Away to Limerick: a hard day’s night

AWAY to Limerick. Not the words you wanted to hear when the draws for the provincial championship were made.

Not that it filled you with trepidation but they weren’t exactly glamour ties. Even with a win secured, you seldom reflected that “away to Limerick” was something you looked forward to. Forever dogged, and defensively-minded.

Limerick have proved a very tricky proposition for Cork in more recent times. Conventional wisdom dictated that Limerick-Cork was double-digit win territory, so when they proved narrow — occasionally lucky — victories for Cork, the critics never took long to start crowing.

For Cork, there is strong argument that any Championship opener against Limerick is more important than a Munster final. A loss to Kerry in Killarney this year can be perceived for what it is; a defeat away from home to a top tier team with limited consequences — ie. one extra game to get back into an All-Ireland quarter-final with no definitive seeding disadvantage. A loss to Limerick in a provincial quarter-final will be perceived as a disaster of a result. This would have a huge impact on morale, a likely overhaul in starting personnel and the longest, most hazardous route through the qualifiers.

Victory in the Gaelic Grounds is never guaranteed. In 2006, Cork won 0-9 to 0-5. It was one of those games that RTÉ’s Sunday Game decreed as an advert on how not to play football. Later that year, Cork lost the semi-final of the All Ireland to Kerry, 0-16 to 0-10.

In 2008, in Conor Counihan’s first championship game in charge, Limerick had us dead and buried in the Gaelic Grounds, three points ahead with normal time up. The game wasn’t televised but radio coverage by the ‘Cork pundit’ was bordering on hostile in the closing stages, we subsequently learned. Then, their ’keeper claimed a long ball and inexplicably tried to burst out in possession. His pocket was picked in a fluke tackle and Daniel Goulding slotted home the leveller from a tight angle. To add insult to injury, Graham Canty then grabbed a later goal to win by 2-9 to 0-12. Daylight robbery. Cork narrowly lost to Kerry in an All-Ireland semi-final replay after a Colm Cooper goal. In 2010, Cork drew with Limerick in normal time before winning in extra time on a scoreline of 0-16 to 1-11. That was a July qualifier. Cork were summarily dismissed for the All-Ireland only to win it out in September.

While no defeats were suffered, it’s plainly evident that it has been “skin of the teeth” stuff for Cork in Limerick. It was a veritable graveyard for some Cork players. Limerick still have a core of excellent players, especially in the back line and midfield. The Cork players will always make the point that the likes of Johnny McCarthy, Stephen Lavin and John Galvin at their peak are as good as you will see in any county. Individual battles were often lost to these guys, consigning a Cork player to the bench for the rest of the summer while, ironically, their replacements came up against inferior opponents and supposedly stronger counties. Dublin, for example, are considered All-Ireland contenders most years and while they would have a stronger panel and better forwards than Limerick, they would never have had guys as good as the aforementioned Limerick trio in their respective positions.

Unlike the general public, the Cork players always recognised how tough it was to get a win up in Limerick. The criticism that came with each win helped to create a siege mentality and steeliness for the summer ahead.

It must also be remembered however, that Cork in 2013 are now sprinkled with better players. Guys like Aidan Walsh and Ciarán Sheehan only really broke onto the team in 2010 and will have no baggage going there. And they are no longer the youngest guys on the panel. Brian Hurley, Damien Cahalane and John O’Rourke have all apparently carried their U21 form into training and practise matches with the senior team. They are exciting prospects and you would love to see each one get a chance at various stages in the non knock-out games. Ken O’Halloran and Tomás Clancy carry no baggage into the Gaelic Grounds either. However, a start away to Limerick has the potential to stop any momentum dead in its tracks and shatter confidence levels. Better to have young guys like that, who could be game breakers later in the summer, experience the first few rounds coming from the bench without any pressure. Sheehan and Walsh both started on the team in 2010 and struggled early on. It is testament to them that they then became the “reasons why” in the All-Ireland final later that year. The five new guys all seem good enough to do the same but eking out a performance against a stubborn Limerick side in the Gaelic Grounds will be a test, especially for O’Rourke and Hurley as forwards.

Last Friday, Cork beat Laois in a challenge match on a score line of 3-16 to 1-18. The fact that Cork used almost 30 players tells you everything you need to know about it. Most notable, however, was the appearance of Paddy Kelly playing well at centre forward after a prolonged injury and the continued absence of Eoin Cadogan. The squad then decamped to Inchydoney for the weekend and while Kelly managed to again play in the A v B game in Clonakilty on Sunday, Cadogan worked away on his separate rehab programme. While some guys are replaceable with similar talent from the squad, Kelly and Cadogan fall outside this bracket. They are the certain starters that Cork need, fit and playing well, if the team are to be successful later in the year. The loss of Colm O’Neill has already robbed Cork of one of these go-to players and so, notwithstanding the accuracy or otherwise of the Cork team announced, much depends on the ability of Paddy and Eoin taking the field at some stage this evening and getting a good run at the summer.

Most of the noise around Cork at the moment seems to be about their indifferent league form and their poor prospects for the summer. It is just too early for that argument to be made. The league was encouraging in one sense — it seemed Cork were trying new things. Whether this has made them a better team will be clearer tonight. Developing their play at the expense of league points was a route adopted by Donegal last year and seemingly again this year. I doubt if the majority of the current Cork squad of players will look back on their career and be disappointed not to add a fourth or fifth league medal, especially if it increased the chance of winning a first or second All-Ireland medal.

In any case, radical change is not what Cork needs. In 2012, they were the second best team in Ireland. By virtue of that alone, they should win tonight’s provincial quarter-final nine times out of ten. But it’s always advisable to remember what away to Limerick actually means. A hard day’s night.