It's going to be tough for Waterford in Killarney.

Waterford Senior Footballers travel to the Lion’s Den on Saturday evening when  they take on Kerry in the semi final stages of this years Munster Championship at Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney.

Waterford go into this game as the underdogs. The home side are going to be at very short odds to win, and it is hard not to see in advance of this game that the bookies have got things wrong.

However, while Waterford may go into the game as the rank outsiders, they need not to look too far back for some inspiration, and hope that history will repeat itself and maybe the game could have a different outcome than the one expected.

It’s only a few short weeks that John Kiely and his selectors brought their minor team to the same venue to play Kerry at the same stage of that competition.

Waterford on that night was written off before the game began.

Back in 2002, ahead of the Munster Senior Hurling Final, the former Tipperary Senior Hurler and Senior Hurling manager, Michael ‘Babs’ Keating famously said that Waterford would be going home at half time in their meeting against Tipperary.

What more motivation does a side need going into a game? Any manager in the dressing room need not have had to say much to his players going out onto the field. He would only have to ask them was the person making such statements right and if they were not, to go out and shown them why they were not right.

While nobody would suggest that this game is going to be over at the break, most would agree that for Waterford it is going to be a very difficult task.

However, Waterford has a tendency to love a challenge. The bookies feel that the home side are no match for Niall Carew’s visiting side. However, wouldn’t it be great to see Waterford make a real fight of it and make Kerry feel that they are in a game for much of the seventy minutes?

Anyone that follows this blog will know that I have a belief that the Munster Council should look at the Inter County Football Championships within the county.

I have suggested that the four so called weaker counties should play in a round robin league with two of the four sides then advancing to the semi finals along with Cork and Kerry and that for the semi finals, there should be an open draw, meaning that the Munster Final need not necessarily be a Cork/Kerry affair every year.

If this was to be done, it would ensure that what ever two sides did advance to the semi finals did not go into the game cold (Championship game wise) as Waterford and Clare are doing this weekend.

This line of thought will not go down well with everyone. There is some that will argue to be the best or at least to be counted amongst them you have to play the best. But you could in turn ask these people what is gone out of suffering heavy defeats when you do play sides that are regarded the best.

For example, great work was done in Tipperary to promote football in the last number of years, and it has paid off to a degree with success coming the way of the Premier County at Minor and Under 21 levels.

But last weekends defeat to Kerry could have a slightly negative effect to football in the county. It will have hurt some to a degree. The draw for the first round of the All-Ireland Qualifiers is to come. What if Tipperary were drawn to play Tyrone in their opening round game in the qualifiers and were to suffer another defeat like the one against Kerry last weekend. Does that really help football in the county?

However for now, we have the championship we have and it cannot be changed for this year anyway.

Waterford has to go to Killarney for the game.

We have seen Waterford put up good performances in the past when least expected and I have no doubt that they will again in the future.

Waterford will find it tough to win in Kerry’s own back yard, but it would be great to see the side put in a fighting performance.

The Kerry selectors have given a vote of confidence to the side that beat Tipperary last weekend.

Last weekend, I must admit I thought that Tipperary would put it up to Kerry even if they would not win the game, but in the end the home side proved far too good for the visitors.

They will be looking to start off where they left off in that game.

They have some very good players within their set up.

Players like Tomás and Marc Ó Sé, Aidan O’Mahony and Killian Young in their backs will need no introduction to fans of Gaelic Football.

At the other end of the field they also have players of the highest quality. Their half forward line of Paul Galvin, Colm Cooper and Donnacha Walsh looks very strong. All three know where the posts are and how to cause plenty of trouble for their opponents.

Inside them the threeo of Declan O’Sullivan, Kieran Donaghy and James O’Donoghue who finished as top scorer last week against Tipperary with 1-3 to his name also will cause trouble.

However, Waterford have named a strong side, even if I have a feeling that the fifteen that Niall Carew has named will not line out as selected, and maybe we might even see changes made to the starting fifteen named before the game.

