Limerick vs Waterford-Minute by Minute-Analysis

Full minute by minute coverage of Limerick vs. Waterford in the Semi Final of the Munster Hurling Championship is right here on The Greatest Sports Show on Earth starting at 4 pm Irish time all the way from Thurlas, County Tipperary via Brisbane Australia. It's going to be awesome.

Waterford will be out to restore some pride having had their arses handed to them in last September's All-Ireland Hurling Final. New Limerick manager Justin McCarthy will be looking for nothing more than revenge. Unless he sees Waterford's thrashing and Dan Shanahan's season as poetic justice in itself. In any case, a place in the Munster Final is at stake and in a sense both team's season hangs on this result.

The Minute by Minute reports didn't work out mainly because I ended up going on the lash shortly after this photo was taken and didn't get back in time. I think I made the right decision. I am just sitting down to watch the 1st half now having seen the 2nd half last night.

It was a typical gutsy comeback from Limerick but unfortunately there is still nothing to suggest they can challenge Tipperary or Kilkenny down the line. It even feels a bit stupid to be talking about this Limerick team as contenders at all.

Limerick just don't have the forwards. Waterford are the team on the way down and were there for the taking last night but to score only 3 points in the first half and 1-8 altogether isn't going to win you too many Championship matches.

It was still a game Limerick should have won and I'm sure they Will be disappointed with some great chances that went a begging. With the notable exception of John Mullane, Waterford are but a shadow of the team they once were. Not even Dan Shanahan coming off the bench was able to improve them. Although the fact that Dan Shanahan was on the bench is evidence enough that Waterford don't exactly have their house in order. When he did finally win possession, he caught the ball three times which is inexcusable at this level.

Andrew Shaughnessy is having his own problems for Limerick but in fairness to Shaughnessy, he doesn't really get the supply to do damage. Maybe he would have more success further out the field. The Limerick full forward line can be a barren wasteland and having all that time to think about how much ball he isn't getting probably isn't helping either.

There were some positives for Limerick to take from the game. They will carry a lot momentum into the game next week. For Waterford it will surely feel like a defeat despite what Davy Fitz said in the post match interview about being the happier of the two teams because they were lucky to be still in the tie.

Yesterday's game will have answered some questions for Justin which could only have been solved in the cold heat of Championship. Donie Ryan isn't good enough for starters or should I say, as a starter. I think he still (perhaps only ever) has something to offer coming off the bench. Ryan's big moment came midway through the first half when he picked up the ball after Niall Moran blocked down Eoin Murphy's clearance. Donie chose to shoot for a point when James Ryan was free inside him. Donie's shot went wide and the groans from the Limerick crowd were audible in Australia. He was taken off shortly afterwards.

It was a tough debut for Steven Walsh but Justin has to take some responsibility here. Mullane is arguably the best forward in Munster and Damian Reale was the obvious man to mark him. When the change was made in the second half, Mullane didn't puck a ball. Surely Reale should have been marking him from the start.

It was good to see Denis Moloney coming on. He has been on the sidelines for a while now and if he can stay injury free, he'll be a welcome addition. Again though Justin could have been a bit more astute here and put someone a bit taller on Dan Shanahan when he came on. It's just common sense and Shanahan could have caused serious problems had he been on form but then again I suppose there wasn't much chance of that.

Brian Geary was outstanding but Ken McGrath's performance was as poor as the All-Ireland. It's sad to see a player of McGrath's stature as poor as that. The problem could be that he is unsettled having played in so many positions under Davy Fitz. I'd be inclined just to leave him at centre back. He seems to be most comfortable there.

Seamus Hickey looked good at midfield. It was frustrating to see him and other Limerick player miss very easy chances throughout the game but in general play Hickey was top class. His point in the first half was Ciaran Carey like. Hickey is the future of Limerick hurling and he needs to be played where he will see most of the ball.

James Ryan looks like a real find at Wing Forward. He stepped up to the plate big time in the second half when someone needed to do it. He made a great run to set up the goal for Breen and it was refreshing to see someone other than Ollie Moran dragging Limerick out of another 1st half shambles. Donncha Sheahan can't seem to hack it at inter county but it's worth persevering with him because he's bound to come good at some stage. I think he just needs a break.

The game will do David Breen a lot of good. I think he is studying in Scotland and he will have needed a game like that to get up to the pace. He took the goal very well and the Waterford full back line struggled to handle his physicality. He was guilty of dropping a shot into the keepers hand shortly after half time. Come on David, give it a bit of welly for God's sake man.

Limerick need to be more confident in attack. It's like they are surprised when they score. Niall Moran wasn't good enough on the frees. There was almost an expectancy among the Limerick they will miss when they shoot. They score some great points, such as Shaughnessy's just before he was taken off.

They are fine as long as they don't have time to think about it. I think Justin should bring in a sports psychologist to focus their minds. Their confidence is shot. Free taking is more about nerve than accuracy really. Any inter county player can take frees but to score them when you're the focus of the entire stadium can be unnerving. I'd give the frees to Ollie Moran. He has the character and his confidence wouldn't be as effected as Niall or Shaughs if he missed a couple.

Limerick will always play with a lot of heart but they are not going to win anything unless they can score more. A lack of forwards has always been their Achilles heel. They should beat Waterford next weekend. The fear factor will be gone for a lot of the Limerick players and Waterford will have more doubts about their prospects than ever before. The extra game won't do any harm for either team, that's for sure.