IT WAS with consummate ease that Limerick accounted for Clare in Sunday’s Munster Senior Hurling Championship tie at Cusack Park, Ennis.
Narrow losers away to Cork the previous weekend, the Shanonsiders were full value for this 2-30 to 1-18 victory.
With goals from Aidan O’Connor and Diarmaid Byrnes, Limerick were home and hosed by the interval, ahead 2-15 to 0-8.
Obviously, the winning boss John Kiely was pleased with the outcome.
He told RTÉ Sport: “We knew we would have to be better than we were last week.”
“Our efficiency in front of goals, far more efficient today, we got chances and we nailed them. I think we needed the game last week to get us up the championship speed, that was a takeaway from last weekend. To be fair, last Monday the lads’ energy was through the roof, and I think they were biting at the bit to get at this game.
“We hit the ground running early doors, with far more energy, and had those support runners left and right. When Clare did get a few openings, we scrambled well and got those flicks in to get the ball out of danger.
With a string of five-star saves, Limerick goalkeeper Nickie Quaid was a correct choice as Man of the Match.
Limerick: Nickie Quaid; Sean Finn, Mike Casey, Barry Nash (0-02); Diarmaid Byrnes (1-2), William O’Donoghue, captain, Kyle Hayes; Adam English, Darragh O’Donovan (0-1); Cathal O’Neill (0-3), Tom Morrissey (0-1), Gearóid Hegarty (0-2); Peter Casey (0-3), Aidan O’Connor (1-9), Shane O’Brien (0-6).
Substitutes: David Reidy, Dan Morrissey, Ethan Hurley), Fintan Fitzgerald (0-1), Hugh Flanagan.