"No fire in Clare." "A lot of soul-searching to be done in that camp." "Boring."
While the full-time score of 1-27 to 2-18 may have suggested Limerick's National League win over Clare on Saturday night was a tight affair, the reality was anything but that.
A late cameo of 1-2 off the bench from Banner substitute David Reidy put some gloss on the scoreboard, but the result was never in doubt as the All-Ireland champions bossed their neighbours and rivals.
Many have been quick to write off the small ball's springtime competition as a phoney war in recent weeks - and there were front-liners kept in reserve by both camps - but there was a notable difference in class between the teams in the TUS Gaelic Grounds.
The sides will meet at the Ennis Round venue again in 11 weeks, in what will be Limerick's Championship opener.
RTÉ pundits heavily critical of Clare following Limerick defeat
At full-time, the RTÉ pundits warned that Brian Lohan has plenty to ponder as he aims to get his charges up to speed. Anthony Daly was not impressed with the performance from his native county.
John Kiely will be very happy. He'll still be able to say a few things about the last six, seven, eight minutes.
Brian Lohan will be disappointed. It will be put in the pocket. There's two weeks [until the next game]. They'll be better, but there was no fire in Clare.
I'd be nearly saying roll on the 29th of April. I'd be showin g a few clips of that in the week coming up to it, of the way Limerick were able to roll off Cian Lynch, taking off Kyle Hayes, taking off Gearoid Hegarty, [all] taken off to big ovations.
And Clare didn't battle really until David Reidy came on. Aidan McCarthy had a good game overall, so they were the only bright sparks.
Anthony Daly, Shane Dowling and Liam Sheedy offer their reactions to Limerick's six-point win over Clare #AllianzLeagues #RTEGAA pic.twitter.com/BQeYD1RbEX
— RTÉ GAA (@RTEgaa) February 11, 2023
Liam Sheedy was in agreement, stating that the six-point margin did not reflect the competitiveness of the contest.
"It was a six-point hammering in my view. They weren't really in the game. They got a few scores finishing up," the former Tipp manager said of Clare.
"Obviously David Reidy's goal made it respectable on the scoreboard. A lot of soul-searching to be done in that camp. I know it's the 29th of April is a nice bit away, but they've a lot of work to do based on what I've seen there this evening. They didn't come with the normal level of intensity. Brian won't be happy at all with that."
11 February 2023; Cian Lynch of Limerick with supporters after the Allianz Hurling League Division 1 Group A match between Limerick and Clare at TUS Gaelic Grounds in Limerick. Photo by Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile
And despite the bumper crowd for a Saturday evening game in February, Shane Dowling noted the flat atmosphere:
"That was boring for the majority of that second-half watching it. I mean, there was 16,000 people here and you could hear a pin drop. There was no atmosphere, there was nothing to the game. It was so disappointing, because I think everybody coming into the Gaelic Grounds this evening would have been looking forward to such a magic game.
"You see it in the goal that Limerick got. Adam English could run 60 yards, and not a glove laid on him. So it was disappointing overall."
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