Munster SHC: Tipperary 0-17 Clare 1-25Something had to give. Having painted themselves into a corner, Clare produced their best performance since their All-Ireland winning season and stamped on Tipperary’s fingers as they hang to the cliff edge. The possibility of Tipp staying in the championship now is one of those mathematical conundrums that Rachel Riley solves on Countdown when nobody else has a clue. They will probably be eliminated by teatime tomorrow.From Clare, this was a performance of overwhelming authority. Once they took a grip on the game midway through the first half they squeezed until the All-Ireland champions were left in a heap. All over the field it is hard to think of a duel they didn’t win. Clare dictated the matchups that mattered and brought the game to a pitch of relentless intensity that was beyond Tipp’s reach.Tipp were reduced to 14 men after 51 minutes when Willie Connors was dismissed on a second yellow, but they were trailing by nine points by then and it is impossible to characterise it as a turning point. The Tipp centre fielder had been lucky not to be sent off on a straight red after just six minutes for a high frontal charge on Mark Rodgers.For Tipp, it is almost certainly the end of a bankrupt title defence. It is now more than 60 years since they won back-to-back All-Irelands, and in a statistical quirk unearthed by the Over the Bar podcast, they now haven’t beaten Clare in the championship in Thurles since 1985.Tipperary's Jason Forde and Adam Hogan of Clare. Photograph: Laszlo Geczo/Inpho After their flaccid performance against Limerick, Clare straightened themselves up. A fortnight ago they were slaughtered on turnovers which, in the modern game, is a statistical touchstone for desire and aggression. Here, they addressed that deficiency in spectacular fashion and won 27 turnovers in the first half alone.Tipp had no answers. Jake Morris had a purple patch in the second half and finished the game with four points, but otherwise the Tipp forward line was eclipsed. John McGrath forced a brilliant save from Éibhear Quilligan early in the second half when the game was still alive, but that was his only shot from play in the game; Andrew Ormond and Darragh McCarthy had none.Unsurprisingly, Clare didn’t stick with the team that was eviscerated by Limerick and made three significant changes to the line-up that was published on Friday. In came David McInerney at full back, John Conlon at number six and Diarmuid Stritch at centrefield and, to varying degrees, they all made a difference.Stritch has been flagged as a rising star for a couple of years and on his first championship start he gave a tour de force. Though he lined up at centrefield for the throw-in, his focus was further forward. In one mesmerising spell at the beginning of the second quarter he scored three points in as many minutes and finished the game with six points from play.Tempers flare during the game between Clare's Tony Kelly and Robert Doyle of Tipperary. Photograph: Laszlo Geczo/Inpho McInerney slotted in at full back and Conlon at number six, bringing cuteness and stability to a defence that had been filleted in the opening two games. Conlon is 37 now and remarkably this is 18th season in the jersey, but he rolled back the years here, commanding the centre and spraying the ball with customary calmness.Playing with a stiff wind Clare struggled to get away from Tipp in the opening quarter and were a point down after 16 minutes, but that was Clare’s only tricky spell in the game. They hit seven unanswered points and could have put the game out of reach by half-time but a spasm of careless wides in the second quarter when Tipp were essentially prisoners of their own half.Rodgers left to field after the frontal charge from Connors and tried to resume, but he was clearly in trouble and he was escorted from the field by two of Clare’s medical team 10 minutes before the break.His replacement, Ian Galvin, exploded into the game. He scored just one point from his first four shots, but he added a goal and a point after half time and he electrified Clare’s inside line.After Connors was sent off the game was hollowed out. Clare did what they pleased with the ball and Tipp were spared further humiliation by Clare’s crooked shooting. They finished with 17 wides and another couple of shots that dropped short. This time, it didn’t matter.Tipperary: R Shelly, M Breen, B O’Mara, R Maher, E Connolly (0-3, 3f), Doyle, Morgan, W Connors (0-1), A Tynan (0-1), J Morris (0-4), A Ormond, O O’Donoghue, D McCarthy (0-3, 3f), J McGrath, J Forde (0-3, one sideline)Subs: D Stakelum for Ormond (h-t); C Stakelum (0-1) for Breen (42 mins); S O’Farrell for Tynan (48); S Tobin (0-1) for McCarthy (51); N McGrath for Forde (57)Clare: E Quilligan, D Lohan, D McInerney, A Hogan, D Ryan, J Conlon, N O’Farrell (0-1), D Stritch (0-6), R Taylor (0-1), C Malone (0-2), T Kelly (0-5, 4f), S Rynne (0-4), P Duggan (0-4, two sidelines, 1f), S O’Donnell, M RodgersSubs: I Galvin (1-2) for Rodgers (25); D Reidy for Taylor (45); D Fitzgerald for Kelly (57); C Cleary for Rynne (62); S Meehan for O’Donnell (65)Referee: Thomas Walsh (Waterford)