Long-standing manager of Clare, Brian Lohan, is currently in his fifth year of managing the team, and for the previous two seasons, Clare had been viewed as Limerick’s main competitor in Munster. Surprisingly, they inflicted Limerick’s first championship defeat in four years last season. However, Kilkenny managed to dampen Clare’s spirits, coming from Leinster to crush the Munster team’s hopes in the All-Ireland semi-finals. For Clare, it felt like a difficult trek through a jungle and mountains, only to be hit by the first car that came by upon reaching the open road.
This past Saturday, Lohan found himself discussing his team’s advancement to the first All-Ireland final in over a decade, while also emphasising their gradual progress. He said: “We play each game, each play, every moment aiming to improve continually. We believe we are a strong team. We acknowledge Kilkenny’s strength, but we approached this believing we were superior.
“The pressure was certainly there – having lost three consecutive matches here, after three consecutive losses in Munster. But there comes a time when you’ve simply had enough and that’s when things need to change. Things begin to shift when you put in the hard work, and our lads certainly do.”
The match was certainly a peculiar one. Kilkenny seemed destined to extend Clare’s semi-final agony after the first half of the game, but the five-point difference slightly belied the first half’s intensity.
Lohan admitted: “In the first half, we were quite frustrated. We’d had two excellent weeks of training and planning, and we felt confident in our strategy, but it just didn’t work out. It’s so like Kilkenny – you come in with great game plan and just can’t execute it. They basically swept us aside in the midfield area where they had ample space.
“We didn’t suffer as much as we perhaps deserved in that first half.”
Kilkenny’s hopes were majorly buoyed by their regular delivery of successful goals. A clever play by Eoin Cody helped the Leinster champions dominate the game’s scoreline at the 24th minute, however, they fell short in extending their lead beyond five points by the midway break. This was not enough as they faced a robust comeback from Clare.
After making an impressive start to the second half and narrowing the lead to a single score, initiating a potentially fierce competition, Clare regressed to predictable shortcomings. Eibhear Quilligan’s saves played a significant role in maintaining their presence in the first half, but he fumbled a long shot, which was promptly capitalised by Billy Ryan. Although, Clare made an impressive return, scoring six points to Kilkenny’s two in the succeeding 10 minutes.
Lohan noted that he had given his team a week’s break following their third consistent Munster final loss to Limerick, stating his confidence in how this rest invigorated the team. He added, “Assuming we advanced past the quarterfinal, we were in excellent form, being able to regroup after the Wexford match has certainly kick-started our year. The enthusiasm and positivity during our recent training sessions have been a highlight. I admire our players’ spirit and enjoy their company. The spirit inside the team has been high recently.”
Meanwhile, Derek Lyng from Kilkenny, who succeeded in guiding the team to the All-Ireland final in the inaugural season after Cody, felt let down by his team’s eventual overwhelming defeat. “We were in a promising position when we achieved the second goal but couldn’t retain the momentum. Although we tried to shake things up to rejuvenate, the momentum had shifted in Clare’s favour. They won all the clashes, there’s no denying that.”.
In relation to Adrian Mullen’s condition, the standout player from the Leinster final who was closely marked by David McInerney, Lyng reported, “Adrian is in good health. He’s been practicing over the past week. Although he experienced a slight stiffness for a week, it’s nothing serious.”
Lyng’s team struggled to score in the final 15 minutes, and by the final whistle, they had resorted to launching hopeful long shots, attempting to salvage the game.
“Indeed, we might have had one or two opportunities that we failed to capitalise on. However, this is largely due to the intense pressure applied by Clare.”