The opening match of yesterday's Church & General National Hurling League semi-finals double bill at Thurles was no great shakes. But by the three-quarters stage of the second, between Tipperary and Limerick, people were feeling nostalgic for the Galway-Waterford epic.
Vast swathes of the 34,600 attendance had left by the final whistle and even winning manager Nicholas English acknowledged that his team had won a poor contest.
Limerick didn't make enough of what chances they had when playing with the wind in the first half and compounded their difficulties by conceding two avoidable goals. After the break, they had few answers as Tipperary compiled a winning total.
English was of course more concerned about injuries and the proximity of the championship - Tipp play Waterford in four weeks - than about the league final, but the opportunity to test his players again in a fortnight will be welcome, particularly as Waterford didn't qualify to make the event an uncomfortable dress rehearsal for Pairc Ui Chaoimh.
Fewer than half of Tipperary's starting 15 began last year's championship meeting with Clare, so despite the new-look image of 12 months ago, Tipperary are again a work in progress. Limerick are further adrift.
Their opponents will still be fairly familiar as it will be the fourth time in seven years that Galway and Tipp have met in a League final. By the end of the second semi-final, there was no doubting the verdict and the holders will now take their title defence all the way.
English's point about needing matches to help settle a team in which plenty of positions are up for grabs is valid. Fewer than half of yesterday's starting 15 began last year's championship meeting with Clare, so despite the newlook image of 12 months ago, Tipperary are again a work in progress.
Limerick are further adrift. After a creditable league campaign which saw them lose only one match, they knew that yesterday was going to be a step up in standard. A big crowd, serious opposition and sudden death all combined to make this a big test for Eamonn Cregan's youthful side.
He wasn't that happy with yesterday's outcome, but it can hardly have surprised him too much that the side struggled in certain areas. Brian Begley's physique at full forward has been a feature of Limerick's successes in attack, but yesterday he was easily contained by Philip Maher, plausibly regarded as the best full back in the league so far.
But as Cregan pointed out, the quality of service to Begley was far from ideal. Even so, he could have done better with what came his way, particularly the rebound from Barry Foley's 20-metre free which he fresh-aired.
Otherwise the forwards showed only in patches, with Shane O'Neill and Mike O'Brien tuning in for quality two-point hauls. Mark Keane showed more consistently and scored four points from play, but despite dangerous-looking moves, both James Butler, well shepherded by Michael Ryan, and the more experienced Barry Foley drew blanks.
Tipperary weren't blameless in this regard, but their collective effort was underwritten as usual by the virtually immaculate dead-ball striking of captain Tommy Dunne. Mark O'Leary didn't cash in for his normal four or five points, but he managed a goal for a respectable total of 1-1, although his marker Mark Foley had an influential game, particularly in the first half.
Before the throw-in, Tipperary had to make two changes. Declan Ryan had to drop out with an arthritic toe and he was replaced at centre forward by that other 1989 veteran John Leahy. At corner back, Liam Sheedy came in for Paul Ormonde who has still to recover from damaged rib cartilage.
Leahy had a mixed afternoon. He started as if he would end Ollie Moran's career at centre back, constantly giving his marker the slip and ghosting into menacing positions. In the first 20 minutes he scored a point, made another for Liam Cahill, and then a goal for O'Leary. He then went quiet as Moran regained the initiative before slipping in for a streaky goal on half an hour.
Limerick were coming from behind for the whole match. Although they did well to square things up by half-time, the wind was in Tipp's favour for the second half. They had also used up a bit too much petrol recovering from the two goals and seemed unable to respond when Tipperary moved away after the interval.
O'Leary's goal came after Limerick had pulled themselves level - the pull hitting the upright and deflecting into the net - and no sooner had the challengers accomplished an impressive scoring spurt to cancel the goal's impact than Leahy got the final touch for a goal which trickled over the line and restored the three-point margin.
Again Limerick responded. Ollie Moran's free went over from about 100 metres, his brother James added another, and Mark Keane capitalised on a lovely through ball from O'Brien for a point which could have been a goal if he had fully availed of the pass.
After the break, Limerick's defence came under increased pressure. TJ Ryan was in the wars at full back and needed attention on a couple of occasions. He coped with Paul Shelly - although it took a fine save from Timmy Houlihan to keep out a shot from the Killenaule man in the 18th minute - who nonetheless managed two points from play. Both were spoken to by referee Pat Horan when their tussle became a little uninhibited.
The third quarter was when Tipp put the match away with a string of well-taken points. This sequence included a spectacular over-the-shoulder effort from Andy Moloney, who shortly afterwards had the misfortune to be carted off with an eye injury which is set to keep him out of the final.
Tipperary: B Cummins; L Sheedy, P Maher, Michael Ryan; N Morris, D Kennedy, E Corcoran; A Moloney (0-1), J Carroll (0-1); M O'Leary (1-1), J Leahy (1-2), T Dunne (capt; 0-8, seven frees and one 65); L Cahill (0-1), P Shelly (0-2), P O'Brien (0-2). Subs: E Tucker for Moloney (53 mins); Micheal Ryan for Morris (53 mins); P Ryan for Carroll (65 mins); B O'Meara for Michael Ryan (68 mins).
Limerick: T Houlihan; S McDonagh, TJ Ryan, B Geary; J Foley, O Moran (0-1, a free), M Foley (0-1, a free); C Smith (capt), J Moran (0-1); S O'Neill (0-2), M O'Brien (0-2), M Keane (0-7, three frees); J Butler, B Begley (0-2), B Foley. Subs: D Hennessy for O'Brien (43 mins); J Cormican (0-1) for Butler (48 mins); S Lucey for Geary (65 mins); D Stapleton for Cormican (69 mins).
Referee: P Horan (Offaly).
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