Cats struggled with Rebels’ pace

OKAY, I was wrong. I felt Cork and Kilkenny were going to give us a classic, after many disappointing All-Ireland finals between these two going back to the 70s.

They didn’t, and it was a poor enough game, over long before the final whistle.

Everywhere else however, I was right. I forecast on Saturday that Kilkenny would try to blitz Cork from the start, and they did, hit Cork with everything in the opening minutes. I also said the Cork would withstand the barrage, and that eventually, their pace and power would tell, that their hurt from last year would prevail. So it turned out.

Even before the throw-in, it was obvious that this Cork team were ready for battle, ready for anything Kilkenny would throw at them. Right through the field they were standing shoulder to shoulder with Kilkenny, and they never stepped back. Rain, heavy tackles, a first half in which they were under pressure; it meant nothing, none of it. Having lost a bitter one last year, one they will still claim they should have won, Cork were not going to be denied, not going to be diverted.

Nowhere was this more evident than in Cork’s central defence. O’Sullivan was a rock, finally worthy of the nickname, saw off Martin Comerford; Curran was up against John Hoyne, as physical a player as there is in this very physical Kilkenny side. He stood up to the Kilkenny man, was as magnificent as he’s been all season.

At the other end of the field Cork were also well served down the middle; Niall McCarthy was tremendous, and as for Brian Corcoran, fantastic; when Cork needed a leader, he was there. Remember, Noel Hickey was man-of-the-match last year; in the second half yesterday, he was shifted to the corner. That says it all about Corcoran, the player, and the man.

Midfield, Kilkenny were doing well in the first half, but they weren’t getting away, neither O’Connor nor Kenny giving up the chase. And that’s what typified Cork’s performance yesterday, first half especially. Under pressure, but no-one hung their head; they fought, hung on, managed to stay in touch, despite that storming Kilkenny start. No Cork score from play ’til the 31st minute? Not a good sign, yet I knew at the break that Cork would win this one.

Given the conditions, it was apparent that the team with most left in the tank would win this, and Cork’s body-language at half-time looked far more positive. Kilkenny had given it their best shot, with the wind behind them, yet were only a point in front. You could see the doubts starting to creep in.

All the talk of the back door, yet there can be no doubt, it didn’t suit this Kilkenny team. They looked tired, especially when things started to go against them.

A major knock against the Kilkenny management here however; why didn’t they bring on a some fresh legs earlier, maybe Sean Dowling to half-back, release Tommy Walsh forward, a slot to which in my humble opinion, he is much more suited, and introduce a few of their talented younger players. This failure to move cost them, just as it cost Cork last year.

Looking to Cork, and not for the first time in this campaign, this win was based on an utterly dominant half-back line of Gardiner, Curran, Ó hAilpin, they formed an almost impregnable line. What little did get through was snapped up by Sherlock, O’Sullivan, Murphy, with John Browne also doing really well after he came in. By contrast, in the Kilkenny defence, the only man on top was JJ Delaney, who again won his battle with Ben O’Connor.

CREDIT to the Cork captain however, he too battled his corner, never gave up.

Looking at the game in the first half, it was really bunched through the middle, a tactic dictated, I felt, by Kilkenny.

By the end of that half, Cork were starting to get on top, and within a few minutes of the restart, began to dictate their own tactics. In the second half, Kilkenny were asked to dance to the Cork tune, but just didn’t have the legs. That was where it was won. This Kilkenny team plays best when they are the ones dictating the terms, but I’ve always felt they would be vulnerable to Cork’s non-stop game.

So it proved, Kilkenny were unable to live with Cork’s, constant, relentless, unremitting pressure. Credit to the Cork management team for learning from last year, from their loss this year even. They shipped a lot of criticism, fair criticism in my book, but took it on the chin, made the necessary adjustments in both team line-up and tactics (their faith in Timmy McCarthy and Kieran Murphy vindicated yesterday, for example), and now reap the rewards. They’ve learned how to win, to win with style - as they did against Tipperary, Antrim, Wexford - and to win ugly, as they did yesterday.

Pause for a word about Kilkenny. This has been a great team, won a lot, a lot of mileage under their belts. Had they been playing any team other than Cork yesterday, I believe they would still be All-Ireland champions, but the loss to Wexford was the losing of this All-Ireland. They simply weren’t able for the back road, the hard road, and yesterday was a game to far. They met a better team, a stronger team, a team that carried so much hurt from last year. Doubt crept into Kilkenny early, even before half-time; that doubt was put there by Cork’s unrelenting style, their absolute determination not to leave another All-Ireland title behind them. They didn’t.

My man-of-the-match? Gardiner, Curran, Ó hAilpin, Niall McCarthy, Corcoran, O’Sullivan, Delaney? I go for Curran.

A few final thoughts. People were saying all week that the roll of honour wasn’t an issue; I hope nobody believed any of that. Cork is a proud hurling county, had been top of the tree for a long a time, did not want to relinquish that honour. They haven’t, and without wanting to jump the gun here, I don’t think they’ll be relinquishing it for another while. A year was a long time to wait, for the Cork players and fans, but judging by their reaction, it was surely worth it.