Ever eager to put the cart before the horse, a bunch of journos engaged in an animated discussion in the Croke Park press room last Sunday prior to the Cork/Waterford replay as to which of the pair would be likelier to beat Limerick in the semifinal. On the grounds that Cork were burning their petrol and would surely have next to nothing left in the tank seven days on, Waterford were the consensus choice. But one dissenter declared that Justin McCarthy's team would constitute ideal semi-final opponents for a Limerick who would have learned from, and be fresher than they were for, the Munster final. Not implausible.

Kindly avoid the temptation, reader, to aver that losing to Limerick after doing the hard work against Cork would be a "typically Waterfordesque" thing to do. On the book of evidence that is the 2007 championship, it would be the polar opposite. That today's is nonetheless a task fraught with perils for them doesn't mean that Waterford aren't better off tackling it a week after the Cork replay than a fortnight after it. Their momentum will not have stalled since last Sunday. Steady as she goes.

And Waterford were. Incisive and accurate when supplementing the attack, industrious and selfless when assisting in defence, Eoin Kelly gave the type of performance he'd meant to give against the same opponents in the 2005 quarter-final. The winners were suitably rewarded for leaving it till nine minutes into the second half to bring on Eoin McGrath, who, like water in whiskey, is best employed sparingly. If the Hurler of the Year debate is all but over bar the crest-tugging, Michael Walsh cannot be too far behind the Man; the captain's energy would power the national grid by itself. But John Mullane has to be in need of a confidence boost.

Leaving him there for 70 minutes sounds like a good way of helping achieve it.

If no team have provided the entertainment this summer that Waterford have, no team have made more of themselves than Limerick have. A voracious work ethic, an indefatigable spirit, an imposing spinal column, effective substitutions, proactive selectors, enlightened coaching.

Particularly that last bit. Where Waterford can flash the sliotar down the field in the knowledge that Dan or Mullane will extemporise, Limerick's circumstances require more studied, patient build-ups and thoughtful use of space. Starting Donie Ryan represents a patent gamble, but Andrew O'Shaughnessy (right) was a spring lamb in his new surroundings a fortnight ago and it'll be a surprise if Brian Begley doesn't give Declan Prendergast fresh problems under the dropping ball. The cliched verdict would be to say that the Munster champions have come too far to micturate on the French fries now. The logical verdict is to hold that the Munster champions are the better, more fluent team and that this will suffice. Their day as long as they battle for it.

Verdict Water ford LIMERICK B Murray; D Reale, S Lucey, S Hickey; P Lawlor, B Geary, M Foley; D O'Grady, M O'Brien; M Fitzgerald, O Moran, S O'Connor; A O'Shaughnessy, B Begley, D Ryan.

WATERFORD C Hennessy; E Murphy, D Prendergast, B Phelan; T Browne, K McGrath, A Kearney; M Walsh, E Kelly; S Molumphy, S Prendergast, P Flynn; J Mullane, D Shanahan, J Kennedy.