Shane O'Donnell: I never thought it would take 11 years to get back to an All-Ireland final

Shane O'Donnell admits he never foresaw it taking 11 years to return to an All-Ireland final after he exploded into public consciousness in 2013.

O'Donnell was a 19-year-old shock inclusion for the All-Ireland final replay against Cork, having played no part in the drawn game.

The Éire Óg attacker famously fired home three goals inside the opening 20 minutes as Davy Fitzgerald's wildcard selection gambit paid off to an extraordinary degree.

Clare utlimately overcame Cork in what was an unlikely All-Ireland final pairing for the era and O'Donnell never envisaged it would take over a decade to get back to the showpiece.

While another first half hat-trick is a bit much to be expecting, O'Donnell, who turned 30 last month, is a far more reliably prominent figure for Clare these days, and is widely touted as a Hurler of the Year contender in 2024.

"I certainly wouldn't have thought it'd be 11 years between the two All-Irelands," the Clare inside-forward told RTÉ Sport.

"Especially after that year (2013). That year was a bit of a whirlwind and I wasn't necessarily always in the starting team.

"So, you don't experience it in the same way that I experience it now, where you're in the middle of it all the time and in every game.

"It's... strange, to be honest, that it's been 11 years since we've been there.

"All the games feel quite similar but then when you get into the All-Ireland final, there's just so much more hype and attention and all that great stuff that comes with it.

"It's certainly very different and I'd kind of forgotten what that's like. So, I've just been enjoying it.

"I wouldn't read too much into it (2013 replay). A lot of things went my way, I was very fortunate that day. I've played Cork a lot of times since and they've