*Diarmuid Ryan keeps the sliotar from Craig Morgan. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill.
GETTING back in the reckoning was the objective for Clare’s senior hurlers when they travelled to Thurles on Saturday and they are now firmly back in the championship equation as noted by wing back Diarmuid Ryan.
Coverage in association with McKeoghs Hardware, Ballina-Killaloe
Clare’s eleven point win over Tipperary has secured qualification to the All-Ireland series and keeps their hopes of reaching the Munster final alive.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, defender Diarmuid Ryan explained that the focus was firmly about getting back on track. “We targeted after two weeks ago to get back in contention, to come down to Thurles and do a job, it was a great win but it is only two points, we’ve set the target of getting out of Munster and getting to a Munster final, we put up a performance and the scoreline helped with that, we left a lot of scores out there but we are delighted to come out and get the job done”.
It was the manner of the Limerick defeat and the lack of performance that was most hurtful for the Clare players, Diarmuid admitted. “We didn’t do ourselves justice at all, you won’t win every game but the manner in which we lost wasn’t great, we had to forget about it quickly because we knew there was a massive job ahead and our year was on the line, we came down and everyone to a man did their job today”.
He continued, “There was soul searching done, we knew our job and everyone to a man who came off the bench, the U20s did their job during the week and it brought a serious buzz to everyone, we had a real bounce coming down today and we brought it on. The intensity of everyone was top class, it was great to be a part of it”.
Diarmuid’s older brother Conor an All-Ireland winner in 2013 was part of the backroom team for Terence Fahy’s U20s who won the Munster title on Wednesday which gave the seniors a massive lift. “The three boys since they have come in (Mark Sheedy, Ronan Kilroy, Jamie Moylan) have been superb, the bounce they have brought since they came in and the leadership they have shown, it has been alluded to with Ronan Kilroy and how he has approached the last few weeks, he has inspired all of us the last couple of weeks to go out and give a performance. It was unbelievable what the U20s did, they gave us a lift and we carried it in, the support carried us over the line, we had savage support again tonight”.
Semple Stadium is a venue that Clare love playing in, a factor that helps for fixtures like Saturday when so much was at stake. “We love Thurles, every team loves to play in Thurles which unfortunately for Tipp as their home venue everyone loves coming down here and every county gets good support here so no better place to come and try put your best foot forward”.
Now that they are back in the mix, the primary school teacher is optimistic Clare can drive forward against Cork in Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Sunday. “Kick on and see where the year takes us. We were disappointed with last year, our year isn’t done and we certainly won’t rest on our laurels, we’ll get back quick because it is a one week turnaround and we don’t have much time to think about it. We will reset after enjoying this feeling, get back to training during the week for Cork”.
