Cork hurling captain Kieran Murphy says not even he can afford to take his place in Denis Walsh's team for granted.

The Rebels have enjoyed a promising start to their Division One campaign in the NHL with two wins from two, with their latest victory coming in the form of a 2-21 to 1-14 win against Limerick at the Gaelic Grounds, a game which saw Walsh use all five substitutes.

"Trying to secure your place, that's what it comes down to. Denis has told me he can't guarantee me my place, it's up to me to earn it, and that's the only pressure I'm under, to secure my place.

"The competition is there and we saw it in this game," Murphy said after the win against Limerick.

"It just shows the development that's going on, Denis is building up the competition within the panel," he added.

Cork's next outing in the league is against All-Ireland champions Kilkenny on Sunday week at Pairc Ui Chaoimh, where the hosts will be looking to improve on last year's 4-26 to 0-11 mauling at the hands of the Cats.

"Every fella is going to be looking forward to it," said Murphy. "That was a bad day for us in Kilkenny; everything that had happened probably took its toll, they were ruthless, took their chances. It's going to be up to us to come back from that, hopefully we can improve on a 27-point defeat." Tweet

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