Three From Three: How Clare Are Storming Through Division 1B
Clare’s 2026 Allianz Hurling League campaign has been nothing short of devastating. Three games played, three wins, 8-83 scored, just 2-56 conceded. The 2024 All-Ireland champions are tearing through Division 1B and look almost certain to secure promotion back to Division 1A. But how have they done it? Here’s a full breakdown of every Clare hurling result in the 2026 league so far — the stats, the key players, and what it all means for championship.
Clare Hurling League Results 2026: Round-by-Round Breakdown
Round 1: Clare 3-18 Dublin 1-22
Date: Sunday, January 25 | Venue: Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg, Ennis | Attendance: 7,553
This was supposed to be a statement from Clare on home turf. Instead, Dublin made them fight for every inch of it.
Niall Ó Ceallacháin’s Dublin side came to Ennis with a plan and executed it brilliantly in the first half. They hit seven of the first nine points and led 0-07 to 0-02 after just 14 minutes. Clare had racked up nine wides before Dublin even registered their first. It looked like trouble.
But Clare’s ability to find goals turned the game. David Reidy cut inside in the 29th minute to hit the net and level it at 0-10 to 1-07. Then Peter Duggan pounced on a blocked clearance to raise a second green flag before half-time — Clare led 2-08 to 0-11 at the break.
Dublin didn’t go away. Brian Hayes scored a goal early in the second half to cut the gap to one. Donal Burke kept the scoreboard ticking. By the final minutes, it was level again. Then came the moment everyone in Ennis will remember.
Tony Kelly picked up the ball deep, drove forward on a solo run, sidestepped the last defender, and buried it in the roof of the net. Injury time. 71st minute. Captain’s goal. Clare 3-18 Dublin 1-22. First home win in over 20 months.
Eibhear Quilligan’s penalty save from Burke earlier in the half was just as important. Without it, Dublin might have had the momentum to win.
Clare scorers: Mark Rodgers 0-11 (9f), Tony Kelly 1-3, David Reidy 1-0, Peter Duggan 1-0, David Fitzgerald 0-1, Shane Meehan 0-1, Darragh Lohan 0-1, Diarmuid Stritch 0-1.
Key stat: 12 wides for Clare. They won despite being wasteful — a sign of quality.
Round 2: Clare 2-30 Antrim 1-19
Date: Sunday, February 1 | Venue: Cushendall, Co. Antrim
If the Dublin game was dramatic, the Antrim game was clinical. Clare travelled to Cushendall to face Davy Fitzgerald’s Antrim and dominated from start to finish.
Mark Rodgers was the star. He hit 0-12 in total and was deadly from frees and from play. He opened the scoring with a brilliant deadball effort and kept finding his range all afternoon. By half-time Clare led by nine points despite hitting double digits for wides.
The goals came from Shane Meehan and David Fitzgerald. Meehan’s finish was composed, while Fitzgerald — who has been one of Clare’s most improved players in 2026 — added a powerful strike in the second half.
Antrim did find the net through Conal Cunning, who used his pace to burst through and blast past the Clare keeper. But it was only a brief consolation. Tony Kelly closed out the game with a string of tight-angled points that underlined why he’s still the best in the business at 32.
Clare scorers: Mark Rodgers 0-12, Tony Kelly 0-5, David Fitzgerald 1-0, Shane Meehan 1-0, and others.
Key stat: Clare scored 2-30 while hitting double-digit wides. Their attack is producing at a rate that even wasteful days can’t spoil.
Round 3: Clare 3-35 Down 0-15
Date: Sunday, February 8 | Venue: Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg, Ennis | Attendance: 4,960
This was the game that showed the full depth of Clare’s 2026 panel.
The score says it all — a 29-point hammering. But the detail is even more impressive. Twelve different Clare players scored. Six players made their National League debuts. And John Conlon returned from a serious finger injury that had threatened to end his inter-county career.
Clare led 0-22 to 0-07 at half-time. Down’s Pearse Óg McCrickard was the visitors’ only real threat with 0-7 (3f), but the Mourne men were outclassed everywhere else.
The second half was when Clare cut loose. Three goals in eight minutes from Mark Rodgers, David Fitzgerald, and Peter Duggan turned a big win into a rout. Rodgers finished with 1-9 (6f). Senan Dunford, starting his first league game, hit 0-5 from play — the kind of debut performance that gets the whole county excited about the future. Diarmuid Stritch added 0-3, and Niall O’Farrell chipped in 0-2.
