Limerick's consistency is historical

KILLINAN END

Limerick's current era of success continues to reach territory previously unexplored. Between 1982 and 1988, Cork reached seven consecutive Munster finals, winning five and losing the last two as Tipperary surged towards a new era. This equalled the feat of Jamesy Kelleher’s pioneering Cork teams of 1901–07.

A few teams have reached six in a row: Cork 1975–1980, Tipp from 1949–54 and again from 1960–65. In each case, it was at the very least a mild hurling earthquake when none of these teams managed to extend the run. In 1981, Cork were taken down by Clare in the semi-final quite unexpectedly, especially as they had won the National Hurling League. In 1955, the championship draw prevented the customary Tipp-Cork Munster Final that would have boiled the tar on the Ennis Road. But nobody anticipated what came next. Though Clare had a good side at the time – Oireachtas winners a year earlier – they had already pushed the boundaries of surprise by beating Cork in Thurles. Lightning would hardly strike twice when they met the National League champions, Tipperary, in the semi-final.

We need hardly dwell on the outcome of that game considering the disproportionate fame that has attached to the 1955 Munster final between Limerick and Clare. Suffice to say, Tipp's attempt at reaching a seventh consecutive provincial final went up in smoke. They must have raised a glass to that one on Leeside. But if they did, it paled into insignificance beside the benefits that accrued for Cork in 1966 when Tipp were comprehensively ambushed by Limerick in Cork's Athletic Grounds. Another seventh consecutive provincial final attempt that wafted away in the early summer breeze.

To be fair, no side was ever deemed great on the basis of simply reaching finals. All of these teams mined autumn gold too. Limerick's achievement last year in equalling the seven-in-a-row Munster final appearance record was overshadowed when they didn't bring away the silverware. Of course, they had already broken new ground with six consecutive Munster Final wins. This year not only is the Mick Mackey Cup residing where Mick himself would choose it to be, but they now stand alone in reaching eight consecutive Munster Senior Hurling Finals. It is difficult to get too carried away about any of this given that the situation is very much still a going concern. Who knows where all of this will end? There may be another chapter or two to be written.

While the team records continue to evolve, some individual milestones already deserve recognition. We can surely salute David Reidy and Nicky Quaid on winning their eighth Munster Senior Hurling Championship medal. It puts them in rarefied company. Only eight players in the history of the championship have won more Munster medals, all of them representing either Tipp or Cork. Nicky Quaid seems to be as good as ever, so who knows where his individual tally will eventually end?

While somebody can easily point out that Limerick’s feats have been achieved, for the most part, in an era of second chances and round robins, it can be stated conversely that Limerick deserve enormous credit for never being happy to just get out of Munster. Of course, it was a third-place finish in Munster in 2018 that was a springboard to their modern era of unparalleled success. But at no point since they started winning Munster for fun have they ever looked likely to relinquish those pangs of hunger for battle.

They now turn to Jones' Road – a venue they have graced with aplomb in the modern era. They will do so with the confidence of a powerful recent tradition on the biggest stage. That is not to say that the long grass does not camouflage clear and present danger. After last year's debacle, Limerick will hardly underestimate Dublin if that is their fate. Of course, forewarned alone doesn't guarantee progress, but if Dublin have improved since last year, it is also clear that Limerick will provide a more formidable hurdle this time around.

No disrespect intended towards the capital, but it is fair to say that a repeat of last year's quarter final does not set the pulses racing remotely as much as a Limerick-Clare repeat of the 2013 semi-final. These neighbours have had some thunderous fixtures in the South in recent years and would provide quite a spectacle if they bring the trans-Shannon conflict to posher surroundings.

Anthony Daly suggested – perhaps not in full confidence – that perhaps the losers of the Munster final had a slightly easier route to a potential final. Whether Galway's Leinster final performance should be taken entirely at face value is open to debate. If it is, and Cork overcome Offaly, the Tribesmen would surely fancy their chances against a Cork team which managed only a grand total of 1-6 from play in the Munster final, and nothing from play in the last 38 minutes. On the other hand, Offaly might represent ghosts of All-Irelands past. Either way, there might still be plenty up for grabs in this championship.