Clare 1-20; Tipperary 1-15: Well, so much for the summer. We may have assumed Clare were focused on a distant booking, but the league still matters and it looks like all the one season from here.
Yesterday they hurled with surprising intent and grace and did all the things Tipperary couldn't. A league final mightn't be ideal preparation for their championship opener a week later, but better to let the whole thing flow.
And when it comes as naturally as it does to Clare right now, pity those who stand in the way.
In the end, Anthony Daly could only shake his head and smile. He'd left the Clare supporters in a crowd of around 8,000 totally satisfied; a five-point win could have been more and a performance that seamlessly blended the old and the new. Deep down he knew, too, that Tipperary were well beaten but far from out-smarted. Now is not the time for true estimates.
Yet it leaves Clare on track to reach the final on May 9th while Tipperary prepare to go undercover. Next weekend will be decisive in that regard: Clare face Limerick and Tipperary are out against Galway. But this was a game that certainly captured the mood. Clare are well up for it, Tipperary apparently not bothered.
It wasn't all memorable hurling, and Clare's five-minute burst of brilliance shortly before half-time ultimately decided the outcome. They changed around 1-13 to 1-8 in front and sat comfortably with Tipperary's brief threat of a comeback. Beyond the surface, though, Clare still made some waves, with players in every position revealing a true appetite for excellence.
Like Niall Gilligan, who collected nine points and missed nothing. Or Colin Lynch, devastating in the half-forward line. Jamesie O'Connor and Gerry Quinn were frequently inspired. And lesser lights, too, like Diarmuid McMahon at midfield and the tenacious Brian Lynch at wing back, added their considerable weight to the victory.
"Ah, it was a funny sort of game," said the Clare manager. "And a little bit dead in the second half. Maybe because we were nearly always that little bit more than the three points ahead.
"But a lot of our lads did look sharp and that's what we're working towards. And this was just another exercise along the way. We'll be out again in the morning for training, and working again towards next week, and to take that as it comes.
"And I'd love to win the league. None of those players have league medals. But I've said it before that when the powers that be fix the games the way they do it makes no sense to me. And of course it's not ideal preparation. But if we find ourselves there we'll get on with it."
It all started with much promise when Tipperary initially went with the pace. Paddy O'Brien was in decent free-taking form, and on eight minutes John Carroll sent a loose ball straight into the Clare net. They went 1-3 to 0-2 ahead and their fans were revelling in it.
Yet gradually Tipperary's shortcomings were revealed. Brian O'Meara didn't get a lick of a ball at full forward with Brian Lohan back to his brilliant best, and at midfield the normally reliable Eddie Enright and Paul Kelly were soon struggling for possession.
After 25 minutes Clare had levelled it and gradually took over. Ollie Baker pushed them ahead with a characteristic point, and the goal on 33 minutes was sweetly created from Brian Lynch to McMahon to Colin Lynch, and finished by Frank Lohan - who had started at wing forward, but by then was back at full forward.
Such was the lack of possession in the Tipperary forward line that changes had to be made at half-time. Tommy Dunne and Séamus Butler were both introduced, but only the latter came anywhere close to having the desired effect. Instead, Gilligan added two more in succession to push seven points clear and with that, all sense of excitement evaporated.
Still, Tipperary were the only team to score for the next quarter-hour, with Butler clawing them back to within four. It could have made for a dramatic climax, but Tipperary were cooked, their effort and desire clearly spent for the day.
Plenty of concerns then for the Tipperary manager, Ken Hogan: "I felt we were out of it in lots of places, particularly the half-forward line. Clare just dominated there, with Gerry Quinn having a marvellous game so that their half-back line was a great launching pad for their game.
"We were without Eoin Kelly, true, but we were still starved of possession there for long stages.
"But I feel Clare have been the unlucky team for a few years, and just haven't got the rub of the green. So when you talk about the championship, Clare have to be up there again. That was a very strong display there today and it's going to take a lot of work from Waterford or anyone else to beat them. And they've been laying down a marker for a while now."
CLARE: G O'Connell; C Harrison, B Lohan, C Forde; B Lynch, C Plunkett (0-1, a 65), G Quinn (0-1); O Baker (0-1), D McMahon (0-1); F Lohan (1-0), C Lynch (0-3), J O'Connor (0-1); N Gilligan (0-9, six frees), A Markham, D Forde (0-1). Subs: T Griffin (0-2) for Markham, D O'Connell for Forde (both 54 mins), B Murphy for F Lohan (62 mins), A O'Brien for O'Connor (68 mins).
TIPPERARY: B Cummins; T Costello, P Maher, J Devane; E Corcoran, D Fanning, D Fitzgerald; E Enright (0-2), P Kelly (0-1, a free); M O'Leary, J Carroll (1-0), B Dunne (0-1); P O'Brien (0-8, six frees), B O'Meara, L Corbett. Subs: M Maher for Devane (31 mins), S Butler (0-3) for O'Leary, T Dunne for O'Meara (half-time), C Morrissey for Carroll (56 mins), M Phelan for Costello (58 mins, inj).
Referee: A Mac Suibhne (Dublin).
