six months in the gym, you want to put it to some use".

Concussion has become an issue for the GAA as well.

One view in hurling is that the requirement to wear a protective headguard or helmet inspires a complacency in players that their opponents are fully protected, thus fraying the constraints on careless and reckless use of the hurl.

Another is that the shorter and lighter nature of the hurl has made it more like an extension of the arm, according to one official.

"A lot of the problem now is that the length of the hurl is short. It means that it's much lighter. That also means that it's being swung around the head in an attempt to go for the ball whereas before, if the ball was there to be played more often than not, you'd put you hand in.

"Now you flick with the hurl and you can catch the head, the elbow rather than try to grab the ball. It's like the hurl is an extension of the hand. That's the way it's gone."


Neither is headgear a complete protection. It helps to prevent laceration and such injuries but in the words of another informed official, the helmet is "irrelevant" when it comes to concussion or brain injury.

Ger Ryan was chair of the GAA's Medical Scientific and Welfare Committee (MSWC) when increased penalties were introduced for interfering or tampering with an opponent's helmet – elevated to a red card.

"That was one of the reasons that the 'interference' with the helmet rule was brought in. If you're running and I grab your helmet, it may not impede you but it may impact on your brain, which is now travelling at a different rate to the head, which is a layman's explanation of contrecoup brain injury."

Last year, it was emphasised to GAA referees: "Players are responsible for the contact that they make. It doesn't matter whether it was accidental. If he is responsible for the contact that he makes, then he has to take the repercussions of that contact."

The GAA has its own concussion management protocols in place for 10 years but there is still uncertainty about what role a referee can play. In rugby it's not uncommon for a player to be required to leave the field for head injury assessment.

That intervention is rare in Gaelic games despite the provision for it having been included in the rules governing other temporary replacements in a motion accepted by congress in 2021.


Before that congress Dick Clerkin, then chair of the MSWC, explained the need for the new regulation.

"Experience is telling us both anecdotally from speaking with players and from qualitative and quantitative studies that there are cases when there are head injuries and players aren't being removed for assessment."

Aside from that, there is an onus on players to curb reckless behaviour. Judging by Sunday in Thurles, there needs to be intensified enforcement when it comes to head injuries inflicted on the field of play.

The least players can expect is that opponents won't set out deliberately to hit their heads but there has to be a higher standard of care than that.

[seafoid]

RTE hurling podcast

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pGetUoyBwY

[Capt Pat]

Clare overcame limerick in the gaelic grounds tonight by 1 point.  Did anybody see it, it wasn't on rte.

[imtommygunn]

It was on GAAGO. Fantastic game. Clare with the win. Limerick scored a goal with about a minute to go and made it very tight. Real championship intensity to it with very little space or time given.

[Milltown Row2]

Amazing result and sets up the Munster championship. Anything is possible within that group

[seafoid]

What does it say about Limerick especially after last week?

[imtommygunn]

Finn and lynch went off injured and hegarty only played a half. They'll be fine. Seem to have injuries round full back too.

[marty34]

Finn and lynch went off injured and hegarty only played a half. They'll be fine. Seem to have injuries round full back too.

Fantastic game.  Glad to see Clare win it in the end.

Got as close as anybody to Limerick recently, twice last year so they used that hurt tonight. Lohan's team, like Cody's, never give up. Enbodiment of their manager. After a loss last week to Tipperary, they needed the win, so in a way it was knock-out for Clare.

Went at it man for man and brought the hard work.

Limerick not firing on all cylinders...yet but will be hard to shift. They have a decent break now to recover.

5 teams fighting for 3 places means it's hell for leather in every game. If you lose the first, the second game is crucial - need the win.

Fantastic game - just flew by.

[seafoid]

First loss for Limerick since 2019.

[Blowitupref]

First loss for Limerick since 2019.

First time Clare have beaten Limerick in their home ground in a championship game since 1901.