Interprovincial Hurling Final/Munster 2-22 Connacht 2-19:They went to Rome, Paris and Boston in attempts to breathe life into the Interprovincial Championships, but Ger Loughnane's solution is divinely simple - let there be light.
"For the league and competitions like this there is one solution and that is to play them under lights. There is something about night-time (games) that is way better than playing on a dull Sunday afternoon. The night-time lends itself to a better atmosphere.
"The way forward for the GAA over the winter is to get more floodlights around the country on good surfaces and, I can tell you, people will come back and watch games like that."
Holding this fixture in spring would provide an ideal championship tune-up, so the Galway manager's words come as no surprise.
"The danger at this time of year is players are not really fit so it does lead to injuries - David Collins (ankle) is very badly injured, Fergal Moore is injured again. You are not as well able to take the tackles as in the middle of summer."
A growing number of managers and players seek to return the interpros to St Patrick's Day, their traditional date, alongside the club finals, but Loughnane, as ever, is thinking laterally.
"If you had the club final here on Paddy's Day and you play this game under lights the night before, look at the night and day of hurling you would have. A lot of people would stay over and watch the club final. Players would be fit too. It's very hard to kill off a competition that produces a game like that."
This was Loughnane's primary point. He was adamant we had witnessed a fantastic game. The scoreboard and excitement down the home straight seemed to support him, but in reality this was more akin to a challenge match.
When the best hurlers from Munster and Connacht put on an exhibition you are liable to see wonderful skills. Only the intensity of high summer was absent.
There was a slightly embarrassing moment during half-time when the GAA president, Nickey Brennan, made a presentation to the two-millionth visitor to the new Croke Park. Many of the 10,127 spectators had by then left.
Waterford's Eoin Kelly hit 0-10, six from frees, to ensure Niall Healy's 0-11, eight frees, did not dominate the landscape.
John Mullane, captaining Munster to a 45th title, got matters rolling with a goal after just 79 seconds. Hurler of the year Dan Shanahan was the supplier.
Aongus Callanan kept "Connacht" (an all-Galway XV) in touch before a goal from Limerick's Ollie Moran, cancelled out by Alan Kerins, left Munster leading 2-11 to 2-9 at the turn. The first half was overshadowed however by the Collins' injury.
Some enthralling scores followed, perhaps the irony of the night coming when replacement Keith Higgins of Mayo had a seemingly legitimate 58th-minute goal disallowed.
Loughnane was typically forthright to the end: "You had an inexperienced referee from the North. Two umpires (laughing) - you could hardly understand what they were saying. They didn't know what happened, so when they were undecided they decided not to allow it."
MUNSTER: B Murray; E Murphy, D Fanning, G Quinn (0-1); J Gardiner (0-4, 65, two frees), T Browne, S Hickey; D O'Grady (0-3), B O'Connell; S McGrath, O Moran (1-0), E Kelly (0-10, six frees); J Mullane (1-2, capt), D Shanahan, L Corbett (0-2). Subs: S Óg Ó hAilpín for B O'Connell (18-49 mins), N Gilligan for S McGrath (33 mins), G O'Grady for E Murphy (42 mins), S Óg Ó hAilpín for G Quinn (50 mins), N Moran for O Moran (53 mins), M O'Brien for D Shanahan (58-63 mins).
CONNACHT: J Skehill; F Moore, C Dervan (0-2, two frees), G Mahon; D Collins, J Lee, A Keary; F Healy, R Murray; A Kerins (1-0), I Tannian, S Glynn; D Hayes (0-3), N Healy (0-11, eight frees), A Callanan (1-3). Substitutes: D Joyce for D Collins (23 mins), T Óg Regan for G Mahon (31 mins), K Hynes for S Glynn (half-time), K Higgins for A Kerins (54 mins), G Kennedy for F Moore (61 mins).
Referee: D Magee (Down).
