"You have to engage this Limerick team physically, just to survive and be in the game"

Kilkenny great Jackie Tyrrell believes Dublin will have to go long and direct against Limerick at Croke Park tomorrow if they are to upset the odds and advance to the All-Ireland SHC semi-finals.

Having finished third in the Leinster SHC, the capital men dished out a 3-25 to 0-13 hammering to Joe McDonagh Cup champions Kildare in Newbridge last weekend to earn their place in the quarter-finals.

Limerick now stand in the way of Niall Ó Ceallacháin’s team, who are 12/1 outsiders to tear up the script at headquarters and, speaking on the RTE GAA podcast this week, nine-time All-Ireland winner Tyrrell feels that John Kiely’s men will be “too physical and powerful” for the Metropolitans.

"You have to engage this Limerick team physically, just to survive and be in the game," he said. "Maybe we will see Conor Burke for the first 15-20 minutes maybe dropping in centre-back and maybe Chris Crummey dropping off or maybe Conor Burke will just go back because they just need to stay in the game, build from there and get their confidence.

"Is there merit in putting Ronan Hayes or Hedgo (John Hetherton) on the edge of the square and going long and direct? Because I don't think running through this Limerick team, you're going to get much success. They're just too physical and powerful for this Dublin team right now.

"So maybe that long ball route in - you've seen the success that Brian Hayes probably has early in there - although Seán Finn and Mike Casey are extremely good defenders, they're not going to be catching balls.

"If they can break that ball, move Kyle Hayes around... there's probably elements of the Cork game that Dublin can look at. How they interchanged their half-forward line, how they moved Kyle Hayes around and maybe bypassing that half-forward line, trying to pull them out and go long in and see if they can get success.

"But staying in the game, growing into the game is hugely important from Dublin. The thing from Dublin though is they have been leaking soft goals throughout this round robin and that's maybe why there is merit in dropping an extra man back."