Replying To cavanman47: ""We don't have a great team at the moment".
You've been in the last 2 All-Ireland finals, winning one and losing the other by 1 score.
I think I'd take that!"
We don't throw the word 'great' loosely here in Kerry.
Teams will always be judged and measured the great sides of the 70's 80's and 00's. Given our low population base that is probably unrealistic and unfair on the current crop but it's just the way it is.
Replying To tiobraid: "The opposite is actually true. The seeding has worked in Tipps favour. They pushed Cork close a few years ago because we had a game under our belt. If Cork had that game this year and met us in the semi it's much less likely that we would have won. There was uproar in Tipp at the time but I thought it was a great call and I assume the people of Clare think the same. Tipp went years without winning a Munster cship game but the new system allowed us to play a winnable game in the quarter final. On the flip side I don't buy into the fact that Kerry are getting an easy ride. Look at Connacht and Leinster and you see Mayo and Dublin cleaning up nearly every year. The Ulster cship in general is quite competitive but over the last number of year, Donegal (and maybe Monaghan) are the only ones that could stake a claim to competing with them. Leinster and Connacht have been far less competitive."
Fair play. You make the points brilliantly. Enough said here too.
Replying To tiobraid: "The opposite is actually true. The seeding has worked in Tipps favour. They pushed Cork close a few years ago because we had a game under our belt. If Cork had that game this year and met us in the semi it's much less likely that we would have won. There was uproar in Tipp at the time but I thought it was a great call and I assume the people of Clare think the same. Tipp went years without winning a Munster cship game but the new system allowed us to play a winnable game in the quarter final. On the flip side I don't buy into the fact that Kerry are getting an easy ride. Look at Connacht and Leinster and you see Mayo and Dublin cleaning up nearly every year. The Ulster cship in general is quite competitive but over the last number of year, Donegal (and maybe Monaghan) are the only ones that could stake a claim to competing with them. Leinster and Connacht have been far less competitive."
I not sure I agree Thiobraid. I'd put it down to the hard work done at grass roots level with our underage teams. This fed the under 21 breakthrough in 2010 and all-Ireland minor win in 2011.
The Munster hurling championship used to be seeded in Tipp and Cork's favour. Now look at it. Everyone except Clare have won a Munster title since 2010 and Clare landed the bigger one in 2013. All six have won a Munster hurling championship since Clare's football title in 1992.
If you compare the football championship, Clare's great win in 1992 is the last time anyone bar the big two won the Munster Football championship. Tipp, Limerick and Waterford's last victories came in 1935, 1896 and 1898 respectively. So one victory against the head since 1936. That one victory came when there was an open draw in place.