To hold whip hand
three points, in particular, Waterford would have to be respected, but they are arguably the outsiders of the five teams involved in the Munster title race at the moment.
That they have been demoted to Division 1B isn't a matter of serious concern in itself heading into the championship, given what Cork achieved after suffering a similar fate last year, but it has to be a little disturbing from new manager Derek McGrath's perspective that Waterford were hammered by Clare, 5-18 to 0-20, and Kilkenny, 4-22 to 0-14, in the latter stages of their Division 1A campaign, incurring a third consecutive defeat, 4-13 to 1-17, at Dublin's hands in the relegation play-off.
To what extent that sequence of results will have impacted adversely on Waterford's confidence is hard to say, but it must have done some damage, which might not be so easy to repair, now that they have had a few injury problems to contend with in the lead-up to the championship opener.
By contrast, Cork, with the exception of dual-player Eoin Cadogan, are expected to have everyone available for selection, and the perception is that the management will have a stronger hand to play with than was the case in 2013.
It's an obvious boost that Paudie O'Sullivan, who missed the entire championship last year, is back in the equation. He might not make the starting fifteen on Sunday, but he could feature at some stage, and to have a forward of his quality and experience waiting in the wings is a major plus.
It can be taken for granted that Patrick Horgan, Conor Lehane, Pa Cronin and last year's find of the season Seamus Harnedy will all be accommodated in attack where Alan Cadogan could be in line to make his championship debut, having laid down a marker every time he got a run in the league.
Such as Jamie Coughlan, Stephen Moylan and Cian McCarthy will also be in contention for a place up front, as will Aidan Walsh, who, due to his football commitments, hasn't seen as much game-time as he would liked since answering the call to join the hurling squad at the start of the league.
Walsh might be an option as a midfield partner for Daniel Kearney as well, having impressed there in recent challenge games by all accounts, which would release his Kanturk clubmate Lorcan McLoughlin to fill one of the half-back berths.
Without an established centre-back, it's accepted that Cork aren't the complete package defensively, and, with Stephen McDonnell, Shane O'Neill and Conor O'Sullivan likely to be fronting Anthony Nash again, much interest will be focused on the composition of the half back line for the showdown with Waterford.
Chris Joyce, William Egan, Damien Cahalane and newcomers Eoin Keane and Mark Ellis are among those vying for a place in this sector. Should the Rebel rearguard measure up, it's a fair bet that Cork will carry enough firepower at the other end to put Waterford to the sword, perhaps more convincingly than they did when coming through by 1-19 to 0-19 in the 2012 All-Ireland quarter-final.