Limerick too strong for the Cats but is passage of time catching up on them?

WHAT’S left in the greatest Limerick team of all time? The jury remains out after the opening rounds of the National League despite the Shannonsiders recording a comfortable win over Kilkenny at the Gaelic Grounds on Sunday . . . a week after surprisingly coming unstuck against Waterford.

Of the squad who won five All-Ireland medals in six years, their hugely influential captain Declan Hannon has retired – so too Graeme Mulcahy – attacker Seamus Flanagan has been deemed surplus to requirements; while uncertainty remains over when Kyle Hayes, who suffered a serious neck injury in a club match last year, will return.

Over the past few seasons, only Adam English, Cathal O’Neill, and Aidan O’Connor have broken through as regulars. That is hardly enough of a transition in player resources over a near 10-year period. Colin Coughlan, for instance, has been around the squad for several seasons, but is still not a consistent presence in the half-back line.

Every great team needs rejuvenation, but when Limerick line out in the opening round of the Munster championship, it’s likely Nicky Quaid, Seán Finn, Dan Morrissey, Mike Casey, Barry Nash, Diarmuid Byrnes, Hayes – assuming he is recovered – Cian Lynch, Will O’Donoghue, Darragh O’Donovan, Tom Morrissey, Gearóid Hegarty, Peter Casey and Aaron Gillane will still be involved.

All those players featured in Limerick’s long-awaited All-Ireland triumph in 2018. In contrast, how many of the Galway team they beat in that final are still plying their trade at the top level? It begs the question are Limerick lacking the necessary injection of new blood to regain their standing as the leading hurling force in the country?

The bottom line is that manager John Kiely remains heavily dependent on a core of the players who ended a 45-year wait for the Liam McCarthy Cup. How much more can he squeeze out of them? Sure, they were more than adequate against an admittedly moderate Kilkenny outfit last Sunday, but the pace and intensity of championship hurling will be a different ball game.

Referencing the Cats, only for the excellent Eoin Cody, who is really thriving since being switched to the forty, how badly would Kilkenny have been beaten? Their excellent Huw Lawlor has gone travelling; the pacey Billy Ryan is unavailable for 2026 too; while Kilkenny have turned to a 39-year-old in TJ Reid, who is understandably in decline, to lead them this year.

Pictured: Galway's Sarah Ní Loingsigh secures possession agains Roisin Forde of Kildare during Sunday's Division 1 Ladies Football league tie at Tuam Stadium. Photo: Joe O'Shaughnessy.