Eoin Cadogan: There's a bit of a bad guy in us all. Cork must show theirs.

Players from both sides, including William O'Donoghue of Limerick and Eoin Cadogan, grapple during the 2020 Allianz League Division 1 game at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. 

After last year's All-Ireland final defeat to Limerick, you might think that my grá for taking them on, or stomach for watching this Sunday's League meeting between the sides, has evaporated.

Quite the opposite actually.

When you’re in the inter-county bubble, you developed a well-honed dislike for whoever happens to be All-Ireland champions. It’s natural. They have what you work so hard towards, so inevitably when you play each other, it can be edgy. In this case, it’s Limerick hurlers and everyone else is hot on their heels. I’ve seen plenty of teams dominate during my career — Dublin's footballers, Kilkenny hurlers and Kerry footballers — so this isn’t just a Limerick thing. Since I've stepped away from inter-county, I've realised my dislike was actually respect for what they have achieved to date, and the standards they've set.

Last year, Cork went to the Gaelic Grounds for a National League game with an experimental side in the hope they'd unearth a few players that could cope with the physical power Limerick would bring to the table come championship. Unfortunately, Limerick blew us off the park and laid down the law that come championship 'there'd was plenty more of that for ye lads'. 

And we know how 2021 ended.

When I watch Limerick, the baffling thing is that their system and team selection very rarely changes. Of course, John Kiely tries to unearth a few gems each year like Cathal O'Neill or Colin Coughlan to keep the pressure on his starting 15 pack, but I could probably name the starting team for this year's Munster Championship first round, injuries aside,  right now. So you might ask if the team and system aren’t changing, why isn’t anyone beating them?

I often hear coaches saying we need to 'work harder' than the opposition but what does that actually look like? This is Limerick’s language. Working hard. Limerick's defence starts with their attack. If you’re not willing to work hard you simply won’t play. We saw that the past few years with Seamus Flanagan's work ethic not matching the team ethos and him only playing a bit part at times. Then more recently, he has become a pivotal cog for both his scoring capacity and tackle count. 

Without doubt, I would say that Limerick work and tackle harder than any other team I’ve played, but they do it collectively. These guys are drilled to feast on short puck-outs to the opposition's full back line. They crave turnovers as much as scores. They entice the goalkeeper to try hit them. I’ve repeatedly heard them roaring at the opposition goalie 'give him (anyone in the full back line) the f*cking ball', knowing that the hunt is in place as soon as the ball leaves the bas of the hurley. Hunter mindset.

Their positioning at times does allow for puck-outs to the half back line but when you watch them play, look how the first man to make contact and tackle is just the delay man. The physical presence. The turnover comes from the second man in and typically it’s an inside forward like Gillane, Mulcahy, or Flanagan sprinting from behind and ripping the ball as the player in possession is turned back. 

The proof of this ferocious work ethic was in the 2018 All-Ireland final. Graham Mulcahy got 16 tackles in from corner forward - yes, corner-forward! More forward tackling leads to more turnovers up the field, less ball down to the danger area and a higher amount of shots being taken.

We know every team in the country in both club and county likes to hold their half-back line. Unless you have the physical ball-winning ability of Galway and Kilkenny half forwards, then you're going to have to think differently and even if you do go long, you can be sure to have Gearóid Hegarty and Tom Morrissey plonked under the breaks. This is the catch 22 moment. To allow Morrissey and Hegarty the freedom to pick off scores unmarked from distance or to push hard on them and limit possession? 

Cork saw first hand in the 2021 Munster championship that by pushing hard on both Morrisey and Hegarty, you can negate their role but then you have an abundance of space in the inside line which can hurt you badly.

I’ll be interested to see how strong the Cork team lines out on Sunday afternoon. In my eyes, it’s a must. Lay out your stall and see where you are against the All-Ireland champions. Limerick, like last year, already have two losses to their name and have no intention of giving this Cork group any oxygen for the year ahead. 

Cork need to think differently and tear up the script. Match Limerick in between the two 45s. Make it a warzone, bring out extra bodies and tackle collectively, not individually. Don’t allow Nickie Quaid the freedom of the field for puck-outs. He’s the quarterback who dictates where that ball goes on the restart. Be the dictator. Concede to the full back line and then press hard. Trust your ability to tackle and turn the ball over. Sixteen tackles remember! It’s a mindset. It requires ferocious workrate that others might not see. Your teammates will. 

All the great teams across both codes usually play on the edge. Of course there’s a line and, occasionally, it gets over-stepped. You can moan about it or start to live on the edge a bit yourself. 

During 'The Dark Knight', the Joker and Batman sit down face to face. Gearóid Hegarty came under much scrutiny for his red card against Galway. You need the bad guys as much as the good guys. Similar to the Joker. Everyone wants to get the bad guy, but deep down we actually enjoy watching his antics because there’s a bit of a bad guy in all of us. We just don’t always see it.

For Cork now is the time to show it.