“Tis still only February,” sighed the old man as he trudged out of Ennis last Sunday after the Limerick vs. Clare game. A couple of feet away, he had seen another man of similar vintage shedding tears and proclaiming, “I thought Limerick hurling was dead but we are back to life.” God knows, we will all shed a tear if Limerick win an All Ireland within out lifetime, but perhaps February is a little bit early to be shedding tears.

It’s a fickle old game in any event. The same team of Clare kids, who put Waterford to the pin of their collar in last year’s championship, are currently being belittled. Limerick, on the other hand, are being billed as a team going somewhere fast. If both teams make the league final, which they should, a puck of the ball will separate them. Westmeath gave Limerick a right old battle yesterday while Clare survived an expected scare in Antrim. Both teams will amble along now, knowing that they will probably face one another in the league final. The one realistic hiccup could potentially arise at Casement Park in April, assuming all prior results go to plan. An Antrim victory over Limerick would see three teams locked on the same points. That would mean parity on the head-to-head, meaning that scoring difference would apply. As things stand, Limerick are well ahead on scoring difference and will maintain, and perhaps enhance that. Antrim will hope to match the scores put up by Clare heading into the last game

Kilkenny have started well in the League this year, with victories over the other two within the traditional big three. Colin Fennelly and Richie Hogan are the first choice corner forwards at the moment, with Eddie Brennan at full. It will be interesting to see if Cody retains this line come the summer. The well proclaimed but ‘not retired’ Sean Óg Ó hAilpín believes that his county has become a second rate county in his absence. His weekly updates on their progress throughout the summer will be eagerly awaited, though not prolonged, if his prophesy of doom is to be realised.

They were involved at the business end of the game in Nowlan Park and but I guess there will be some quotation this week relating to the sending off of JJ Delaney, or the winterish conditions. Save it for the inevitable book, Sean Og, but don’t write the book too soon, because you will surely be back in 2012.

Galway seem to have hit the ground running, but as the man coming out of Ennis said, “Tis still only February.” Perhaps Galway are going a little too well, but they have met the two weakest teams in the division and the bigger games lie ahead. Tipperary are behind schedule because of the team holiday and it has hurt them. Not since 1965 have they won silverware, in the year after winning the McCarthy cup and starting late won’t help them this year. In many ways, successful teams in general are better off having the team holiday out of the way before Christmas, but with college exams etc. that’s not always possible. Pa Bourke is getting more game time and started well against Kilkenny but like all luxuries, his influence waned as the game became more physical. He is one of the most innately gifted players in the game of hurling at the moment. A newspaper column by Westside in the ‘Clonmel Nationalist’ was shown to me yesterday morning where Pa Bourke was summarised by the following, “A ball in the hand is worth ten on the hurley.” Bourke can instinctively kill a sliotar travelling at full pace, one-handed, when at full stretch. It’s fine for the gallery, but it doesn’t always win matches.

Dublin are coming of age, but that major victory has to come in 2011. Maybe if they can generate a run of momentum now, it can carry them through the summer. Their Kilkenny League game will be interesting, because they have been on the losing side in a couple of score fests that they never really looked like winning. They should target a win against Kilkenny, and an ugly win if necessary. A 1-13 to 0-14 win might not be as flashy but is obviously worth significantly more than a heroic 2-20 to 1-21 defeat. They have been knocking on the door for a long time, and have a greater pool of players available to them now than they ever had with the exception of the O’Carroll brothers. Conal Keaney is having a huge impact, but there’s the danger that they will become too reliant on him. David O’Callaghan and Liam Rushe need to be on the scoreboard more because they are able to score.

Waterford are Waterford, glamorous and glitzy on some days, not so glamorous on other days and were nearly caught by Wexford in winter conditions. Offaly and Wexford will fight it out for the bottom spot, and Wexford will most likely be the team that slips.

As of now, you would suspect that it will be a Limerick vs. Clare Division 2 league final, with Kilkenny facing a side from Galway, Waterford or Dublin. The current league system needs a tweak. Let the first team in Division 1 go straight into the final, with second and third facing one another in a League Semi Final. Dublin may not make a final under the current system, but could finish third if it were slightly different. It would make sense to relegate one team automatically, but then to have a playoff between the beaten Division 2 finalists, and the team that finishes second from bottom in Division 1. It makes every game meaningful, keeps the teams in mid-table in the hunt for third place, and also keeps them on their toes in the fear of being drawn into relegation trouble.
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