What a weekend.

The hurling championship served up another two superb contests as Galway and Clare first drew after extra-time on Saturday evening before Limerick edged out Cork the next day to make their first All-Ireland SHC final in 11 years.

Supporters have been treated to a summer that's served up several fantastic collisions, with the round-robin format proving a a great success and the condensed championship serving up quality fare thick and fast.

The Sunday Game panel were all in agreement that this has been something special.

"It was a pleasure to be one of the 71-odd thousand there and to witness that game," Jackie Tyrrell said when reflecting on the Treaty's victory.

"It was a cocktail of emotion, of colour, of drama exhilarating stuff, scores, physicality. We had 68 scores [in the Limerick-Cork game], 23 different scorers, and for over 90 minutes it was absorbing stuff.

"Your heart would break for Cork... but it was Limerick's night. They're back in an All-Ireland. Could the 45-year hoodoo finally end this year? They were full value for their in in the end."

Ken McGrath echoed those sentiments, adding: "The World Cup was brilliant but hurling is after owning the summer. The two games are after being such an advertisement for the game. It was unbelievable. "

Donal O'Grady also heaped praise on the standard witnessed but questioned the wisdom of having a shorter hurling summer: "These are amateur players and they're asked to play extra-time. Would a replay have been out of order?

"Are we that set on trying to condense the hurling championship? Galway versus Clare was a classic, but it finished on midnight on Saturday because this game [Limerick v Clare] took over.

"I think there should be semi-finals on separate weekends. Hurling needs promotion, Gaelic football doesn't. Thirty-two counties plus London and New York play football. There's only a number of top-quality hurling counties."

McGrath later defended the new schedule, adding: "There's a buzz about every single game. I won Munster finals before and there was a five and six-week gap. At the moment hurling is gone through the roof. That and Love Island are the things of the summer!"