Éamonn Fitzmaurice: Kerry in a different class, but Cork will rue lack of ruthlessness
Injured Kerry footballer Seán O’Leary joins team-mates in celebration after their resounding victory in the final of the Munster Senior Football Championship at Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney yesterday.
I mentioned in these pages on Saturday that hurt, when properly harnessed, can be a powerful tool. Equally as significant is the importance of learning lessons, individually and as a group.
In the corresponding fixture last year, early in the match Brian Ó Beaglaoich broke through the Cork rearguard and shot for goal. Micheál Martin made a decent save, but Brian would have been annoyed with himself as he hit it at a comfortable height for the goalkeeper. I have seen Brian score plenty of goals for school teams when breaking from defence, and his trademark finish was a low, hard, accurate shot. When he got the chance this time, he showed that he had clearly absorbed the lesson when he finished brilliantly after running half the length of the field.
