The feelgood factor surrounding Liam Sheedy's return to the Tipperary hotseat is wearing off after three successive defeats, according to Shane McGrath.

But the former All-Ireland winning midfielder believes it could return if they beat Cork in round five of the Allianz Hurling League at Pairc Ui Rinn tomorrow.

"It was a very brave move by Liam to return because he's held in such high regard in Tipp. He's the man that got us competitive in an era where we weren't competing. Liam almost has a God status in Tipp, anything Sheedy says goes," McGrath told the Irish Independent.

"If he's not successful this time... and it's getting to a stage that this group need to start getting results. The 'Liam is back, this is great' talk is starting to wear off, or maybe has worn off. This group need a win soon.

"This group haven't won a good competitive game in a long time (they beat Clare in the first round) and the relief of that is massive for the group. They'll get confidence from it and everyone will be buzzing again."

He added: "The Tipp hurling public are craving a win because if not, it's more pressure for the next two months before championship and people asking 'Are we good enough?' 'Is this the right set-up?' Do we have all these players we think we have?'

"Whereas if you get a win against Cork, we're back on the wagon and can push on. Whoever loses is out in the cold for a long time before you play your next competitive game, and we have a couple of guys that badly need a test, like Cathal Barrett."

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