The Echo Sport Podcast crew head into club championship mode but first, there's a look at the All-Ireland hurling final.

Limerick returned to the top of the pile in emphatic fashion, easily dismantling the Galway system of counter-attacking that derailed Cork in the semi. The Tribe's lack of nous and experience against Limerick's intensity and high press was telling. So how did Cork not keep their eyes on the sliotar to have another crack off the green machine? It's all about intensity, attitude and hurling to your strengths.

The All-Ireland football final takes place next Sunday, where it's difficult to look past yet another Kerry victory over Mayo. However, the focus on Leeside will be on the club scene.

It's the first round of the club football championships and we look at the teams to beat in each grade.

St Finbarr's, so narrowly beaten by Dingle in the Munster final last winter, have to be favourites but they did endure a fairly indifferent league. The key for the holders is how fresh their inter-county contingent, particularly Steven Sherlock, Ian Maguire, William Buckley and Brian Hayes will be.

Do Castlehaven have another kick in them? They edged out Knocknagree, a quality addition to the top tier, in a brilliant league final recently. Clon remain the dark horses but all three of those clubs, along with Ballincollig, semi-finalists last year, are in one stacked group.

Carbery were impressive in the divisional section while Douglas had a solid league and Carrigaline have the physicality and firepower, highlighted by their Division 2 league triumph, to impact. Newcestown pushed Nemo all the way to extra time last season. Can they push on from that outstanding campaign?

Outside of the Premier Senior Championship, we look at the matches to catch on the opening weekend.

The most likely county champions are picked across all the levels, Premier Senior, Senior A, Premier Intermediate, Intermediate A and Premier Junior.

Now in its fourth season, every Monday, Éamonn Murphy is joined by The Echo team, including Barry O’Mahony, Denis Hurley, Rory Noonan, John Horgan and more to discuss all the latest Cork GAA news on and off the field. You can listen on Echolive.ie/podcast or anywhere you get your podcasts.

Don't forget to log onto www.IrishExaminer.com as well to catch up on the best inter-county analysis including Dalo's Hurling Show and The Gaelic Football Show.

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The Echo Sport Podcast crew reflect on how the inter-county season panned out across both codes before we launch into a bumper three-and-a-half months of the best club action in the country.

With just one All-Ireland final reached, even if it did see the minor footballers rally from nine points down to wrestle the Tommy Markham Cup from Tyrone in a stone-cold classic, the 2026 campaign has to be classed as a disappointment.

Keith Ricken's U17 side were also the only Cork team to lift a Munster title, with the minor and U20 hurlers losing provincial semi-finals and the two senior teams falling to their great rivals Limerick and Kerry. It's no coincidence that those two counties are now in the All-Ireland final and firm favourites to return with the biggest prizes of them all.

The most galling disappointment was the hurlers' heavy defeat to Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final. Here on the podcast, we were extremely wary of the Tribe threat, given their excellence in the Munster final and how fortunate Cork had been to beat them in the league, but certainly it was a massive upset and particularly cruel on the Rebel faithful who had to witness another second-half fadeout.

On this show, we ask the key questions that Cork will have to answer from here. We look at what young players could be brought in to add further depth to the squad, with Timmy Wilk and Jack Leahy among the standouts. We also discuss how the Rebels can change their tactical approach and if there's an outside coach Ben O'Connor could add to his backroom.

On the football front, reaching an All-Ireland quarter-final and gaining promotion was certainly progress but there's a feeling of a missed opportunity after seeing Mayo power past Louth into a showdown with Kerry. John Cleary's side had enough chances to defeat the Connacht side two weeks ago.

At the same time, they still need to mix up their approach on the pitch, look to feed their forwards a bit quicker when they're on top in midfield and a find a couple of scoring options for an attack that relies too heavily on Steven Sherlock and Chris Óg Jones.

Now in its fourth season, every Monday, Éamonn Murphy is joined by The Echo team, including Barry O’Mahony, Denis Hurley, Rory Noonan, John Horgan and more to discuss all the latest Cork GAA news on and off the field. You can listen on Echolive.ie/podcast or anywhere you get your podcasts.

Don't forget to log onto www.IrishExaminer.com as well to catch up on the best inter-county analysis including Dalo's Hurling Show and The Gaelic Football Show.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Echo Sport Podcast crew go from the high of an epic All-Ireland minor final victory to the low of another Croke Park hurling collapse on the show this week as the inter-county season, from a Cork perspective, concludes.

Now in its fourth season, every Monday, Éamonn Murphy is joined by The Echo team, including Barry O’Mahony, Denis Hurley, Rory Noonan, John Horgan and more to discuss all the latest Cork GAA news on and off the field. You can listen on Echolive.ie/podcast or where you get your podcasts.

The minor footballers gave the whole county a badly needed lift with a sensational comeback on Sunday. Down by nine points early in the second half at Newbridge and being outplayed by a slick Ulster side who landed the title last season, they gritted their teeth and delivered the massive scores to get them over the line.

A massive Cork crowd more than played its part as a three-point salvo from Joe Miskella and a goal by sub Alex O'Herlihy sparked the Rebel revival. Keeper Rory Twohig and wing-back Éanna Lynch made goal-saving stops and an injury-time 1-1 from Eoin Ahern and Tom Whooley saw Cork snatch the title. Gabriel Oronsaye also had a stormer off the bench.

It was a masterclass from manager Keith Ricken, whose experience ensured the young guns never stopped firing even when the cause looked lost.

On another bitterly disappointing outing to Croker, the hurlers certainly didn't shoot the lights, aside from Brian Hayes, as they failed to build on a 1-12 to 1-7 advantage against a ravenous Galway.

The Leinster champions got on top just before half-time and squeezed the life out of Cork in the second half, where Ben O'Connor's side managed just six points, even if they did chase goals late on.

Their inability to win long puck-outs, losing nine of the 11 they attempted in the second half, meant they had no platform at all to get in behind Galway's defensive structure and they took just six shots outside of the 45. In the first half, a patient approach paid off but when Galway gathered momentum, Cork fell apart, not helped by Darragh Fitzgibbon's red card.

It leaves huge questions now for the players and management, with supporters particularly bewildered by William Buckley falling down the pecking order.

The big question is, where to from here after being leading contenders for three years running without landing the big prize?

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