A difficult weekend last week, with Cork causing a massive upset against Waterford, which was hard to recover from in terms of our profit and loss for the weekend. Thankfully, our strong opening weekend means we are only slightly in the minus for the year – -0.06pts, -0.27% ROI.

On the bright side, our ante-post selections of Donal Burke & Tony Kelly in the ‘Championship Top Scorer’ market are tipping along nicely, and we have a full round of games to look forward to this weekend. So, time to get stuck in!

Saturday, May 21st

Galway v Dublin

Pearse Stadium, Galway

6 pm

Key Stats

• Dublin have won their last two championship meetings with Galway, 2019 and 2021.
• Galway have scored seven goals across their four championship outings, while Dublin have scored just one in that time.

Selections

2pts – Galway to win the Leinster Championship – 10/11 Paddy Power

Dublin were one of the big disappointments of round four as they were comprehensively beaten at home by Kilkenny, and Mattie Kenny will be looking for a big reaction from his side as they make the difficult trip to Pearse Stadium. Kenny, a Galway native, will not have been happy with the Dublin performance, particularly in the second half, but he was very slow to make substitutions, and it’s clear he is committed to his starting 15. Their full-forward line struggled to retain possession throughout the game against Kilkenny, so Kenny will have to look at making changes upfront. Nevertheless, a draw will be enough to secure Dublin’s place in the All Ireland series, while a win would take them to the Leinster final.

Galway have looked solid throughout the championship so far, despite a slight blip against Wexford, and they backed up their win over Kilkenny with a big win over Laois last weekend. Thomas Monaghan continues to improve, and he has become another great option for Henry Shefflin, while Conor Whelan notched 1-2 against Laois as he makes his way back to full fitness. On last week’s performance, it’s hard to see how Dublin will get close to Galway and although they can only improve, Galway look like serious All Ireland contenders. With this the last round of the Leinster Championship, Galway are expected to book their place in the final and can secure the Bob O’Keefe cup against whoever they should meet there.

Saturday, May 21st

Kilkenny v Wexford

Nowlan Park, Kilkenny

6 pm

Key Stats

• Wexford last beat Kilkenny in the championship in the 2017 Leinster semi-final.
• Kilkenny have won twelve of fifteen championship meetings between these sides since Brian Cody took over in 1998.
• Kilkenny are looking to reach their fifth successive Leinster final.

Selections

2pts – Kilkenny -5 – 10/11 Paddy Power

Kilkenny returned to winning ways seven days ago with a comprehensive win over Dublin and manager Brian Cody will be keen to continue this winning form to confirm their place in the Leinster final. Galway will likely be their opposition should they reach the final, and it was clear from the infamous post-match handshake with Henry Shefflin two weeks ago that Cody would love another crack off his former talisman. Although Dublin were poor last week, Kilkenny could only beat what they had to, and they looked impressive throughout. Adrian Mullen has been in flying form since moving to Kilkenny’s midfield, finishing as their top point scorer from play against Dublin with five points. The form of TJ Reid is still a slight worry for Cody, but he looks to be improving, and he will be crucial to any chance Kilkenny have of seriously progressing in the championship.

This is certainly last chance saloon for Darragh Egan’s Wexford, who have flattered to deceive again this year. Their strong league campaign was followed by a round one draw with Galway, but it’s all gone pear-shaped since. A home loss to Dublin and a draw with Westmeath means they need a win to have a chance of progressing. This looks very unlikely with Wexford continuing to have major problems upfront. Their defence has been solid throughout the championship, conceding the lowest average points per game, but their forwards have failed to fire, and their free taking continues to be an issue. Their 2017 win over the Cats was a famous night for Wexford hurling, but apart from one All Ireland semi-final appearance, they never progressed to becoming a top team. A repeat of that victory looks unlikely. Cody has galvanised his charges once again, and they are expected to put on a show in front of their home fans.

Sunday, May 22nd

Clare v Waterford

Cusack Park, Ennis

4 pm

Key Stats

• This is the fifth successive year Clare and Waterford will meet in the championship, with Clare winning three of the last four.
• Clare have already booked their place in the Munster final and are looking for their first Munster title since 1998.
• Clare’s Tony Kelly hit 0-16 of his team’s 0-24 against Limerick last week.

Selections

2pts – Clare +5 – 10/11 Paddy Power

A shock home defeat at the hands of Cork seven days ago means Waterford travel to Ennis to rescue their season against a Clare side that have been consistently improving throughout this season. Liam Cahill’s Waterford side were outworked and outfought by Cork last week as they looked beaten in all facets. The loss of Austin Gleeson put a massive dent in their chances of winning, but it did look like Waterford were running out of steam after a taxing league campaign. They were touted as the team to challenge Limerick this year, but now they need Tipperary to overturn Cork (but not by too much) to keep them in the championship. Waterford will need a much better return from their forwards to win this game and although they tend to have a good spread of scorers, they will need more from Dessie Hutchinson. When he fires, Waterford tend to follow suit.

Clare have already booked their place in the Munster final which is reflected in the bookmaker’s prices, with Paddy Power going 3/1 about the Banner side on home soil. While Clare’s team selection suggests they are experimenting, they still have a strong side, with many of the players picked looking to book their place on the Munster final team. Even without Tony Kelly in the forward line, their six starting forwards have plenty of experience, and the likes of David Reidy will be keen to impress manager Lohan. Waterford are likely winners here, but they were very poor last week so a chance is taken on Clare on the handicap.

Sunday, May 22nd

Tipperary v Cork

Semple Stadium, Thurles

4 pm

Key Stats

• Cork are seeking their first championship win over Tipperary since 2017, with one draw and two Tipperary victories since then.
• A win for Cork would see them secure the third spot in Munster, while Tipperary must win by a significant margin and hope Waterford are beaten by Clare.

Selections

2pts – Tipperary +3 – 10/11 Boylesports

1pt – Noel McGrath Man of the match – 14/1 Paddy Power

Cork travel to Thurles on Sunday afternoon with their fate somehow still in their hands after opening their campaign with losses to Limerick Clare. They pulled off a massive shock against Waterford last week and now know a win would keep them in the championship. Kieran Kingston’s side have been heavily criticised over the last few weeks, but they came out fighting against Waterford, and we saw something we haven’t seen enough of from Cork. Too often, Cork fail to perform when the going gets tough, and while they did that last Sunday, the real challenge is backing that up against a Tipperary side fighting to keep their season alive. Patrick Horgan retains his place on the starting fifteen after being replaced at the 40-minute mark last week, while Shane Kingston drops to the bench. Many question whether Horgan is worth his starting berth anymore but perhaps becoming the leading championship scorer of all time last weekend gives him an extra life. Cork looked better without Horgan, and he would be an incredible sub to bring in after 40/50 minutes a la Shane Dowling for Limerick in 2018. For now, though, Cork must focus on backing up their performance, but Tipperary will make that very difficult for them. Tipperary produced a mammoth performance to push Limerick to the wire two weeks ago, and that week’s break should leave them in peak condition. Jason Forde also returns to the starting lineup, and if Tipperary can repeat that Limerick performance, they have all the attributes to trouble Cork.

Noel McGrath was back to his best against Limerick, and at 14/1, he is worth a small play with Paddy Power. While Forde is likely to take over free-taking duty, McGrath can cause the loose Cork defence serious problems, and he is always crucial to Tipperary’s challenge.