Hurling:  It's been over 10 years of highs and lows for James O'Connor with Clare hurlers. Here he reflects with Kieran Garry on two All-Ireland titles claimed in three giddy years and the defeats that hurt deeply.

The Munster final, July 4th, 1993. Tipperary 3-27, Clare 2-12. If that wasn't bad enough Clare pride also had to contend with Nicky English and the way he might look at you. This was their 10th defeat in a provincial final since the victory over Cork in 1932, back when the country was still called the Free State. The following year Clare gained a measure of revenge over Tipperary, but went down meekly by nine points to Limerick in the Munster final.

O'Connor made his championship debut in 1993 and played in both those finals.

1993-94

"Ninety three was a black day. Tipp were on a different planet to us. We didn't have the physique to get among them. However, I took a lot of positives out of it personally. I scored four points. Ninety four felt a lot worse because our expectations were a bit higher. We expected to win. I played very poorly."

The following year former Clare star Ger Loughnane succeeded Len Gaynor as manager. The first line of his biography Raising the Banner shows Loughnane was a man with a mission: "To many, hurling seems insignificant in the greater scheme of things, but to those in the game hurling is the greater scheme of things."

Loughnane brought in Tony Considine and Mike McNamara as his selectors. They realised that if they were to build on the good work of Gaynor they would have to vastly improve fitness levels and the speed at which Clare played.

1995

There was no problem getting tickets for the Munster semi-final against Cork as a mere 14,000 journeyed to Limerick for the game. A string of dramatic interventions by Séanie McMahon, Ollie Baker and Frank Lohan saw Clare secure an unlikely victory. In Thurles a couple of weeks later, Clare finally bridged a 63-year gap with a comfortable 1-17 to 0-11 Munster final victory over Limerick.

It was the highlight of the year for O'Connor. "We couldn't contemplate losing three Munster finals in a row. We had to deliver on the big stage. We were in the shape of our lives. With five minutes to go I had this fear the crowd would invade the pitch and the referee would cancel the match. It was our Everest. I'll never forget the feeling of ecstasy in the dressingroom afterwards. And after that, meeting my family. They were so happy. Sometimes I don't think Cork and Kilkenny lads appreciate it like we do. It was all we had ever wanted."

We were now into the summer of bodhráns and Clare "shouting" and the momentum was building up for a tilt at a first All-Ireland in 81 years. Two goals from Ger O'Loughlin ("a very under-rated player outside Clare and the best Clare forward I played with," says O'Connor) steered Clare past Galway and to an All-Ireland final meeting with Offaly.

In Denis Walsh's book Hurling: The Revolution Years then Offaly forward and now television pundit Michael Duignan described the moment when Clare ran out on to the field for that final. "I played hurling for a long time before that and after and I never noticed the crowd - ever. But when the Clare team came out that day I nearly f****** went weak at the knees with the roar that went up. And the atmosphere. There was fierce hype and noise and the bodhráns and the racket and I think it even got to experienced players."

Captain Anthony Daly and goalscorer Eamonn Taaffe provided the heroics in the closing stages this time.

Loughnane had been sure all along. "We're going to do it," he told the team and the media. O'Connor said of Loughnane: "No one could have got out of that team what he did and we'll never forget that."

1996

In that year, Clare faced Limerick for the third year in a row, this time in the Munster semi-final. It looked to be heading for a draw when deep in injury time Ciarán Carey scored the point of the year.

"Limerick had a very good team and we had great battles with them. We had our chances and then Ollie Baker went off with an injury. But the winning point was a fantastic score by a fantastic player."

Loughnane indicated shortcuts had been taken and O'Connor agrees. "The celebrations from '95 had gone on for a while and there were huge demands on the lads. We were playing catch-up a little bit and some of the lads wintered a bit long all right. But one big positive was that it made us desperately hungry for '97."

1997

Every hurler dreams of shooting the winning point in an All-Ireland final. O'Connor was one of the chosen few who actually lived the dream. Displaying excellent poise and balance, he fired over a brilliant point from under the Hogan Stand to seal Clare's second All-Ireland in three years. In the most dramatic of finishes there was still time for Tipperary's John Leahy to repeat his Munster final attempt at a late goal, only for Davy Fitzgerald to deny him once more. Cork, Tipperary, Kilkenny and Tipperary again were vanquished. Clare now had the stamp of greatness. O'Connor was crowned Hurler of the Year.

But O'Connor's mind is drawn not to that day in Croke Park, but to Clare's first win over Tipperary in a Munster final. "Whipping boys no more", as Daly put it.

"The atmosphere for the Munster final in Cork was the greatest atmosphere I've ever experienced. When we ran on to the pitch the noise levels were unreal. Brian Lohan told me he wanted to go home after they called out the players' names. To beat Tipperary in a Munster final playing fantastic hurling at times gave a huge sense of satisfaction.

"Loughnane was in heaven. We were playing power-hurling, coming at teams in waves. If the half backs were on top, then midfield began driving on, and we could possibly overwhelm teams. That said, the dominance we enjoyed wasn't reflected in the scorelines because we didn't have the goalscoring forwards and struggled to kill off teams."

