Waterford 0-25 Limerick 0-17 Analysis

No Stopping John Mullane

Following the Limerick hurlers in the Championship is a bit like New Years. It's really hyped up and filled with expectation but is ultimately a bit disappointing and anti-climatic. At least it's only the one day a year. Last Saturday evening against Waterford was another one of those days. To be beaten 8 points by a Waterford team who lost last year's All-Ireland Final by 8 goals is a sad indictment on Limerick hurling.

The worst thing is that generally when Limerick lose these games it is their own doing. On Saturday, they again missed free after free while gifting Waterford chances by needlessly fouling them in easy positions for a player of Eoin Kelly's calibre.

Would it have killed the Limerick management to have out more time into practicing frees. A reliable free taker is vital in a hurling match. In the glory days of the Clare team in the nineties Seanie McMahon was worth about four points a game for his ability to score long range frees. A free is a great opportunity to get a score being as it is a free shot at the goals. Limerick would have won the game easily the first day had they a decent free taker. It's most disappointing because all it takes is practice which obviously wasn't done.

Limerick missed frees at vital times and every time they did it was as if Waterford just went back up the field and put away a similar chance. Just before half time with the game still finely poised Niall Moran missed a very scoreable free only for Eoin Kelly to score from a free awarded on the Waterford puck out.

There were many instances of Limerick conceding frees which were totally unnecessary. At least make them work for their scores. Eoin Kelly had scored over 10 points from frees by the end of the game. I'd much rather see a player score from player having been put under serious pressure than giving away a free and giving them a free shot.

John Mullane was top notch again on Saturday making his exclusion from the All-Star team last year all the more incredible. He has been criticised at times for being a bit of a thug but it's time people started giving him credit for being the great player that he is. Like the Limerick team of the 90's it is unfortunate that this Waterford team never won an All-Ireland, all the more so for a player of Mullane's ability.

Limerick didn't know how to deal with him last Sunday. I think they made too much of his impact really. Kelly's frees aside (a good few of which came from Mullane) he is Waterford's only scoring threat. Damien Reale is a very good man marker and while he mightn't have done fantastically well against Mullane on Saturday, I would have left him there. Mullane is only one player and Reale was sure to win a certain amount of ball from him. Denis Moloney did OK for a time but Mullane quickly got the better of him. Bringing on Tom Condon to rough him up was a complete disaster. The ploy was so obvious that it quickly got the referee on Mullane's side (and rightly so). He was awarded a couple of fairly innocuous frees after that as the ref gave him the benefit of the doubt.

Limerick's focus on Mullane, in particular Mark Foley's (he was lucky to be on the pitch at the end as was Condon) freed up the other Waterford forwards and totally unsettled the Limerick backs. They should have done their best to halt the supply to Mullane and hoped Reale could sort him out after that. There isn't a whole lot else you can do.

Waterford's fielding of the ball was significantly better than Limerick's as well. It looked ominous when Shane O Sullivan grabbed a ball over Seamus Hickey's head to score a great point from Midfield in the second half. Tony Browne, Seamus Prendergast and even Big Dan were also out catching the Limerick lads all day.

It is easy to see why people from other counties love Limerick hurling so much. It's always exciting and because of their graft, Limerick are really a team a neutral can admire. This doesn't make it any less frustrating for their own supporters. There is nothing worse than dropping a shot short into the goalkeeper and Clinton Hennessy saw way too much of the ball on Saturday.

The wrong decisions were made on the line as well although it's easy to be 20/20 after the event. Moving Seamus Hickey from midfield seemed to knock the wind out of the Limerick sails and Donal O'Grady was just starting to come into the game when he was called ashore. O'Grady is probably one of Limerick's fittest players and while he might not be the most natural of hurlers, he is certainly a good man to have on the for the last ten minutes of a tight game.

It didn't seem to matter in the end. Limerick didn't have a free taker of Eoin Kelly's ability or a forward of Mullanes. Andrew O Shaughnessy is starting to look every inch a Limerick hurler and not in a good way.

Limerick have a big test ahead of them against Wexford. Still if they clean up their act, get a free taker and stop giving away stupid frees, there is no reason they won't go at least as far as Waterford in the Championship. Kieran Breen, Padraig Browne and James Ryan all look like good hurlers, it's just that the last thing Limerick need is another season in transition.

As for Waterford, defeat last Saturday would probably have knocked them on their arses for ten years. They will go into the Munster Final against Tipp without anything to fear and if they can get past Tipp, who's to say another All-Ireland appearance is beyond them. I suspect that with Waterford, it could go any which way.