'Why I'm backing Clare for All-Ireland glory'

All-Ireland Hurling Final - Clare v Cork

Date: Sunday, 21 July Throw-in: 15:30 BST Venue: Croke Park, Dublin

Coverage: Watch on BBC Two, BBC Two Northern Ireland, BBC iPlayer & BBC Sport website & app; live text commentary, report, reaction & highlights on BBC Sport website & app

The top five forwards of my generation are Kilkenny's TJ Reid and Richie Hogan, Seamus Callanan of Tipperary, Joe Canning of Galway, and Cork's Patrick Horgan.

All of them have All-Ireland medals in their back pocket except for Patrick Horgan.

After 17 seasons lining out for the Rebels and over a record 700 championship points scored, is this the year that he finally gets his hands on a Celtic Cross?

Standing in his way is Clare's Tony Kelly, who is aiming to become only the third Banner captain - after Anthony Daly in 1995 and 1997 and Patrick Donnellan in 2013 - to lift the Liam MacCarthy Cup since the trophy was first awarded in 1923.

Both sides have lit the All-Ireland series alight this year, but come Sunday evening I think we will hear the Banner roar echoing around the cauldron of Croke Park.

This Clare team are just ready to go all the way. There's a huge buzz around the county having finally overcome their semi-final hoodoo.

Brian Lohan was twice successful on the big day as a full-back in the 1995 and 1997 winning teams and now in his fifth year as manager will feel it is their time again.

There is a collective within this Clare team that will feel this is their last chance, and they will want to take advantage of that (nine of the starting team are now edging into their 30s).

It's a different story for Cork. Other than Patrick Horgan and Seamus Harnedy, their starting 15 are a very young group. The overall need is greater in that Clare squad.

However, it was 2005 when the Rebels won their last All-Ireland and 19 years is a famine for a county with the tradition, history and size of Cork.

The key men

Cork must shut down Clare's two star men in Tony Kelly and Shane O'Donnell. Ciaran Joyce and Kelly will be a huge battle, likewise with Eoin Downey marking O'Donnell, who has really steadied up that Cork defence along with his brother Robert Downey.

A real source of strength for Clare is their replacements, Cathal Malone and David Fitzgerald have formed a brilliant midfield partnership. Although neither of them had a major impact on the semi-final, that doesn't mean they couldn't come out and really take this game by the scruff of the neck.

Cork, however, have played with real freedom in and around the middle too while Darragh Fitzgibbon has just been electric. His athleticism really allows him to express himself in the open spaces of Croke Park.

I think he's in hurler-of-the-year form, along with Shane O’Donnell. Whoever comes out on top, that could be the deciding factor. It’s really nicely set up.

Patrick Horgan could have a definitive say in this tie without having set the world alight this season, but Cork's renaissance is largely due to their half-forward line.

Darragh Fitzgibbon has been one of Cork's standout performers on their run to the All-Ireland final

For the past decade or more, Cork have not been able to secure enough ball up the field through primary possession to give them a platform to attack teams, and this season they have just found that balance.

Patrick Collins now has the option of finding Barret or Fitzgibbon darting into the channels or going long onto the top of Harnedy or Hayes, who often makes his way out to contest the monster deliveries from the Cork goalkeeper.

Seamus Harnedy is now accompanied by two very capable assistants in Declan Dalton and Shane Barrett and they have had a major say in every one of Cork's big performances, crucially in the semi-final, where they contributed eleven points between the three of them (0-9 from play).

If that Clare half-back line can curb the influence of Cork's half-forwards, I think it tips the scales in Clare's favour.

What was really apparent against Kilkenny was the influence of the Clare substitutions Ian Galvin, and especially Ryan Taylor.

Taylor, just back after a full year out following a cruciate operation, came on to win six possessions in the final 20 minutes which was massive. He brought so much energy, pace and work rate in the middle which gave Clare that stranglehold in the middle third that drove them over the line.

Now everybody will say, 'well, what about Cork’s impact off the bench?', with Shane Kingston doing damage most of the time when introduced although he didn't add much to it in the semi-final when he came on.

Cork also have Robbie O'Flynn and Jack O'Connor in reserve who, like Kingston, have pace to burn.

'Hurling's in a really good place'

The championship has been phenomenal. Right from the start there was noise and hype, not only for the Munster Championship, but the Leinster Championship was a brilliant success too.

Galway being dumped out before the knock-out rounds just shows how competitive Leinster has become. Dublin's drive to the provincial final added to the level of competition in Leinster as well.

Hurling is in a really good place. Cork and Limerick at Pairc Ui Chaoimh was exceptional, and if we get anything like that this Sunday, we're in for a real spectacle.

Both semi-finals were excellent but I don't think this is a changing of the guard. Limerick are not going to fade away, every time they've had a setback, they've come back even stronger. The Treaty will be fiercely competitive again next year.

But it's great that we're going to have a new name on the Liam MacCarthy come Sunday. It was becoming a little bit of a ‘who can beat Limerick?’ competition, and now it's riveting, exciting and great for the neutral.

Cork haven't won since 2005, Clare since 2013, so they've been a long time waiting, and 2024 has been a breath of fresh air.

In the Munster round-robin tie these sides served up a scorefest with Clare edging a 3-26 to 3-24 thriller. More of the same please!

Neil McManus was speaking to BBC Sport NI's Luke Young