1998

"An chéad sa cath agus an deireanach as" is the motto on the Clare crest - The first into battle and the last out. The perceived bitter rivalry with Tipperary was put into the ha'penny place after the Munster final replay against Waterford when it became Clare versus the rest.

Clare won that match comfortably but it was the stormy opening minutes which became the focus. Midfielder Colin Lynch, the Munster Council, Clare FM and priests in Croke Park all made headlines. Later on it was the turn of Jimmy Cooney's whistle, the on-pitch protest at Croke Park and a three-match saga between Offaly and Clare.

"We beat Cork in the semi-final, a coming Cork team. In the first half there was no space, but in the second we got on top and overwhelmed them. The controversies over the Waterford game are well documented and at this stage there's no point dredging it all up again.

"The third game versus Offaly in Thurles, we probably felt that was one that got away. I think we'd have won the All-Ireland if we'd got there."

1999

Clare versus Tipperary again in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. O'Connor marked the occasion with his first championship goal after six years. Clare got out of jail with a late Davy Fitzgerald penalty and you could tell who was going to win the replay by the body language of Nicky English and Ger Loughnane during the post-match interviews.

Clare swept Tipperary aside in the replay but O'Connor suffered a broken arm and was out for the Munster final. In that match a late injury to Ollie Baker proved critical and Cork went on to win the All-Ireland. "At that stage we were not capable of putting back-to-back performances together".

One consolation for O'Connor was the All-Ireland club championship he won with St Joseph's Doora-Barefield, to add to the Munster championship won the previous year.

2000

After five years playing deep into the summer, Clare's seasons begin to contract. O'Connor hasn't too many fond memories of the year. "We got the training seriously wrong and overtrained. Two weeks before the championship we played Kilkenny and they blew us away. Tipperary did the same."

Loughnane, who had threatened to resign once or twice before, finally bowed out.

2001

"Who else but Tipp? Cyril Lyons had come in - taking on the poisoned chalice - and we were in good shape. Tipp had beaten us in the league final but the championship was the game. Whoever was going to win was going places."

Tipperary 0-15, Clare 0-14. Dickie Murphy, the country's leading hurling referee, was in charge and O'Connor still feels a little aggrieved. "One or two decisions went against us on the day. You get some like that over the years - just a feeling we didn't get the breaks. It was a massive turning point for Tipperary and Nicky English. For us it was one of the most devastating defeats. There was no back door. We had the work done and we were as good as any of the teams around. It was a glorious opportunity missed."

Tipperary went on to win the All-Ireland.

2002

"We were beaten by Tipp in the first round but came back via the qualifiers. The highlight was probably beating Galway in a dogfight of a quarter-final in Croke Park. Colin Lynch won it with a great point at the end. We then ground Waterford down in the semi. But the All-Ireland final against Kilkenny wasn't as memorable. We never got into it. We didn't lay a glove on them. We couldn't afford to take them on in a pure hurling match. DJ's early goal was a blow. Losing wasn't what hurt, it was the manner in which we lost.

"To get that far and have a performance lacking aggression, passion and fire. That's what we needed to have. Why didn't we? Maybe the younger players got carried away by the hype. We should have been a bit smarter."

2003

"The only highlight was beating Tipp in Cork. We had lost three in a row to Tipp so we were waiting in the long grass for them. It was all downhill after that. We lost badly to Cork in the final before losing out to Galway in the qualifiers in Ennis."

2004

"My last year. I hadn't played well in 2002 and 2003 and was thinking of hanging up the boots. Anthony Daly took over and asked me to stay on. Waterford destroyed us in the first round. We were dismal. The best performance was against Kilkenny in Croke Park in a quarter-final. I came on and got the equaliser. We were pumped, gagging for extra-time.

"Croke Park wasn't packed that day but the diehards were there. I remember them applauding us as we waited to see if there would be extra-time. They knew we had put pride back in the jersey." Kilkenny won a low-scoring replay by four points.

The four-time All Star is loath to pick a best player he has played with but finally admits: "I wouldn't be able to separate Brian Lohan and Seánie McMahon such has been the consistency of their performances over the last 12 years."

And played against? "Brian Whelahan comes to mind, but I didn't mark him that often.

"But in terms of guys I always had problems with, Seán Óg (hÁilpín) stands out. I always found it hard to get away from him, he has great pace and athleticism and is also very disciplined in that he stays focused on his man."

2005

O'Connor's first year looking on from the sidelines. In the Munster semi-final against Tipperary, Clare never recovered from a two-goal blitz in the first half. But after that they had a great win over Waterford which set them up for the match with Wexford whom they destroyed.

"I thought they had a serious chance of beating Cork in the semi-final. I'd say losing to Cork this year was on a par to '98 and losing to Tipp in 2001. And they would have beaten Galway. What a final it would have been. Just what hurling needed."

The future

"I think Clare will give it an almighty effort in 2006. The team are facing a rebuilding phase in the next year or two and while it won't be easy to replace key players I wouldn't be as pessimistic as some people. I think Clare will give a good account of themselves this year."