Fogarty Forum: What will haunt Cork is nobody shouted 'stop'
Cork's Robbie O'Flynn dejected after the defeat by Galway. Pic: ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne
Not that you could condone it but you know what Limerick would have done facing Galway’s momentum on Saturday. They would have disrupted it. They would have iced them.
In their All-Ireland semi-final three years ago, Nickie Quaid went down with an eye problem after Galway went six points up in the first half. The Limerick goalkeeper’s previous two puck-outs had been sent back over his head as quickly as he struck them out the field.
On the sideline, Galway manager Henry Shefflin was apoplectic. He knew Quaid was buying time, over 90 seconds of it. Just enough for Limerick to settle themselves. How often do we see teams now taking a collective breath before throw-in? Quaid’s stoppage afforded his side an in-game breather and Galway’s flow was stemmed.
Physically, Cork are not a soft side – Ben O’Connor was right on that one, although they sure could improve some of their tackling – but Saturday will have only strengthened the claims they are mentally malleable.
It might actually be that they are too honest, it might be a misplaced confidence that their hurling will do all the winning for them, but in that third quarter period when Galway picked off nine points without reply somebody should have done something bold to wrestle that negative muscle memory.
Diarmuid O’Sullivan would have. Dónal Óg Cusack would have. After his comments about Joe Canning, Cusack’s arrogance is cited as the reason why Cork again came a cropper with the grail in sight. It may be one of the reasons why sympathy is in short supply for Cork outside the county after their latest Croke Park defeat but Cusack always had the street smarts and bit of divil to back up the conviction in his and Cork’s worth.
Look back on the sliotar swaps during his playing days or when a Clare backroom member threw a bag of Cork sliotars into a terrace before a championship game in 2017 when he was a Clare selector.
As history was about to repeat itself, Galway’s purple patch in that third quarter was such a desperate period that an element of gamesmanship was required. If Cork think they are above that, there is one of the problems.
As much as it made for great TV, Canning’s claim about trains on RTÉ on Saturday was wide of the mark when there were considerable bookings from Limerick on July 19 as well.
His point about hype had merit, though. The questioning in Cork of Johnny Murphy’s appointment to the game was also an example of people getting ahead of themselves. Throw in the Ringmahon Rangers’ walkover and what at the time seemed slightly amusing now reads as alarming.
And what has been the common denominator in all three of Cork’s second-half no-shows these last 12 months? They all followed landslide wins. Before Tipperary last July, Cork trounced Dublin by 20 points. Before Limerick last month, they tattooed Clare by 16. Before Sunday, they walloped Offaly by 26.
Staying humble in such scenarios can be onerous not to mention how ill fitting they are as preparations for stronger opposition. Factor in that Galway had the guts of four weeks to drill down into what makes them tick and there was a chance Cork were set up for a fall.
Of course, we nor many saw it that way. Cork would be too good, too fast, too strong. Save for the second half of the Munster final, there wasn’t a whole pile of evidence to suggest they weren’t rehabilitated after last year.
O’Connor certainly felt they had moved on and on Saturday he was insisting this latest reverse was already in the past. The manager had to say something positive but the reality is it is going to linger.
If Gerry Hussey remains on as performance coach, he has quite a job on his hands. Gary Keegan’s absence on All-Ireland final day last year because of his commitments with the Lions in Australia raised eyebrows but maybe too much was made of that.
After another defeat like this, literally everything is on the table. That includes the strikes, as much as that will be difficult or discounted by some people. O’Connor’s Newtownshandrum club-mate Pat Mulcahy spoke 10 years ago of Cork needing peace and reconciliation after tearing itself apart in the late 2000s. It was a rallying call similar to Denzel Washington’s in “Remember the Titans” when his character addressed his American football players at Gettysburg. “If we don't come together right now on this hallowed ground, we too will be destroyed, just like they were. I don't care if you don't like each other, but you will respect each other."
Can Cork hurling people genuinely say that about each other? It’s one of the many questions the county must now answer.
john.fogarty@examiner.ie
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Brian Lohan said he wasn’t aware of what the Limerick pundits were saying about the speed of the Clare puck-out and whether referee Thomas Walsh would allow the quick restarts.
Avid hurling followers would have been all too aware of the uncannily similar message TJ Ryan, Pat Ryan and Shane Dowling conveyed on podcasts in the build-up to Sunday’s All-Ireland SHC semi-final.
TJ Ryan on the hurling podcast: “I just looked at Limerick’s record with Thomas Walsh, it’s very poor – we’ve only won one out of eight games… from a Limerick point of view, I would have a concern looking at someone like Thomas Walsh with his quick puck-outs.”
Pat Ryan on the hurling podcast: “With him (Walsh) reffing, Limerick haven’t the greatest record the last couple of years, not his fault now… I hope they don’t allow puck-outs to go off too quick in a game like this… you want to see the contests… sometimes the refs are allowing the ball out that bit too quick. If the contests come into it a bit more, it won’t allow teams go score for score, break for break.”
Dowling on RTÉ hurling podcast: “I saw a stat the other day, I think Limerick have lost six of the seven games he’s refereed. Not because of how he referees it, but the one thing he does allow is these ferociously quick puck-outs. Eibhear Quilligan is going to be aware of that and as soon as the ball goes dead, more so when it’s a wide than a score, he’s going to get that ball out as quick as possible. Remove trying to win your own puck-out, hitting it long down on Diarmuid (Byrnes), Kyle (Hayes) or William (O’Donoghue).”
On Sunday, Walsh stopped Quilligan from rapid starts on at least a couple of occasions. So, did the message land?
This newspaper’s story last Friday that the GAA had conceded the capacity of a reconstructed Casement Park would be considerably smaller than the planned 34,500 whipped up quite the storm in the North.
The Ulster Council insisted it still envisages the stadium will be a provincial one but really that is only semantics in terms of funding. If it is to become a rival to Clones’ St Tiernach’s Park and host senior provincial finals, then it must rival the Monaghan venue’s 29,000 capacity and that appears a distant possibility at the moment.
In the wake of the story, First Minister Michelle O’Neill was compelled to release a statement. “Despite obstruction and delay, real progress has been made in recent months, with diggers and workers now on site as the redevelopment moves forward.
"We must continue to build on that momentum. This project will be a game-changer in creating jobs, driving investment, and delivering lasting benefits for communities across Belfast, across Antrim, and across Ulster.
"I will continue working in partnership with the GAA every step of the way to deliver a top-class stadium that meets the needs of Gaels in Antrim and across Ulster."
Providing Antrim with a home to be proud of was, is and should always have always been the priority. Sadly, it wasn’t, as much as there was fault on both sides of the community and now there is a scurry to save face.
