IF YOU WERE looking at which dressing room you’d want to be in before this match, you’d have to say it was the Tipperary one.
Tipp were coming off the back of an All-Ireland win, after having a fairly successful league campaign. They even got the kick they needed in the league final defeat to Galway. I felt Michael Ryan’s men arrived into Semple Stadium in a far better position than their opponents.
Then you assess the Cork dressing room. They shipped a lot of criticism after last year’s performances and they had good few young guys that you didn’t really know how they were going to perform on the big stage. They were coming off the back of an okay league – they had good wins over Tipperary and Waterford – so there was potential there.
But nobody saw this performance coming.
Coming up to the game, I felt a lot of the criticism surrounding this Cork team wasn’t justified. They definitely used it to give them that extra edge.
It was a risk for Cork to bring in the five newcomers to play, but in certain ways Kieran Kingston had no choice but to go with the young fellas. They had to do something drastic after last year’s performances and defeats. It was out of necessity that he had to bring on the young fellas but credit to him, he’s after moulding them into the players they are.
There’s massive potential in the Rebels camp. One game is not going to make their careers but today will give them massive confidence going into the next day.
Colm Spillane had an excellent game at corner-back. He caught two nice balls in the first-half and that settled him down. Outside of Conor Lehane, I thought Mark Coleman was Cork’s best player.
He was outstanding. The difference between him and the other backs was he seemed to be able to read it a bit better. Every time he got the ball, he seemed to have more space than anyone else and his composure with his deliveries in was top class. For a guy making his debut, he looked very composed and gave a huge display.
Cork brought Luke Meade to give them three around the middle and it really helped them. That allowed young Darragh Fitzgibbon to run forward and he had a fine game.
Then you look at the forwards. Shane Kingston took a while to get going but when he did he ended up with 1-4 from play. You’d take that from a half-forward all day long.
That brings us to Lehane. He was excellent and centre-forward is the right position for him. The points he took today were typical of Conor Lehane when he’s on-song: winning his own possession, taking his man on. Ronan Maher was the All-Star centre-back last year but when Lehane ran at him he just had no answers. Eventually Maher was moved off him.
I thought Kieran Kingston’s decision to put Lehane on the frees was huge. Lehane is a confidence guy and when he gets on the scoreboard early that allows him to drive on. He got a couple of early points, I think the first one was a free, and from there he started to grow in confidence. He even could have ended up with 13 or 14 points as he had a couple of wides that he might have expected to stick over. That just shows the amount of ball he got on.
The reverse of Lehane taking the frees was it took pressure off Patrick Horgan. It freed him up to get a few points from play and he ended up with four. For me, Hoggy is the best free-taker on the Cork panel so it was obviously a tactical decision to give Lehane a bit of confidence.
It was also Kieran’s way of saying to Patrick, ‘You’re not going to get a handy free to keep you going. You’re going to have to work that extra bit harder.’
That move really paid off.
For all the Cork forwards to score after 20 minutes was a massive bonus and it was clear none of the young lads were suffering from stage fright.
It’s going to be tough for Tipp to come back from this defeat, but it’s a long way from Thurles in May to Croke Park in September.
In Tipperary, the minute they win one All-Ireland they seem to start talking about back-to-back All-Irelands. That puts pressure on the players straight away.
When you win the All-Ireland, there’s a lot of stuff that goes on in the winter. You go away on a team holiday, you come back and you’re going around to the clubs with the cup.
Before you know it the league comes along. One season seems to just roll into the next. You have a monkey on your back straight away because everybody wants to beat the champions.
Kilkenny got so used to it that it just became part and parcel, but for a team that only wins one every so often it’s different.
My feeling was the defeat to Galway would refocus Tipperary. They played well, but Cork outfought them is was the biggest concern for Michael Ryan.
Cork will be on a high for a week, but there’s still a long road ahead. They’ll gain serious momentum from this, but Kieran Kingston and his management team are well aware that one swallow never made a summer. Consistency is the main thing for Cork and there’s no guarantee they’ll play that well again.
The Tipp defence couldn’t live with the Cork forwards and if Kingston’s attacking unit continue to hurl like that, they’re going to have a decent summer.
