Munster’s Ball

AND so it starts. Three weeks of counterfeit comments, feigned praise and ball-hops in the deep south. Gird yourself.

“I suppose after their victory today, Cork will be favourites for the semi-final,” smiled Kerry coach Jack O’Connor after the All-Ireland champions put Mayo out of their post-September misery yesterday.

The Kerry squad was already camped under the Hogan Stand by the time Cork’s comeback against Galway reached its climax.

But the Kerry coach always suspected leaving Páirc Uí Chaoimh last month that he hadn’t seen the last of Billy Morgan’s gritty group.

“In a way I’m pleased Cork won, because it kept the form line going. If Galway had beaten them then our victory would have to be seen in a different light.”

Cork may not, as O’Connor rubbed, go into the All-Ireland semi-final on August 28th as favourites, but the manner of their 2-14 to 2-11 win over Galway created an impression that may last a while across the county bounds.

They conceded two calamitous first half goals and still only trailed by four points at the break. Galway briefly kept them at bay in the second period before a dam-burst of Cork scores - 1-5 in thirteen minutes made the kind of statement Billy Morgan has been waiting for all season. The Cork coach hasn’t pre-occupied himself with drills and fitness this year. He’s been too busy shovelling self-belief into those blood and bandage jerseys.

“It was important to win in the way we did at Croke Park. Since the stadium was redeveloped, Cork have never won a big game here; we lost to Galway in 2001, Kerry in 2002 and Fermanagh last year.

“We targeted getting to the quarter finals, and now we’re in the semis so you start thinking....”

Then Morgan reigned in his enthusiasm. “Sure we’ve no chance of beating Kerry.”

Perhaps. But chiselling out a victory against the Connacht champions takes their development a stage further. The timing, and the manner, of Michael Meehan’s two goals inside three minutes would have sent previous Cork sides to their demise, but something stirred. After both goals, Cork retaliated with points from James Masters and Brendan Jer O’Sullivan. Their jaw stiffened - and they came out fighting.

Fifteen minutes into the second half, O’Sullivan crowned an outstanding afternoon with his side’s second goal, but the absence of a hand on him as he bounded into Galway territory was instructive too. Within eight minutes Cork were 2-13 to 2-9 in front and too saucy and determined for Galway’s liking.

“I’ve always said that these players are as good as anything in the country,” said Morgan.

“Their confidence may have taken a buffeting at inter-county level, but they can stand up against anyone.”

Not least, Anthony Lynch, our man of the match. “He reminds me of Kevin Moran in his heyday,” mused Morgan.

“He’s a super defender but he’s very hard to stop once he powers forward.”

There was something else to Cork’s victory. It was a game of football to be enjoyed, not endured, and there were no uppercuts or cloth-lines for the Central Disciplinary Committee to chew over.

Kerry’s victory over Mayo had none of the electric uncertainty of its predecessor. Indeed there were passages that had the feel of a seven-a-side kick-around. Mayo were game but they never quite convinced themselves they had the beating of Kerry - though things were just getting interesting at 1-7 to 0-10 early in the second half.

Just to prove the conspiracy theory that the big teams get all the luck, Darragh Ó Sé scrambled a goal from nothing, allowing Kerry the psychological breathing space to move up a gear. Within minutes they were six points ahead, but they ambled towards the line, shipping a handful of needless points in the process.

“The further we go in this Championship, the more we have to keep the pedal to the metal,” reflected O’Connor.

It’s no surprise the Dromid man looks occasionally deflated. We carp and nit-pick at Kerry, wondering why they won’t give us the perfect seventy minutes. But these occasional black-outs are a concern to Kingdom supporters.

“We wouldn’t be happy at all with the way we finished,” said O’Connor. “It was a bit like the Derry semi-final last year when we conceded the last six scores. This time we conceded the last five.”

There’s a reason they say form is temporary. And not every opponent will help you locate the trip-switch.

However, Kerry’s management won’t have to concern themselves with woolly talk ahead of Munster’s Ball on August 28th. When Colm Cooper goaled after five minutes, the umpire almost raised a white flag instead of the standard green. Had Dara Ó Cinnéide converted a 10th minute penalty, the squeamish may have been running for the exits. But Mayo kept Kerry honest.

Cork, at the very least, will do likewise. And maybe more.