Full-forward thinking: Contrasting styles of Shane O'Donnell and Alan Connolly key to glory for Clare or Cork

In 2013, we had the Shane O'Donnell final.

He was in his first senior season and barely 19 years old but scored a replay hat-trick inside the same number of minutes to give Clare the platform for All-Ireland SHC glory against Cork.

Will history repeat itself tomorrow or can the Rebels find their own young hero at full-forward and reverse the result on the big day?

Now 30, the man from Ennis is the fulcrum of the Banner attack and looks certain to win a third All-Star in a row, a remarkable achievement given he missed the 2021 season with a concussion that threatened his hurling career.

For a long time, Clare relied on his team-mate Tony Kelly for their spark but it was O’Donnell who led the ultimately futile resistance to Kilkenny in the semi-final defeats of 2022 (when he scored 0-04 from play) and 2023 (1-01).

He contributed just one point against the Cats this year, turning double All-Star full-back Huw Lawlor to do so, but also set up points for team-mates and won multiple frees, despite being unable to stem the bleeding from an injured hand after the 23rd minute.

O'Donnell has a doctorate in microbiology and, in an era of unprecedented aversion to the spotlight, has not been afraid to speak his mind: taking the GAA to task after his personal experience of being out of pocket due to injury and calling for the scrapping of the hurling league – he credits sitting out the early months of the year for not having already retired.

"He was a breath of fresh air then and he’s a breath of fresh air now," says Michael Duignan, who won two All-Ireland titles as a forward with Offaly. "He’s not your typical GAA player. He’s very open. He’s gone to Harvard, he has done a PhD, wants to be an astronaut. I’d say if he wants to be he will