Stephen Enright is the best goal keeper in the county with the past number of years. He has played on and off in the league over the past few years, but made the position his own this year and its now great to see him get his first Munster Championship start.

The full back line of Tadhg Ó hUallachain, Niall Walsh and Thomas O’Gorman looks strong. I would have preferred to see the Nire man play in the middle and we might just see it yet. However, it has to be remembered that he has not played any meaningful football since he played in last years County Final against Stradbally and it has to be seen how match fit he actually is.

Waterford over the past few years always had a strong half back line and this game is no different. Shane Briggs is selected at centre back and is set to be flanked by Conor Phelan and John Hurney if we are to believe the team that is named.

In the middle of the field, Tommy Prendergast and Maurice O’Gorman will give it their all.

In the half forward line Tony Grey is named at wing forward which is a little bit of a surprise. He is an outstanding half back and loves to break forward and pop up with a score or two every so often.

He did well in the league, and scored in a number of games. Maybe Niall Carew and his selectors see his pace as something that will bother Kerry this Saturday evening and that is why they have named him where they have.

Coincidently, the whole of the half forward line comes from the county champions. Shane Ahearne is named at centre forward. His ability doe not have to be spelt out, and if he was to move to the middle of the field for a while in this game it would not be a shock to most. Andy Doyle makes up the half forward line. He is a very experienced player. He is relatively new to this standard of football but won’t let the side down.

There is plenty of potential in the Waterford full forward line. In the League, Kerry found the tough going a lot of the time and conceded more than their usual quota of scores.

If Waterford can expose any weaknesses that are to be found in the Kerry full back line, then Paul Whyte, Gary Hurney and Robert Ahearne could finish the game with good tallies to their name on the score sheet.

This is going to be a tough game for Waterford. There can be no papering over the cracks and saying other wise. When the sides last met in the championship at Fraher Field back in 2009, Kerry came out on top on a 2-15 to 0-4 score line.

Kerry will be looking to put a similar tally up this time. Waterford will be looking to put more on the score board this time around, and they are capable of doing so.

Like most, I don’t expect Waterford to win here, but would expect to see a creditable performance. Waterford will more than likely enter the qualifiers at the second round of games (teams beaten before the provincial semi finals play in the first round of games).

If Waterford were to get a favourable draw in the qualifiers and were to pull off a win, it would meet with the expectations of many for the team for the year and look to build on it going into the future.

A big weekend for Football in Ring and Old Parish.

Comortas Peile na Gaeltachta returns to the County Waterford Gaeltacht areas of Ring and Old Parish this weekend for the first time since 1999, giving football supporters in the area and in the surrounding areas to see some of the best footballers in the country Irish Speaking areas represent their Clubs.

The Comortas competition has grown over the years and is eagerly fought for each year. Four trophies will be presented over the weekend. The Junior and Senior men’s finals will be fought out for on Monday afternoon in Ring where local Television production company Nemeton will have their cameras set up around the field to beam the action live into our homes on TG4 from 1-30pm, while the women’s Junior and Senior finals will be fought out for at St Colman’s Park in Old Parish on Sunday afternoon.

The Old Parish Club has the honour of hosting and participating in the opening game in this year’s competition. They play Kerry side Lispole on Friday evening at 7-30pm.

The remaining three quarter final games are down to be played on Saturday.

A team from the Aran Islands take on Belfast side Laochra Loch Lao in the first game on Saturday. They play in Ring at 10-30am. At 12-30pm Na Gaeil Óga from Dublin take on Clann na Gaeil from Meath in Old Parish while fifteen minutes later, Kilcolman from Mayo take on Fanad Gaels from Donegal in Ring.

The junior semi finals are down to be played on Sunday afternoon in Ring.

First up is the meeting of the winners of the Old Parish and Lispole game against the winner of the Kilcolman and Fanad Gaels game. This game has a 2pm thrown in and is followed at 3-30 with the meeting of the game between the Aran Islands and Laochra Loch Lao and the winner of the game between Na Gaeil Óga and Clann na Gaeil.

