Conlon can steer wounded Banner past old boss Davy
IF WEXFORD boss Davy Fitzgerald is to get the better of his home county today and lead his young Model outfit into the All-Ireland semi-finals it could very well come down to the performance of one man — Clare’s John Conlon. The Clonlara sharpshooter is already as short as 4/6 to win an All-Star in the forward line. Indeed, former Kilkenny star Richie Power this week named him as his Hurler of the Year so far — a prize he is 14/1 seventh favourite to eventually win when all is said and done. And should the Banner go on to repeat their All-Ireland win of 2013, there would be no doubt as to who that award would go to. His team-mate Tony Kelly is next in the betting at 20/1, and although he has shown flashes of the form that saw him win that same award in 2013, it is Conlon who has carried much of the weight for Clare, scoring 1-19 from play in his last five games. And if Fitzgerald learned anything from Clare’s Munster final capitulation to Cork for the second year running, it’s that if you stop Conlon you can just about stop the Banner entirely. Sunday Game analyst and Clare legend Anthony Daly pointed to a number of key switches as to how Cork were able to overcome an eight-point deficit in that Munster decider — all revolving around the isolation of Conlon. Clare have other players of top quality around him, of course, not least 2013 All-Ireland final replay man-of-the-match winner Shane O’Donnell and ace marksman Peter Duggan. But it is Conlon who Fitzgerald will be seeking to stop most of all — a responsibility which is likely to be handed to one of the best full backs in the country in Liam Ryan. Clare will be hurting from a second provincial final loss to Cork in succession — desperate as they were to end a 20-year wait for a Munster title. But although they clearly did not learn enough from last year’s Munster final loss to avoid repeating it, they will surely have learned from last year’s loss to Tipperary in the All-Ireland quarter-final that followed. The bookies haven’t given up on them just yet, and they are still the third favourites in the market 7/1. And should they overcome their old pal Davy today, their season could well open up in front of them once more with All-Ireland champions Galway lying in wait in the last four.