Talk of five in a row forbidden for history-chasing Limerick - Seamus Hickey

Former Limerick defender Séamus Hickey has stressed that any mention of a possible historic All-Ireland five-in-a-row simply will not be allowed to seep into the Treaty dressing room.

The 'drive for five' has only been attempted twice before in hurling, Tipperary pulling up the handbrake on both occasions against Cork in Munster in 1945 and in the 2010 final against Kilkenny.

John Kiely’s side will attempt the feat in 2024, with that challenge set to be the main plotline of the championship, but Hickey said that such noise will be blocked out by the main characters.

"It's not real until it happens, and especially in the dressingroom," said the GAAGO pundit. "Something that's not real, doesn't really come to bear until you have dealt with it.

"For argument's sake, at the start of the year, they will set out their goals. They'll set out their long-term one, they'll set out their intermediate ones for each competition - for league, Munster and please God [the All-Ireland series].

"Your ultimate goal is always the same, and it's the same for every team. It's the same for Carlow, same for Dublin, Kilkenny, Tipperary and Waterford. You break it down into the bitesize pieces every year because you cannot win Liam MacCarthy in January.

"From that perspective, it does become quite mechanical in an inter-county setup. Your year goes through the same patterns and rhythms.

"The positive side for Limerick is that they have such a strong continuity on leadership - John Kiely, Paul Kinnerk, Joe O'Connor is back in there, which to me is a real positive sign because losing Caroline Currid, to me, would have been a loss.

"Joe has been with that group of players before and he's a top notch professional when it comes to performance. Because that