In the ladies competition, Old Parish takes on Na Gaeil Óga from Dublin in Old Parish on Saturday morning in the junior section of the competition. The game has a 10-30 start.

The semi finals take place later that evening. Naomh Aban from Cork takes on Laochra Loch Lao from Belfast in the first semi final. The game has a 5pm start and is followed at 7-15pm with the meeting of Gweedore from Donegal against the winner of the Old Parish and Na Gaeil Óga game.

The Junior Ladies final is fixed for 1-45pm on Sunday in Old Parish and is followed at 4pm by the senior final between Kilcolman form Mayo and Termon from Donegal. The two sides are the only sides competing in the senior competition.

Without doubt most of the attention will be reserved for the senior men’s competition.

The action gets under way on Saturday afternoon when Kerry side An Gaeltacht take on Gweedore from Donegal in Ring at 2-30pm.

At 4pm, Ballingeary from Cork take on Carraroe from Galway also in Ring and the quarter final actions draws to a conclusion later in the evening when Kiltane from Mayo take on Naomh Aban from Cork at 7-30pm again in Ring.

The semi finals are penciled in to take place on Sunday evening, with again Ring set to play host to both games.

In the first game at 5-45pm, the winners of the An Gaeltacht and Gweedore game play the winners of the Ballingeary and Carraroe game.

Any An Rinn player or supporter travelling to Thurles to see Waterford take on Clare in the Munster Senior Hurling Championship will have to make a quick trip back to Ring if they are to be on time for the second game.

Host Club An Rinn in the draw received a bye in the quarter finals and will play the winners of the Kiltane and Naomh Aban game at 7-30pm.

The Men’s finals are scheduled for Monday afternoon. The junior final is first up at 2pm and is followed with the playing of the senior final at 4pm.

Junior ‘Men’s Fixture’s.

(Game 1) Old Parish V Lispole in Old Parish on Friday evening at 7-30pm.

(Game 2) Aran Islands V Laochra Loch Lao on Saturday in Ring at 10-30am.

(Game 3) Na Gaeil Óga V Clann na Gaeil on Saturday in Old Parish at 12-30pm.

(Game 4) Kilcolman V Fanad Gaels on Saturday in Ring at 12-45pm.

Semi Finals

Winners Game 1 V Winners Game 4 on Sunday in Ring at 2pm

Winners Game 2 V Winners Game 3 on Sunday in Ring at 3-30pm

Final on Monday in Ring at 2pm.

Junior ‘Ladies’ Fixtures.

Old Parish V Na Gaeil Óga on Saturday in Old Parish at 10-30pm

Semi Finals

Naomh Aban V Laochra Loch Lao on Saturday in Old Parish at 5pm.

Gweedore V Old Parish or Na Gaeil Óga on Saturday in Old Parish at 7-15pm

Final on Sunday in Old Parish at 1-45pm.

Senior ‘Ladies’ Final

Kilcolman V Termon on Sunday in Old Parish at 4pm.

Senior ‘Men’s Fixture’s.

(Game A) An Gaeltacht V Gweedore on Saturday in Ring at 2-30pm.

(Game B) Ballingeary V Carraroe on Saturday in Ring at 4pm

(Game C) Kiltane V Naomh Aban on Saturday in Ring at 7-30pm

Semi Finals

Winners Game A V Winners Game B on Sunday in Ring at 5-45pm

An Rinn V Winners Game C on Sunday in Ring at 7-30pm

Final on Monday in Ring at 4pm.

Both Men’s finals are live on TG4 and updates on all games can be found throughout the weekend on Radio na Gaeltachta.

The G.A.A. in Waterford looses another unsung Hero – Seamus O’Brien R.I.P.

The G.A.A. up and down the country is full of heroes and heroines. Waterford is no different to the rest. Like much of the rest of the country, many of our heroes and heroines are players. Some are coaches or managers. Others are involved in different parts of the G.A.A. and there work is often not seen or appreciated as much as it should by many within the G.A.A. Community.

