They could have been big ball men

Clare: Of the current hurling panel, Colin Lynch (left) and the Lohan brothers have football pedigrees, Frank Lohan and Lynch having both played at all levels for the county. After the hurlers' exit, Colin Lynch was immediately invited on to the football panel, but declined on the basis that it would be unfair to the players who had been training with the football squad all along. Frank Lohan did join the intermediate panel and played yesterday.

Des Crowe, Clare's PRO, believes that the dual nature of players in the county is sometimes underestimated. Indeed, five clubs - St Joseph's-Doora Barefield, Eire Og Ennis, Wolfe Tones, Corofin and Clarecastle - put out senior football and hurling teams. The current leading dual player in the county is Joe Considine of St Joseph's (hurling) and Cooraclare (football), while Lynch is unquestionably the hurler the footballers would most like to get their hands on. It cuts both ways, though, and footballer Martin Daly has played at every level except senior for the county's hurlers. Barry Keating, a football panellist, first came to attention as a hurler when playing under-21 for the county.

Tipperary: The ghost of John Leahy's injury in 1994 haunts hurlers with a fondness for the big ball. Injured playing championship football, Leahy was unable to line out for the hurlers who were defeated by Clare. Little is mentioned of the injury to Anthony Crosse when playing hurling in '95. A footballer by natural inclination, Crosse filled Cormac Bonnar's boots from '93, but his eye injury deprived both codes of his services.

Of the current hurling panel, goalkeeper Brendan Cummins played championship football as a forward up until last year, while John Carroll (above left) played full forward during the league and is the player the footballers would have missed most yesterday. Five of the football panel - Declan Browne, Dan Hackettt, Dermot Gleeson, Colin Morrissey and Shane McDermott - play with the county intermediate hurling team.

Browne had a run with the senior hurlers last year, while McDermott and Glesson (who captained St Flannan's to the All-Ireland last year) played with the under-21 hurlers during the week.