Éamonn Fitzmaurice: Walsh fingerprints on Cork but why have Dubs stopped smiling? 

Performances indicate that they are very much going in the right direction but they need to start picking up points. Fast

TOUGH BATTLE: Matty Taylor of Cork in action against Ross McGarry of Dublin during the Allianz Football League Division Two match between Cork v Dublin at Páirc Ui Chaoimh in Cork. Pic: Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

When John Cleary sits down to analyse this enthralling contest, his starting point could be to compare the progress his team has made since the same sides met in last year's All-Ireland quarter-final in Croke Park. Last June, Cork stayed with Dublin until half-time but ultimately lost by 11 points. On Sunday, two minutes into the second half when Ian Maguire saw red for a ridiculous second yellow card to go with an equally ludicrous first one, Cleary may have felt a sense of déjá vu. 

But Cork dug in and stayed the distance and but for David O’Hanlon’s incredible last-second save they could have had a famous win. While the numbers were evened up with Lee Gannon’s soft dismissal Cork still deserve massive credit.