In the past six months, Waterford has lost some of its greatest assets when it comes to the G.A.A.

To name all of those that have recently departed us would be a near impossible task. However I am going to name some.

Jimmy McCarthy or Jimmy Watty as he was known to many was the first of many known to me that left us.

Jimmy was Mr Melleray. Jimmy loved the area he grew up and lived in up to the latter years of his life when he had to move out of his own home and into a nursing home. He loved to get involved in all that was happening in Melleray especially the G.A.A. He had a keen interst in the young players in the area, and for many years when the club had an underage section, in a time when road traffic laws were not as tough as they are now, and if transport to an away game was thin on the ground, Jimmy would think nothing of getting his famous tractor and transport box and sit the children in the box and around him in the cab of the tractor and head off to a game and then return those travelling with him to their homes after the game.

In later years when Melleray did not have an underage section to the club, he got involved in administration at underage level and for many years served as the diligent treasurer of West Waterford Bord na nÓg.

Jimmy’s way of doing things may not be too pleasing to modern day accountants and people dealing with money, but he could account for every penny he collected. If Jimmy collected £20 and one penny at a gate, that is what was banked and if he collected £19 and ninety nine pence, it was most often rounded upwards.

Earlier this year we lost Journalist John A Murphy, or Johnny as he was known to most. He for many years was involved as an officer of the Western and county boards, but it was possibly as a reporter with the Cork Examiner and later the Irish Examiner as well as the Waterford News and Star that he was best known.

A few days after Johnny died, Johnny Flynn died after he was involved in a road traffic accident.

The Lismore man was well known to many, but was possibly best know to many through his involvement with the Lismore Camogie Club.

Less than a month later Tony Mansfield left us. Tony was deeply involved with the G.A.A. He was Chairman of his beloved Abbeyside/Ballinacourty Club at the time of his death. He was a G.A.A. Correspondent with the Dungarvan Observer for over four decades at the time of his death. He was a former Waterford manager, coach and selector at different levels of hurling and was a former Referee and administrator at Board na nÓg and Adult levels within the county.

Today (May 29) Waterford lost another of its unsung Heroes.

Seamus O’Brien was born in 1921 and all throughout his life was actively involved in the G.A.A. Its fair to say that he was even looking forward to seeing the Waterford hurlers playing against Clare this weekend and reporting on the game in the Dungarvan Leader next Wednesday.

In 2007, fifty years after he began to write a weekly column in the Dungarvan Leader, Dungarvan Town Council decided to honour the Abbeyside man.

On that occasion, the then Mayor of Dungarvan, Cllr Damien Geoghegan said of Seamus “Seamus has made a difference to those around him, and has enriched, through his many talents, the lives of the people whom he has encountered and has also enhanced the quality of life in his own community. What Seamus has achieved was done without fuss or the fanfare of publicity, usually working quietly and efficiently in the background, yet always achieving a great deal, generally for the benefit of others.” This quote really summed up Seamus and will be how he is remembered.

It was over seventy years ago that Seamus took up a position within the post office as a telegram boy and later became a postman in the Piltown and Kilmacthomas before taking up a position in Dungarvan in the early 1950’s.

Working in Kilmacthomas proved to be a lucky thing for Seamus as it was here that he met Cait McGrath who he later married and spent 50 years together and raised a family of eight between them who were all very important to Seamus, as were his Grand Children and Great Grandchildren in later life.

It is through the G.A.A. that most knew Seamus, not just in Waterford but up and down the country.

He took up a position of Secretary of the Abbeyside Hurling and Football Club in the mid 1950’s and in 1960 he was elected as secretary of the West Waterford Board, a position he remained in for over two decades.

In the early 1970’s Seamus made a bid to become the County Board Secretary when the position became available, but he was narrowly missed out in a contest against Seamus Grant, a many that he became great friends with though the G.A.A.

