IT was perhaps inevitable that Dublin would draw Clare in the All-Ireland SHC qualifiers. Certainly, Anthony Daly felt that it was fate conspiring against him.

In all likelihood, it had to happen sometime. Daly, the great leader of one of the most storied hurling teams ever, will walk the line in direct opposition to Clare in championship hurling for the first time tomorrow in Croke Park.

More than that, he'll pit his wits against a man he grew up within a short puck off, Ger O'Loughlin. Yet if any Dubs are in doubt as to his loyalties (and we doubt too many are), they can rest assured.

"In fairness to Dalo, I know what Dublin means to him. He's one hundred per cent behind the Dublin team tomorrow. I'd have no fears of that," says Stephen McNamara, an All-Ireland winner with Daly in Clare in 1995 and current senior hurling manager of Faughs.

"But I don't think it's going to hit him until he sees the Clare jersey on the pitch. It will probably bring back memories for him of the '90s. But he'll knock that out of his head.

"If I was a Dublin man, I wouldn't be one bit worried about Dalo or where his loyalties lie. You'll see passion out of Dalo tomorrow.

Fabled

"Himself and Sparrow are from the one terrace. They'll probably have a laugh before the game and they'll have a laugh after the game but they won't communicate for the 70 minutes."

McNamara soldiered with Daly through the glory years of Clare hurling, that fabled period through the mid-90s when they captivated the national imagination and a time they have been slow to move on from.

Ger Loughnane will always be credited for cajoling the Banner to life but McNamara insists Daly was just as influential.

"If Dalo became Taoiseach I wouldn't be surprised because he's a fantastic leader," he says. "He's the best leader I've seen. If you ask any player in that set-up or Loughnane or any of the backroom team, they'll tell you Dalo was the leader.

"If you had a problem, you could go to him. Still now, if you have a problem, you can go to him. He's still a leader among men. He always will be for that team. He always has that respect. He's still the boss. Players will always look up to him."

That generation was slow to move on, though, and only now after their All-Ireland under-21 success of last year are Clare really beginning to sew new seeds.

The group of players that were so in thrall of Daly and his stature are no longer around but McNamara insists the latest batch will have a similar levels of respect.

"That man lifted Liam MacCarthy twice so if they don't, there's something wrong with them. If they don't have respect for Dalo, there's something wrong with them.

"But it shouldn't affect them in Croke Park. The Sparrow is a great operator and he will have their head screwed on right."

McNamara was delighted with Clare's performance against Waterford in Munster and he has fresh hope that O'Loughlin can build a team that in time can rescale the heights of his own generation though he stresses that Clare, like Dublin, need to be patient with their young players.

"We're not expecting anything to happen for the next two or three years," he reckons.

"If we won tomorrow and went on to get into an All-Ireland quarter-final, we'd be so happy. I know Sparrow is a born winner and he'll want to get as far as he can.

"I was delighted with them against Waterford. These lads are still learning the game. They're being pulled from pillar to post. They're playing under 21, they're playing Fitzgibbon so maybe only now we'll see the freshness in them."

As for Dublin, McNamara believes the county is on to a good thing in Daly and it's little surprise that he sees the Clarecastle man as the key to a successful hurling future in the capital.

"If lads stay listening to him, the belief will come," he points out. "People mightn't be happy that it's not coming quick enough but look where you're coming from. A Leinster final last year, Division One for the last three years, another under-21 Leinster final next Wednesday. That's progress."

A Clare man living in Dublin, McNamara can expect plenty of banter from both sides tomorrow but his heart is still set on a Banner win. And while form lines are practically untraceable, he foresees a Clare victory.

"Clare coming up will feel they can beat Dublin. But Dublin are in Division One for the last three years. Clare aren't," he adds.

"But they will feel if they step up and they're in the game with five or 10 minutes to go that they'll go on and win the game."

- Conor McKeon