It has been a thrilling journey to the hurling showpiece for both counties.
While Clare won three out of their four Munster SHC round-robin matches to reach the provincial final – which they lost to Limerick – and guarantee a place in the All-Ireland quarter-finals, Cork had a bumpier road past the first hurdle.
Beaten by Waterford and Clare in their first two games, the Rebels produced a stunning performance to beat Limerick 3-28 to 3-26 in a thriller at Pairc Ui Chaoimh and keep their championship hopes alive.
A comprehensive win over Tipperary in their final Munster game saw Cork progress to the All-Ireland preliminary quarter-finals against Offaly, who they beat 4-25 to 3-19 to reach the last eight.
In the quarter-finals, Cork beat Dublin 0-26 to 0-21 at Thurles while Clare saw off Wexford 2-28 to 1-19 at the same venue.
Neither side were favourites in the semi-finals. However, after Clare beat Kilkenny 0-24 to 2-16 to reach their first final in 11 years, Cork staged a stirring second-half comeback to pull the plug on Limerick’s ‘Drive for Five’.
That leaves us with a fascinating final with both counties having waited a long time to get their hands back on the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
While Clare beat Cork in the 2013 All-Ireland final replay – in one of modern hurling’s greatest games – the Rebels lifted the last of their 30 titles in 2005.
In the 19 years since, Cork have lost three finals – in 2006, 2013 and 2021.