In the 1970’s he became the Counties Central Council Representative and held onto the position until he had to relinquish the position as a result of the (Controversial – in the eyes of some) five year rule a few years previous which limits all non full time officers with the exception of the Treasurer to holding the same position for more than five years.

As a Central Council representative he was invited to be part of many different committees and National Level where he became an important figure as he had amassed a great knowledge of the G.A.A. and its rules down the years and could be called upon at any time to give clarification on any issue.

Within the county Seamus was also seen as an important figure to be on any committee. He served as Secretary of the Fraher Field Committee for a time and was also a secretary of Coiste Peil.

He was invited by a number of successive County PRO’s to be part of the County Communications where he could at short notice pen a piece for an upcoming match programme or pull together some facts and figures. He was also involved in Bord na nÓg at Divisional and County Level for many years.

In 1957, Seamus began to write the ‘Commentator’ Column each week for the Dungarvan Leader. The Column was always well thought out and views expressed were always fair. It was a must read each week for many of the papers readers.

Seamus not only served the area he lived in through the G.A.A.

He was heavily involved in many different committees and groups. In his earlier days he was involved with the Scouts in the Abbeyside area. In the early 1940’s he joined the FCA and continued to be involved until 1967 when he retired holding the rank of Captain and Company Commander of the Dungarvan Companies 13^th Battalion.

He was very involved in putting the Abbeyside Parish Newsletter together and was also heavily involved with the Abbeyside Reference Archive group where he served as Chairman of the group for many years.

He was also involved with the Abbeyside, Ballinroad and Garranbane Senior Citizens Group and was also a chairman of the West Waterford Emigrants Committee.

Seamus was actively involved in all he did throughout his life, and it was only a short view days before his death that he rang me to know if I knew something off hand that he was trying to find out for his column in the Dungarvan Leader.

In March of this year, the Inaugural Abbeyside Community Sports Awards took place at Minnie’s in the village.

How apt it is now, that the people of the area who are involved in the different sports club in the area honour Seamus with one of its inaugural ‘Hall of Fame’ awards. The others to be honoured on the night were John Woods, John Walsh, Br Finbar Spring O.S.A. and former Waterford hurler Austin Flynn.

When a person dies, the words Gentleman or Lady are often brandished when talking about the person that has died.

Seamus O’Brien was one of these Gentlemen. There can be no doubting about this. Seamus was a friend to everyone that had the honour of knowing him, and he counted those he worked with on different committees as his friends as well.

He was a man that you could turn to for advice and he would give you great advice. When he suspected that there might be something on the mind of someone, Seamus would lend you his ear, and what was said to him it could be said hardly went any further.

Ar Dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

Waterford and Clare get Munster Hurling Championship under way.

The day that we have looked forward to since last October is quickly drawing near. The Munster Senior Hurling Championship for 2013 is about to begin.

Every year, when the draws are made on television, there is at least one game that stands out for supporters.

For a number of years, the meeting of Cork and Tipperary, the long time Kingpins of Munster Hurling was the major taking point of the draw. No sooner had the draw’s taken place and supporters would begin to make plans to visit Pairc Ui Chaoimh or Semple Stadium, up to six or seven months of the game taking place.

In more recent times, things have somewhat changed. As factors change, attention began to switch to other counties.

In 2009 when Waterford and Limerick were drawn together, supporters quickly began to talk about the game. The media built it up as Justin McCarthy, the then Limerick manager against his former changes on Suir-Side.

In 2012, the main talking point was the drawing of Clare and Waterford, Davy Fitzgerald the Waterford from the middle of 2008 till the Autumn of 2011 against his native Clare, the side he helped win two All-Ireland Final’s in the 1990’s and was now in charge of.

In the G.A.A. History has a habit of repeating itself. When the draws were made for the 2013 championships in the Autumn of 2012, the teams drawn out to open proceedings were Waterford and Clare.

Waterford are going into this game as the under dog, something that most if not all in Waterford will be glad to see happen.

Not for the for first time, this year Waterford were wrote off. The only difference this year is that the writing off came from the start of the year instead of when Waterford’s interest in this years competitions ended.

