John Conlon says the time has come for Clare to make their mark in the Munster SHC.

The Banner enjoyed a successful spring which saw them win the Allianz League Division 1B title, but so far they have failed to deliver on their rich underage potential in the championship.

"Obviously Waterford are favourites," the 2009 All-Ireland U21 winner told The Irish Examiner ahead of Sunday's Munster SHC semi-final against Davy Fitzgerald's former charges.

"They've been the form team for the last few years, getting to All-Ireland finals and winning Munster titles. Hopefully we can get up to that level. That's what we're aiming to get to. It's about time we got away from this thing of everyone saying we're a young team, a coming team. It's about time we started looking to the future and building on our potential.

"That's the big thing that Davy has brought to us this year, that (transition) is all in the past, this is the future. It's about time we started to get it out of ourselves, showing our potential and showing our skills and believing we can match these bigger teams and get to that level.

"We're up there now so it's about time we started believing in ourselves."

He continued: "The championship is the most important thing. I've been on the panel now for four years, this is my fourth year.

"We haven't won a championship game since I've been there. That's our big aim this year, to get our first round in and see how it goes. But it's very important for the development of the team and to allow us to grow as a unit that we beat Waterford." Tweet

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