Four minutes of second-half injury-time were allotted. Just over five minutes had been played when Rodgers held his nerve to secure Clare a second round-robin victory and double their points total to four.

But given the time that passed between the awarding and executing of Shane Bennett’s injury-time penalty, not to mind the time involved in awarding the 65, Davy was adamant referee Liam Gordon should not have called for full-time following Rodgers’ successful strike.

“I think it took two minutes to take the penalty, with all the toing and froing, and we were already in injury-time. With the 65, I think there were easily two more minutes to play anyhow,” the Waterford boss began.

“If you really honestly look at it, if the play is dead for that length of time in injury-time, it definitely should have been longer.

“I honestly believe that should have been wide ball. That's what I feel. But it doesn't matter. I am proud of the guys. It is just a very hard way to take a defeat like that. It is very tough. It doesn't sit with me well.

“You have to make them decisions and you have to get them right. At the same time, I have always thought Liam Gordon is a really top-class official. And I have said that all the time. While we are disappointed with one or two decisions, that is the way hurling goes. We just get over it.” Staying with refereeing decisions, the Déise manager had a comment to make about Rodgers’ goal four minutes into the second period that put Clare six in front.

“Rodgers was right on five to six steps (for) the goal. We looked at it three times inside. Definitely between five and six, so could feel aggrieved at that one.” That was Clare’s third goal. Davy held his hands up that it was his players who were at fault for Clare goals one and two.

“We just made a few small errors today. I think the character was unreal. Them boys gave me everything they had today.

“We should have got something out of that game, there is no doubt about it. I've played Clare the last few years and we were well beaten. We weren't beaten today.” 

His old teammate Brian Lohan labelled the two points banked as “massive, absolutely massive”.

They very nearly handed those two points, or at least one of them anyway, to Waterford. In the 10 minutes after half-time, they struck six wides. They’d add three more across the remainder of the half, along with three short, and a goal chance sent the wrong side of the crossbar.

“It was a tricky patch,” Lohan said of a third quarter where they kept Waterford in the hunt. “

A lot of silly wides and if we got those shots again you’d think that you wouldn’t hit those wides, but you are up against a tough team and fair play to them, they did well and nearly everything they hit went over the bar, so credit to them. But we stuck at it, showed resilience, and we got our reward in the end.”