Ever before a ball were struck, Waterford were favourite’s to be relegated from Division 1A. Even within the Déise County, people were writing off the team.

Michael Ryan was going to be without a number of players that represented the county well in the past number of years. Without doubt John Mullane was going to be the biggest loss after he announced he was retiring from the inter county scene.

Stephen Molumphy announced that he was going to be on a Tour of Duty with the Army and was going to be missing for a large portion of the year and therefore could not be considered for a place in the team.

Eoin Kelly and Eoin McGrath like John Mullane announced that they were retiring from the Inter County scene. Richie Foley was struggling with injury and Philip Mahony who impressed immensely in 2012 indicated that he would not be available for selection in 2013.

Waterford however, surprised many in the league. They opened with a win over Clare in Ennis. A draw was recorded against Cork in Fraher Field in a game that Waterford could and possibly should have won, but conditions on the day were deplorable and made it very difficult for every player.

Waterford in their third game lost to Kilkenny by five points. On the day, Waterford made a number of mistakes and were punished for them. A wonder score from Kevin Moran secured victory for Waterford against Tipperary at Walsh Park in the penultimate round of games in the league, which placed Waterford in pole position heading into the last round of games.

A draw against Galway at Walsh Park would have secured Waterford a place in the semi finals of the league. Galway went into the game deep in relegation trouble and they made the journey to the south east knowing that nothing other than victory would be good enough for their supporters.

We all know the old saying that you keep your best wine till last, and in the case of Galway, they did keep their best performance till last. On the day Joe Canning hit five points and Davy Glennon also excelled hitting four points to help Galway to a narrow win.

The win for Galway not only knocked Waterford off top spot in the league but out of the semi final placing. Galway as a result of the win not only took them out of the relegation zone but gave them a semi final spot at the expense of Waterford on the head to head rule.

Clare on the other hand went into a game and were expected to do well in the eyes of many.

There was plenty of talk about the young talent coming through in the Banner County, after a few good years in the minor and under 21 grades.

However, the step up from underage hurling to senior hurling is a huge one. Often a good underage hurler does not make the break through at senior level, and there is sometimes the opposite happening where a player that looks average at underage level makes a bit of a name for himself at senior level.

Clare after five rounds of games found themselves in the bottom two of the six team group, even though many expected them to be at the opposite end of the pile.

Surprisingly for some, Cork were the Banner Men’s opponents in the relegation play off final. After seventy minutes the sides could not be separated and after an extra twenty minutes of hurling it was Davy Fitzgerald’s men that came out on top to secure their place in Division 1A of next years league.

Heading into this weekend’s game, both teams have somewhat of a settled look to them. However, both teams have reported injuries going into the game and its fair to say that both Davy Fitzgerald and Michael Ryan will leave it as late as possible to finalise their starting fifteen for Sunday.

The question on the lips of some supporters is what type of game Clare will play. Over the past few years, Davy Fitzgerald has favoured a style of play where he takes players out of his full forward line and place them in their own half of the field, often as extra mid field players or half backs.

This is a style of play that many modern coaches favour, but one which frustrates many supporters.

There is no doubting that within the Clare team there is plenty of ability, but if they were to start withdrawing players from their forward unit, you have to ask, are they lessoning somewhat the treat they can to the opposing defenders.

Waterford has for a long time played their best hurling when they use a quick direct ball into the forward. While Waterford may no longer have players like John Mullane, Dan Shanahan, Ken McGrath, Eoin Kelly and Paul Flynn to choose from in the forward positions, there still is plenty of ability available to the selectors and on any given day, they are likely to cause all sorts of trouble to their opponents.

Clare will more than likely start with Patrick Kelly between the uprights. Domhnall O’Donovan, David McInerney and Seadna Morey are likely to feature in the half back line although there is reports that Morey could miss the game with an injury.

Brendan Bolger, Patrick Donnellan and Patrick O’Connor are most likely to form the half back line.

