Ultimately, it was St Michael’s more polished forward division that earned the Blackrock club its first Cork U21 ‘A’ football title since 1976 in Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

Just five years on from winning the Cork IFC grade, Éire Óg are Premier IFC champions after edging past St Michael’s on a beautiful autumnal day in Páirc Uí Rinn yesterday.

It was certainly a game of two halves in Mallow last night. St Michael’s doing all the work in the opening 30 minutes of this Cork PIFC semi-final, leading at the interval by five points.

A sensational second-half performance propelled Blackrock into the Cork IHC semi-finals at the expense of Éire Óg in Ballincollig on Saturday.