A final word on Michael Cahalane, who bagged a key goal off the bench today. A few years ago he was told he’d never play hurling again. After being out for so long, it was great to see him make such an important contribution.
I bet rifling that goal past Darren Gleeson was some feeling.
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He’s a goner! Still its his own fault and he hasn’t been anywhere near as good as he was last year, so its not as bad of a loss.
@Coner Willis: it’s a terrible shame but it was a stupid thing to do.
However, I doubt you’ll find a flood of texts into the Sunday game like there was last week from WD supporters about Galways Adrian Touhy. It was a bit sad really
@Seamus McSpud: although his goal was top class, it was still very selfish and should have been passed off earlier. You wouldn’t see a Shefflin or Canning do it, if he had missed it he’d be crucified
G’lad!!
A stonewall red. What was he doing? Not his first time to commit this crime either. Last years Munster final on the bonner maher , he did the same.
@t: pity it wasn’t caught during the game. Result would have been different I think. Hard to take a team playing sweeper winning. First half was like two half decent junior sides playing one another.
@Paul O Mahony: sorry we scored 4-19. Ultra defensive stuff. Clown!
@Sean Healy: i wanted waterford to win and im delighted for ye but ye cant say youre not a defensive team…waterford scored 3-8 AFTER the sending off. And listening to that arseh0le donal og after the match was more of the same scutter
@Sean Healy: Waterford only managed 1-11 before man was sent off. Not exactly shooting the lights out!
@Lord Clanricarde: Oh please give the negativity a rest. Waterford scored 4-23 against Kilkenny with all 15 Kilkenny players on the field… Another 4 goals against Cork today. When teams are reduced to 14 players they don’t always lose and the opposition don’t always score 3-9 against them. In 2004 when Mullane was sent off, I seem to remember Waterford won with 14 men.
@Tom O’Brien: Give it a rest Tom. U do know the score with Kilkenny included an extra 20 minutes?? I was there today and they deserved to win but are a horrid team to watch as a neutral!
@James Quinn: i was there today also and throughly enjoyed the game and I was there for the entire Kilkenny game including the additional 20 minutes. Not all teams score 4-23 when extra time is played either as you know. You are all so negative, jumping on the bandwagon with pundits like Shefflin. Remember Kilkenny didn’t do tactics like dropping half forwards back crowding the area under the dropping ball. Where were you all back then when that was going on. The media weren’t talking about it so you didn’t have any independent thoughts of your own. Or maybe you don’t think teams like Kilkenny do tactics and believe Cody when he says he expects every man to win his own ball. Ya right…
@Tom O’Brien: Give it a rest. You’d swear the likes of Eoin Larkin never scored from what you’re saying. Galway will have no problem beating ye in the final. Hopefully it will be a repeat of 2008 and 3-30 on the scoreboard and Gleeson this time looking on from the sideline after his stupidity but sure nothing new been from Waterford. Ye are the most deluded fans iv ever come across!
@James Quinn: Galway might beat us and if they do they’ll deserve it I’m sure, they look a serious team and I wouldn’t begrudge them. Most of the pundits on here said Cork would win also and they got that spectacularly wrong so I won’t write us completely off just yet. If Gleason isn’t playing, it serves him right, a stupid thing to do when the ball was dead. No excuse there. I rather him not play the final than do something stupid like that in the final and get sent off. I thought it was a fabulous game of hurling today, roll on the final… How much would Waterford have scored against Cork, Kilkenny and Wexford if they didn’t play so negatively in your view?
@Tom O’Brien: not sure what you mean about Eoin Larkin. I don’t recall saying Eoin Larkin had a problem scoring. He scored plenty in his time. Kilkenny played tactics and he scored. Simples. It’s a secret though about the tactics, don’t tell anyone
@Tom O’Brien: Waterford had the stronger bench they would of pulled away regardless of the sending off, real hurling people could see that including the cork manager
Zero sympathy especially with all the focus on the issue at the moment. Deserves to be suspended. Different game had officials not bottled it. How Donal Óg can go on the radio and say there’s no way to prove intent is baffling. Clear intent in this case.
@Jack Ronan: Donal Og is a clown. The best thing they can do is say nothing and hope it blows over.
What a stupid thing to do. When I seen it it’s like, there you go GAA, in your face. He’s screwed up royally
I’d be sceptical about anything happening. He’s the golden boy of hurling and has already been let away with it twice last year and once this year.
