"That's what makes the Under-21 Hurling Championships so good. It's so unique that you only have one chance. It's possibly everyone's last game in the Championship, so you have to be on your A game."
From those words, it's clear that Limerick's Peter Casey is under no illusion about the task at hand as he and his team-mates prepare for a Munster final in the Bord Gais Energy Under-21 Championship.
Both sides do battle on Wednesday, July 26th after overcoming Clare and Waterford in their respective semi finals.
Limerick beat Clare with relative comfort but there was a period in the game when the Banner were able to claw back some of the Limerick lead briefly. That's something Casey, who scored the early Limerick goal that day, wants to remedy against Cork.
Speaking to Off The Ball's Oisin Langan, he said: "That's something we're working on, trying to not let teams get back into it. I suppose that's every team's fault in the game. If you're leading, just try and push on. But I think since coming back against Tipperary and coming back against Clare, we did quite well and gained a lot of confidence from it."
Cork goalkeeper Patrick Collins ©INPHO/Donall Farmer
The natural step up for the cream of this Limerick crop is to make the step up to Senior and Casey is satisfied with the talent coming through.
"We know that there is talent in Limerick still, so I wouldn't be worrying too much and look, we're really looking forward to next year and Wednesday night," he said, adding that it's also a case of cutting out silly mistakes when it comes to a disappointing year for the Senior setup.
In contrast, Cork under-21 goalkeeper Patrick Collins is hoping to carry on the spirit built by the Seniors and Minors in the All Ireland Championship so far this summer.
"It's been a great summer so far for Cork hurling. The Minors have been very impressive to date. The Seniors, going well inside. Now it's up to the '21s to see what we can do on Wednesday night," he said.
"It's going to be a tough challenge. We know that. But we're looking forward to it."
This article was brought to you in association with Bord Gáis Energy, putting you at the core of the action of the GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior and U-21 Championships – keep up to date and follow #HurlingToTheCore
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