Brian Lohan also used the game to blood Under-20 players Ronan Kilroy and Jamie Moylan off the bench. Ross Hayes started at corner-back. This wasn’t just a win — it was a development day.
Clare scorers: Mark Rodgers 1-9 (6f), Senan Dunford 0-5, Jack Kirwan 0-3, Cathal Malone 0-3, Shane Meehan 0-3, Diarmuid Stritch 0-3, David Fitzgerald 1-0, Darragh Lohan 0-2, David Reidy 0-2, Niall O’Farrell 0-2, Colm O’Meara 0-2, Peter Duggan 1-1.
Key stat: 12 scorers from a 20-man panel used. That depth is championship-winning material.
Mark Rodgers Clare 2026: The Division 1B Top Scorer
Mark Rodgers has been the standout performer in the entire Allianz Hurling League Division 1B so far. Across three rounds, the Scariff forward has scored 1-32 (35 points). That’s a remarkable return.
His 0-11 against Dublin (mostly from frees) kept Clare in the game when they were struggling. His 0-12 against Antrim was a complete forward’s performance. And his 1-9 against Down included some brilliant scores from play alongside his reliable free-taking.
Rodgers was also a key figure in Clare’s 2024 All-Ireland final win, scoring 1-3 including a crucial goal. At 25, he’s entering his peak years and looks like one of the best forwards in the country right now.
Division 1B Hurling Table 2026: Where Clare Stand
After Round 3, the Division 1B table looks like this:
| Team | P | W | D | L | PD | Pts |
| Clare | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +56 | 6 |
| Wexford | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | +ve | 6 |
| Kildare | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +ve | 2 |
| Dublin | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -ve | 2 |
| Carlow | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -ve | 2 |
| Antrim | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -ve | 0 |
| Down | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | -ve | 0 |
Clare and Wexford share top spot on six points. Both are unbeaten. The top two qualify for the Division 1B final and earn promotion to Division 1A. With three rounds remaining, Clare are in a commanding position.
Clare Hurling Remaining Fixtures 2026
Clare’s final three league games:
- Round 4: Kildare vs Clare — Saturday, February 21, 6:30pm, Cedral St Conleth’s Park, Newbridge
- Round 5: Carlow vs Clare — Saturday, February 28, 6:00pm, Netwatch Cullen Park
- Round 6: Clare vs Wexford — Sunday, March 8, 1:15pm, Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg, Ennis
The final round clash with Wexford at home could be a Division 1B decider. Both teams will likely arrive unbeaten. That’s going to be a huge day in Ennis.
Does Division 1B Prepare Clare for Championship?
This is the question every Clare fan is asking. Brian Lohan’s side were relegated from Division 1A after a difficult 2025 campaign. Now they’re winning games by 10, 11, and 29 points. Is that the preparation they need for a Munster Championship where they’ll face Cork, Limerick, Tipperary, and Waterford?
The honest answer is: probably not. But there are positives. Lohan has used the easier games to blood new players — six debutants against Down alone. He’s managed the workload of senior players. And the winning habit matters for confidence.
The real preparation begins when the league ends and the squad gets together for collective training ahead of the Munster Championship opener against Waterford on April 19. By then, Lohan will hope to have Shane O’Donnell fully fit, Adam Hogan back from Fitzgibbon Cup duty, and the new players integrated into the system.
Clare’s odds for the 2026 All-Ireland are 8/1 — behind Cork (9/4), Limerick (5/2), Tipperary (9/2), and Kilkenny (11/2). Those odds might shorten if the Banner can carry this form into the summer.
What’s Next for Clare Hurling in 2026
The immediate target is clear — win promotion back to Division 1A. A victory over Kildare on Saturday would make that virtually a certainty. After that, it’s all about building towards Munster Championship and proving that 2024 was no flash in the pan.
With Tony Kelly still leading from the front, Mark Rodgers scoring for fun, and a new generation of players like Senan Dunford, Diarmuid Stritch, and Niall O’Farrell pushing hard for starting spots, there’s real reason for optimism among Clare GAA fans heading into the business end of the season.
Three wins from three. Job done so far. Now for the hard part.