Definite red card if it had been seen. Far worse than anything de Búrca or Tuohy did. If his fingers had moved a bit, he wouldn’t have been far off gouging Meade. Gleeson had a great game but that was just incredibly stupid.
GAA have no real choice here.
Well done Waterford, best of luck in the final. The sending off changed the game. Cork looked to be control until then.
I didn’t see the Austin Gleeson incident, but the photo on this site looks damming. Looks like he’ll miss the final. Why he would get involved in this is baffling, especially after the De Burca and Bennett incidents. #braindead!
@Joe Kennefick: How far were Cork in control,just curious?
As a neutral, I’ll be so so disappointed if Gleeson doesn’t play in the final.Such a mindless thing to do. His goal was exceptional, just magic..
@Dave Fingleton: he shouldn’t have been on the field to score it.
@Paul O Mahony: you’re seriously miserable about waterford doing well aren’t you? Sad
An 8 team 60/1 accy let down by Callahan, Cork were a joke.. seemed to go from the backs launching to the forwards for Waterford to mop up, Waterford were easily the worthy winners, quarter final in hurling.. anyones game. The final is Galways!
Using the Galway analogy that he’s not looking at the player, then he’ll got off! Can’t have it every way people.
@Sean Healy: the irony! You were screaming for Tuohy to get banned last week! In any event my analogy of the de burca still stands. Ref didn’t take action which mean Austin should be ok. The other Gleeson is certain to miss out though. It would actually be embarrassing for Waterford if they appeal that!
@Sean Healy: huge difference Sean the ball was dead in Austin’s incident. Tuohy was mid play and running backwards. But just let him play. We won’t have to listen to the moaning for three weeks.
@Sean Healy: Tuohy put he’s hand back an clipped helmet strap. Gleeson put he’s hand into helmet and pulled it clean off Meades head!..He deserves a ban, not his first time!..
@Sean Healy: Sean Gleeson did this deliberately, Touhys was a pure accident in a tussle. Gleeson will be very lucky not to miss the final
@Lord Clanricarde: it’s a stupid rule anyway,very dangerous to take a players helmet off yeah ,what used to happen years ago . Oh yeah no one wore helmets..if ye tolerate this then rubber Hurleys could be next.
If Gleeson had got a red card at the time he or waterford would not have to worry the Final, swings and roundabouts .
Ye four are in for it when the Waterford crowd get home !!
@Gerry Campbell: let them text into the Sunday game.
The GAA worse than golf now for post match video analysis catching foul play after the fact….
@Colm: well done waterford, no sour grapes, but if gleeson plays in the final that rule may as well be torn up.
Probably the single most stupid act I’ve seen a player commit in quite a while. Deserves zero sympathy and he has done his county no favours….
Is he not likely to get away with it?? I thought the incident has to be mentioned in the refs report in order to get a suspension
@Ruairi Kinsella: You’re spot on. This incident was seen by officials and deemed a nothing incident. As a result, unless it features in the referees report the CCCC cannot act on it.
No, I’m 100% he can play the final, you can pull the helmet off your man, just don’t let the ref or linesmen see you! Cork had zero plan for sweeper , no excuse they had plenty of time to think about it.
Cork were hit hard, not in a dirty way but weren’t able to handle that. Every shot was rushed because they where under so much pressure. Cork had no plan B like a lot of teams that play Waterford. They all think they can beat them with their A plan but doesn’t always work. Waterford had some serious homework done. As for Gleason he should miss the final it’s in the rules. It is a pity tho.
Go away ye bitter shower of fools. We’re in the final and that’s it. Hope we go on to win it now. Serious team we have this year. HOW BOU DAH???⚪
@Darragh Kelly: waterfords second team gave Galway a bit of a fright in the league so maybe their first team could go 1 step further
I want to see both Galway and Waterford at full strength in the All Ireland Final. I want to see Austin Gleeson play against the Galway boys and I want to see the top exponents of our glorious game contest this All-Ireland final. I am a neutral who hasn’t missed an All-Ireland final for 37 years and I want to see both teams at full strength, apart from.Conor Gleeson. We need to get rid of those bloody helmets!!!