Forward thinking required with Clare in mind

Don’t push the panic button just yet but a number of familiar deficiencies came to surface during the Crystal Cup defeat to UL The persistence of Seamus Prendergast at the edge of the square and a promising looking midfield pairing were the two plus points to take from it but a lack of fluency in attack became evident once more.

Nine forwards sampled action at Carraiganore but only three troubled the umpires from open play. Waterford also registered thirteen wides and three openings for goals also went awry. Michael Ryan didn’t conceal his concern afterwards. “Overall it was a disappointing performance. We struggled up front all day long. We had some great chances and we didn’t take them. Only for Seamus Prendergast there in the second half it could have been much worse.”

With Maurice Shanahan and Pauric Mahony presently on the injured list, it opens the door for several candidates to make a case. Even Eoin Madigan returned to duty in the forwards for the last twelve minutes after spending the entire club campaign at number seven. Only Eamonn Murphy on the UL side really put his hand up with his four first half points and overall eagerness to make a nuisance of himself. The students were much sharper in terms of their first touch and they stuck rigidly to a short game that Waterford never really got to grips with. The hosts started brightly and established a three point lead but confidence ebbed away as the wides piled up. Some wild efforts and missed frees saw the total rise to nine by the break. The long distance shooting of Shane O’Sullivan and Richie Foley papered over the cracks. O’Sullivan in particular, seemed keen to make up for lost time after taking a break from inter county hurling in 2012.

By the finish, route one into Prendergast became the only likely source of scores. After a muted thirty five minutes at centre forward, the Ardmore man carried the fight to the students with his aerial ability and was most unfortunate not to billow the net. “Once he got into the game, he played very well,” Ryan observed. “He was a serious threat when he went in there.” He needed more support however from those around him.

With no competitive games before the start of the league on February 24, the selection process up front will prove difficult. The list is long with Jake Dillon, Gavin O’Brien, Brian O’Halloran, Brian O’Sullivan, Martin O’Neill, Donie Breathnach and Jamie Barron all vying for jerseys thirteen and fifteen. Many of those in contention are only finding their feet at this level. All of which makes this week’s opening round of Fitzgibbon games an ideal shop window for those looking to nail down a spot. Dillon, O’Brien and O’Neill could all get starts on Thursday for WIT along with O’Halloran for Mary I. Eamonn Murphy (UL) should also get another opportunity to make an impression.

Elsewhere, Dean Twomey appeared uncomfortable at wing forward and deserves an opportunity to play in his more favoured midfield role when Waterford return to the challenge circuit. On the other wing, Ray Barry was industrious but again prefers playing in a deeper role. UL’s style disrupted the defence at times but in an overall sense ,the goalkeeper and the six backs have a settled and experienced look about them. Once you go into double digits however, the choices become much more complicated for Michael Ryan and company. Another competitive outing would have made that picture much clearer but that luxury is no longer available. Shanahan won’t make his return until March and Pauric Mahony is still three or four weeks away from full fitness. It’s not an ideal scenario facing into a crucial away assignment at Cusack Park next month.