CLARE’S ALL-IRELAND title defence has yet to begin in earnest but their league preparation has been far from the smooth sailing they enjoyed last year.
In 2024, league silverware was the catapult for the Banner odyssey that was to follow.
Of the 15 games they played across league and championship, 12 of those came down to one score in the difference. Brian Lohan’s side, incredibly, lost only one of those games. Otherwise, they won 10 and drew one when going down to the wire.
The tone was set early in the year: in a battle, we do not yield en route to the finish line.
The issue in 2025 hasn’t been the stomach for the fight but a lack of battle readiness.
Of their All-Ireland winning team, Diarmuid Ryan has yet to resurface due to injury. Conor Cleary, David McInerney, and Peter Duggan have less than 70 minutes of hurling under them. Tony Kelly, David Fitzgerald, Mark Rodgers, and John Conlon were all late back. A few weeks to rebuild for Championship will help their causes.
The real damaging blow is Shane O’Donnell being ruled out for the season. The undisputed Hurler of the Year was their attacking fulcrum. He won primary possession. He brought his teammates into the play. His clever movement off the ball and direct running on it caused chaos in defences. There will be no direct replacement for his skillset so a rethink will be required.
With Fitzgerald and Duggan red-carded against Cork, they’ll want to see other ball-winners step forward and their veterans shaking off further rust in Tipperary on Saturday. The outcome is of secondary importance.
The need for a winning spring campaign just isn’t the same as 2024. They have proven they can get past Kilkenny. Cork and Limerick have previously been conquered. That groundwork is money in the bank. They know they have the materials to win Liam MacCarthy, if only they can get enough of them up to speed.
There have been bright sparks among the newcomers filling the gaps. Half-forwards Jack O’Neill and Seán Rynne got late call-ups against Limerick and tagged on three points each.
The six-goal trimming to Cork in an All-Ireland final repeat undid any momentum from that victory. Where Limerick missed a half-dozen goal chances, Cork took them with relish; Lohan had to flip through three different markers on hat-trick hero Brian Hayes.
A first Rebel win in Ennis since 2009 was a worthwhile hoodoo for Pat Ryan’s fired-up side to remove ahead of their Easter Sunday rematch when nothing will be held in reserve on either side.
Beating Clare in Championship will be another matter entirely. Whereas Cork were only defeated by the Banner once in 14 Championship clashes between 1999 and 2018, Clare have won their four most recent meetings. Making it five may prove the most difficult task of all.
Cork seem to have vast competition for places, leaving their breakout star Diarmuid Healy out entirely from the matchday squad lest Clare get a trial run on how to manage him. Clare’s newcomers this year haven’t been able to join a team in the same position of solidity and strength.
Being relegated while watching on at home last weekend won’t have been taken lightly but that’s more of a balance-sheet issue for 2026 than anything harmful to their prospects this term. After all, Clare and Cork played out a relegation final in 2013 before meeting in the All-Ireland later that summer. Plus, Limerick and Galway have won All-Irelands out of the old Division 1B.
This team has been imbued with Lohan’s characteristics. They never shirk a battle and are unlikely to start now. Whether they can retain that same ravenous edge remains to be seen.
Until the end of summer, at least, they can lean on the experience and silverware of 2024 as a guide to get back on track.
Tiger who?
Woods the one person that knows where he is from not like some claiming they would rather be recognised as another nationality