Tom Ryan will be sitting in the Hogan Stand for Sunday's All-Ireland hurling semi-final relieved, reluctantly, of August hurling pressures for the first time in three seasons. The Limerick manager expects to see Clare deal with what he considers the more physical style of the game in Leinster and, at the same time, overcome Kilkenny's flair.

"It will be naked hurling," Ryan says. "Clare will do nothing unusual, they like to play a basic game and get on with the job at hand.

"They are, in my opinion, a better and more confident team now than they were when they won the All-Ireland two years ago."

Limerick did Clare a favour by beating them early in last year's Munster championship, he says. Clare had celebrated their All-Ireland success for virtually a full year. "They were entitled to celebrate that 81-year barren spell. Nobody can prevent what happens in a situation like that. When we beat them last year we brought them back to earth and made them see the other side of the equation. They have regrouped since for this championship. Their attitude and general approach now is a joy to watch.

"Ger Loughnane has done a great job with them, and Michael McNamara's physical training expertise has the team in winning shape."

Not everyone would agree with Ryan's appraisal of Leinster hurling being more physical than Munster's, but the Limerick boss, whose team was beaten in two of the last three All-Ireland finals by Offaly and Wexford, insists it is.

"It was a major problem for us. We failed to match the physical aspects in both those finals and lost out. With Clare it will be different," said Ryan. "Kilkenny have natural skills, that goes without saying. But DJ Carey, for example, will not be given room to swing a cat in the Clare defence. The Clare defence wouldn't give you crumbs off the table."

Although Ryan agrees Kilkenny have the edge in over-all flair and have class to burn, even these important attributes, he contends, "may not be enough to overcome this refreshed Clare team".

Ryan looks away from Carey to find a Kilkenny forward more likely to make the biggest individual impact for the Leinster runners-up. Carey, he feels, will be too closely marked. He picks out John Power as the "obvious choice to fill the potential individual starring role. He is due a big one."

Kilkenny's confidence would have gained a big boost by that quarter-final win over Galway. "It takes the losing tag off their backs. Galway were being hailed as the team of the year. Cyril Farrell was very confident they'd win the AllIreland this year."

Too much can be made of Kilkenny's second-half recovery, he warns. "A nine or 10-point lead in hurling at that stage is no longer safe."

Midfield is the only sector where Ryan would have misgivings about the Clare challenge. "They have not been happy there for some time and have made a lot of changes in the area, both in the league and the championship."

He claims that Clare have an unsung hero at the heart of their defence in Sean McMahon. "He is a commanding, mobile player and a great long-range free taker."

The Clare forwards, according to Ryan, have promised more than they have produced, but with Fergal Hegarty and Conor Clancy brought into the full forward line, they have added not just experience but also the players in form.

The Clare forwards are strong and brave: "They may not be in the DJ Carey mould, but they have it in other ways.

"Nicky (Brennan) was not happy with the formation of the team since the Leinster final. They have had time to analyse the situation and have had a great run to try out players in different positions, while still remaining in both championship and league.

"They have been experimenting along the way, so I believe that when they strike it good someone is going to pay a desperate price. They are a Croke Park team. In fact, Croke Park is something of a home venue for any Leinster team," he maintains.

"If Kilkenny get over this one they will be around for a long time to come, since their under-age programme is so strong."

But Ryan doesn't feel Kilkenny will get over this one. It will be a low scoring game, nothing like the feast provided in the Kilkenny-Galway quarter-final.

"The uncompromising strengths of the Clare defence and a reshuffled attack that includes form players should carry the day for Clare," he concludes.