In the middle of the field, Davy Fitzgerald has a number of options available to him. Colin and Conor Ryan could well start in the middle of the field although Colin Ryan could well be played in attack with Nicky O’Connell starting in the middle of the field.

Tony Kelly will start at centre forward. Fergal Lynch or Colin Ryan could be the main contenders to fill the number ten position while the opposite wing is likely to be a battle between John Conlon and Enda Barrett.

If Enda Barrett get’s the nod to start in the half forward’s, John Conlon will start in the full forward line. Shane O’Donnell has played at full forward a lot for Clare this year and could well start there again this weekend with Padraig Collin’s selected in the other corner.

However, Conor McGrath who has missed a lot of the league with Clare this year could also come into the frame for a starting place on Sunday. If he does, it will be interesting to see who misses out.

For Waterford, Michael Ryan and his selectors have to be congratulated on naming their team early. We all know that teams are picked and named to the players early in the week, and what some managers get out of relaying their team to the public is something that has some asking questions.

The norm had become that managers name their team on a Friday evening or Saturday morning for the public. But by this stage, much of the team is already leaked out.

The selectors have made a host of changes to the side which beat Clare in last years Munster semi final. One player comes in for his first championship outing since 2004 while three players make their championship debuts.

Ian O’Regan has won the battle with Stephen O’Keeffe to wear the number one shirt. The Mount Sion man last played for Waterford in the championship back in 2004 when Waterford lost the All-Ireland semi final against Kilkenny at Croke Park. Interesting, that game was also to be the game where he made his championship debut.

He came into the team earlier this year in the league and did well. He kept the form he showed in the three league games he played up in recent challenge games and also in the club championship with Mount Sion.

Darragh Fives comes in at corner back in place of his brother Shane who picked up an injury recently. The Tourin Club Man is a ready made replacement and will prove to be a tough opponent for whoever will be tasked of marking him in this game.

In the opposite side, Noel Connors comes back into the side to replace Shane Daniels who excelled in the league but who picked up an injury against Offaly recently which rules him out of the game for some time. Liam Lawlor continues at full back and is a player that appears to get better in the position with each game he plays.

Michael Walsh is once more at centre back, while Jamie Nagle who is at his peak right now continues at right half back. With Shane Fives and Stephen Daniels missing from the backs from when Waterford played in the league, a vacancy arises. Padraig Prendergast is selected at number seven but it remains to be seen if he will play there.

In the middle of the field Shane O’Sullivan and Kevin Moran are paired together. However there is suggestions from some that the De La Salle man could well drop back into the half back line with either Darragh Fives or Padraig Prendergast asked to partner Shane O’Sullivan.

Seamus Prendergast has found a new lease of life in the past twelve months or so and there is no surprise that he is named at centre forward. Maurice Shanahan is named at number ten but don’t be surprised if he was asked to move in closer to the Clare goal, while Brian O’Halloran starts on the opposite wing.

With Shane Walsh ruled out with Injury, Pauric Mahony is named at full forward, but there is suggestions that there could well be a switch sometime during the game between him and Maurice Shanahan.

Jamie Barron is named at corner forward and if provided with the right ball he will cause the Clare full back line all sorts of problems while Jake Dillon starts his first championship game at the number fifteen position.

Sunday’s game will be one of two things. It could be a drab physical game often favoured to happen when Davy Fitzgerald is in charge of a team, or it could be a classic where both sides go out and play hurling as it should be.

A physical game would in the past have suited Clare, but with a young team with some very skilful players to choose from would it suit them now. A free flowing game is one that Waterford often favours, and with some fast forwards to choose from if it was to be such a game you would have to favour Michael Ryan’s men.

The head is telling me it will be one kind of game, the heart is hoping with will be another. I know which one I want to see. I expect it to be a close game. Don’t be surprised if the sides will have to do it all over again to see who will play Cork in the semi finals.

Clare as pointed out already will go into the game as the favourites according to the bookies As a Waterford supporter, I hope that they are proved wrong on this occasion.