Cork can handle expectation

PERHAPS it is only fitting that Cork footballers are finally getting due recognition for being one of the most consistent and durable championship performers over the last number of years but there is a bothersome reality buried underneath all the hoopla that followed their semi-final demolition of Kerry.

It may well be dawning on the Cork public that the team that has already had to peak twice in the last month must now learn to live with the growing expectation from within their own county.

It’s a burden that counties such as Tyrone, Kerry and Dublin carry every weekend as a matter of form and fact. While it is almost inconceivable that such expectation would suffocate or stifle their game in Páirc Uí Chaoimh tomorrow, they will recognise nonetheless the need to be extra vigilant and not allow their level of performance dip below the awesome levels of stamina, pace and endurance witnessed against Kerry three weeks ago.