Cork must keep the continuity

NOW that the hunt is on in earnest for a successor to Donal O'Grady as manager of the Cork hurlers, it's timely perhaps to examine this season's revolution in Cork hurling style, and explode a myth or two.

The possession game, that's what it's been called, a radical departure from the traditional Cork direct first-time game. Based, it is said, on the Newtownshandrum formula which last March saw the All-Ireland Club title returned to Cork after nearly two decades of frustration.

But possession game is far too narrow a definition, and doesn't nearly do justice to what Cork, and Newtown before them, have done in dragging hurling into the 21st century, bringing a new concept to the ancient game. It's the intelligence game, and any team out there with ambitions of dethroning Cork would do well to understand that.

When will we ever learn? Still I read top inter-county managers claiming that hurling is too spontaneous a game to be tactical, to have preset practiced plays. Nonsense, I say, that's backward, 20th century thinking. Newtown have just been dethroned in Cork, but we should salute them for the success they've had in the last decade (they were beaten by a club, Cloyne, that also puts a huge emphasis on intelligence in their game).

The phenomenal success of Newtown was no accident, but the result of a deliberate policy by its original coach, Bernie O'Connor, adopted to suit that team (why was this guy not snapped up by a Division 1 hurling county after he left the Newtownshandrum job? Cork, Offaly, Limerick, Clare, surely he was tailor-made for any of those?). It was a tactical policy, with many elements, but it came to be known for just one: the possession game.

Bernie O'Connor is a hurling man to his toes; he is also a thinking man, and believe it or not, the two are not incompatible. It was over a decade ago, coaching an exceptional U12 side that included his ultra-talented twin sons Jerry and Ben, that he began to develop the system that eventually led to Newtown becoming All-Ireland champions, indirectly to Cork's success.

He knew he had a team of superior skill, athleticism, intelligence and aptitude; he knew also however, that they weren't the most physical side to ever represent the parish. He set about devising a style of play that suited them, a style radically different to any seen before in hurling (and yes, I include Cyril Farrell's Galway).

Golf has an expression, drive for show, putt for dough. Well, Bernie O'Connor opted to work on the team's putting. They would play intelligent hurling; no longer would the ball be walloped as fast and as far as possible out of defence, the 120-mph 100-yard missile that lifted fans out of their seats, even as it was being returned with interest, no longer would puck-outs be rained down on the half-forward line, no longer would hurling in this Newtown team be played purely off-the-cuff. So began what we called the possession game.

It was most obvious in defence, but midfield was critical, and it continued up front, where every attack was expected to yield at least a decent attempt at a score.

Possession was key to the new style but it was only one element. Support was also critical, making yourself available in attack and defence; for this, fitness became paramount. As much as possible, the ball was hit at a specific target, even if that target was just open space; no waste, no ill-chosen low-percentage delivery, at either end of the field.

The new style drew enormous criticism, especially when it was played at the back. Never before had defenders, under pressure, been seen to look for a team-mate as a first option; backwards, sideways, coolly seeking the outlet pass, with perhaps another, and another, until someone was finally in a position either to run the ball out, or send a searching ball upfield.

It was hurling with real purpose; it called for total teamwork, players working for each other, it called for real coaching. There could be no hiding, no waiting for the breaks; everyone had to know what they were about, show for the ball, and it started with the keeper.

Forget about player-of-the-year for the moment (it's Sean Óg Ó hAilpín); take a look back through the videos of the Cork games this year and check, who was their most valuable player? Who did most to dictate the Cork game-plan? Clue: he was the only player who could see the whole field at all times.

Possession game? That's like saying The Bothy Band was a percussion group. Possession dictated the rhythm, that's all. But this Cork team, very much reflecting their manager, was about intelligence.

Well-schooled and all as they were in the basics, this All-Ireland win was about the top six inches. Those charged with appointing the new man would do well to keep that in mind; continuity should be the name of this game.