CROKER IS MILES AWAY FOR CLARE

BANNER legend Jamesie O’connor says Clare are miles away from scaling the heights of 2013.

Since lifting the All-ireland that year, Clare have won just a single game in the province – last year’s semi-final against Limerick, though Cork held them off comfortably in the final.

In the new round robin format, they go to

Leeside to face the

Rebels on Sunday in their first outing.

O’connor (inset), an All-ireland winner in 1995 and ‘97, said: “If you are being realistic – and bookies don’t often get it wrong – they are ranked fifth in Munster. There are 11-1 to win the All-ireland, 6-1 to win Munster.

“Listen, it is one of the great imponderables; how is it possible for a team to play with the elán and verve in Croke Park in 2013 and haven’t been back there since? And if anything, they look further away than ever.

“You have to realistic and say we don’t have the depth that Kilkenny, Galway and Tipp have and defensively, are we good enough?

“It is hard to see us coming out of Munster but it is not inconceivable.”