Limerick drop O'Connor

Limerick manager Eamonn Cregan has sprung some big surprises for Sunday's All-Ireland hurling quarter-final against Wexford at…

Limerick manager Eamonn Cregan has sprung some big surprises for Sunday's All-Ireland hurling quarter-final against Wexford at Croke Park.

Seβn O'Connor, who had an impressive debut last time out and scored 1-3, is dropped down to the bench. Mike O'Brien moves up from midfield to left wing forward to take over his position.

There is one other change in personnel from the starting line-up of the team that fell to Tipperary in the Munster final, and a number of further positional switches.

James Moran returns to his midfield after missing the Munster final with a hand injury, and the man to lose out there is Jack Foley.

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Ciarβn Carey moves up from centre back to midfield to join Moran. Damien Reale - who came on as a substitute against Tipperary - comes into defence.

With Brian Geary now at centre back, Clem Smith moves into the corner back position from wing back where he joins T J Ryan and Stephen McDonagh. The full-forward line of Johnny Butler, Brian Begley and Barry Foley remains unaltered.

Wexford have also made significant changes. Two under-21 players have been given championship debuts as manager Tony Dempsey looks for an improvement on the team's performance in the Leinster final against Kilkenny.

Corner back David O'Connor and midfielder Nicky Lambert were both part of Wexford's recent Leinster success in the under-21 championship and they have been rewarded with places in Sunday's line-up.

Two further under-21 players - Trevor Kelly and Rory Mallon - also get starting places at centre forward and corner back, respectively, but they also both appeared as substitutes in the Leinster final loss to Kilkenny.

There is a vacancy left at wing back in the expectancy that Declan Ruth will get over his hamstring injury before Sunday. In total, there are four changes in personnel and the players to lose out are Colm Kehoe, who suffered a dislocated shoulder in the Leinster final as well as Ryan Quigley, who has been suffering with a hamstring injury. Sean Flood will start among the substitutes on this occaision.

The Derry team to play Galway sees two changes in personnel from that which won the Ulster title earlier this month.

Padraig Kelly comes into the defence, and former footballer SΘamus Downey, who appeared as a substitute in the win over Down, gets a starting place in the attack. The man to lose out is Gary Biggs.

LIMERICK (SH v Wexford): T Houlihan; S McDonagh, TJ Ryan, C Smith; D Reale, B Geary, M Foley; C Carey, J Moran; P O'Grady, O Moran, M O'Brien; J Butler, B Begley, B Foley.

WEXFORD (SH v Limerick): D Fitzhenry; R Mallon, D Ryan, D O'Connor; AN Other, L Dunne, L O'Gorman; A Fenlon, N Lambert; D Stamp, T Kelly, P Codd; M Jordan, L Murphy, R McCarthy.

DERRY (SH v Galway): K Stevenson; E McKeever, C Murray, P Kelly; M Conway, C McEldowney, B Ward; R McCloskey, O Collins; K McKeever, S Downey, Gregory Biggs; M Collins, G McGonagle, J O'Dwyer.

Ian O'Riordan

Ian O'Riordan

Ian O'Riordan is an Irish Times sports journalist writing on athletics