All the pre-match hype was about Waterford manager Davy Fitzgerald facing his home county, whom he had served so well during a hugely-decorated playing career.

The damage was really done by the Deise in the opening half as they established a 0-11 to 0-6 half-time lead, with Shane Walsh and Ken McGrath firing over some excellent points.

Niall Gilligan and Colin Ryan led the Banner's scoring.

The aforementioned Walsh and Michael 'Brick' Walsh stood out for Fitzgerald's men, who were much sharper and hovered up plenty of ball in midfield and in the half-forward line.

Clare tried out Cathal Dillon at full-back and he made a decent fist of it, even if Shane Walsh and Eoin Kelly both scored three points from play off him in either half.

Clare's better performers on the day were in defence with Gerry O'Grady and Pat Vaughan deserving special mention, while Waterford's Ken McGrath also showed some nice touches in a centre-forward role.

The second half saw Clare increase the tempo of their play, with Barry Nugent helping them close the gap to 0-12 to 0-10.

'Brick' Walsh then took centre stage as he provided a series of assists which led to five successive points for the Deise, who seemed to have recovered well from their opening defeat to Tipperary.

For Clare, their next opponents are defending champions and it is simply a must-win game for Mike McNamara's men, who are currently third-from-bottom in the table.