Clare regroup with a flourish

All-Ireland SHC Qualifiers/Clare 1-23 Dublin 0-9: Looks bad, doesn't it? And yet, new Dublin manager Tommy Naughton can take some solace from Saturday night's heavy defeat. No excuses were offered afterwards, but remember the opposition arrived in Donnycarney on the back of a winter preparing for the Munster championship.

Clare have been hurling at a different level for some time now, while Dublin have stumbled from one disaster to another. This was them starting again.

Dublin's underlying problems remain but last week Kevin Flynn, Damien Russell and Liam Ryan returned to training. Former captain Flynn hurled well but the positives for Dublin were in the performances of the youngsters.

Ger O'Meara and Derek O'Reilly shone in an embattled defence while Ronan Fallon battled at centre back despite the unrelenting Tony Griffin raiding his patch all evening. Late on, the fearless teenager Peadar Carton even came in and ran at the famed Clare rearguard. He clipped over a point as well. Can probably play football too.

At least Naughton now knows the magnitude of the task.

"The attitude was good in the sense I thought we kept going but, okay, we started going back to silly habits of going on solo running and things like that - fellas going off with individual stuff rather than trying to play as a team. But I mean you come up against Clare - they've been through it so many times," he said.

Clare were also starting afresh. Anthony Daly expressed pleasure at still being in the hunt before raising eyebrows by questioning the system.

"Thank God somebody saw that one game after training since November isn't a sensible route," he said. "I know everybody is giving out about last weekend and I really think they could come up with a better system. That we all could be in a league system. Let everybody play and the top four get into the All-Ireland semi-finals. I really think there is a market for Saturday-night hurling there. I think you would have a great championship even if it meant a little bit of the gloss going off the Munster championship.

"I think hurling needs a more competitive edge. The Munster championship is great but then you saw last Sunday. Unfortunately, Offaly won't be any pushover for us but Kilkenny will do that to you when they get on top of you. No one wants to see that sort of thing.

"I just feel there is a chance there for the GAA to bring hurling back. And there is a real chance there if they go for it. Will they go for change? They are slow to go for change in the GAA."

This was the boisterous Daly of old talking. The taste of victory has him back in championship groove.

"From our point of view any sort of a win coming up tonight was what we were looking for and we got that. I think there were encouraging signs for Dublin as well. When you do organise and you do get a bit of balance to your team you know you can compete - I thought they competed very well."

Even before Clare got motoring Niall Gilligan, Tony Carmody and Griffin had settled into a scoring routine. Diarmuid McMahon was denied such a luxury by the presence of O'Meara.

David Curtin's frees - before he was, strangely, replaced - and a delightful Flynn strike kept Dublin within six points at half-time but the signs were ominous, Curtin and Emmet Carroll having spurned goal chances.

Some 15 seconds after the break Griffin ripped open the cover and supplied Daithí O'Connell, who netted.

The final quarter was virtually shooting practice as Clare unveiled the whole repertoire, including of course a Seánie McMahon 65. Gilligan brought his total to six points without ever apparently breaking sweat.

Clare will need to go up a gear for Offaly in two weeks' time. Dublin? It's a case of small steps. They could do without facing Waterford next.

DUBLIN: 1 G Maguire; 2 G O'Meara, 3 S Hiney, 4 J Cullen; 5 D O'Reilly, 6 R Fallon (0-1, 1f), 7 D Sweeney; 8 T Moore, 9 M Carton; 20 S McDonald, 11 D Curtin (0-5, 5f), 12 D Russell; 13 E Carroll, 14 L Ryan, 15 K Flynn (0-2, 1f). Subs: 24 T Sweeney for S McDonald (31 mins), 10 E Moran for D Curtin (42 mins), 23 P Carton (0-1) for L Ryan (45 mins), 21 S Mullen for M Carton (62 mins).

CLARE: 1 D Fitzgerald; 2 F Lohan, 3 B Lohan, 4 B Quinn; 22 C Forde, 6 S McMahon (0-1, 65), 7 G Quinn; 8 B O'Connell (0-1), 20 D Forde (0-2); 10 D McMahon (0-4), 11 T Griffin (0-2), 5 A Markham; 13 T Carmody (0-5), 14 N Gilligan (0-6, 3f), 21 D O'Connell (1-0). Subs: 19 C Plunkett for A Markham (36 mins), 18 D Hoey for G Quinn, 15 A Quinn for T Griffin (both 56 mins), 17 D Clancy (0-1) for B O'Connell (58 mins), 25 D O'Rourke (0-1) for D O'Connell (62 mins).

Referee: D Murphy (Wexford).