Brilliant Cork just left us for dead, says Conran

WEXFORD manager John Conran shrugged his shoulders and said: “Cork left us for dead.”

He added: “If Cork repeat this performance in the All-Ireland final, then Kilkenny will have it all to do. This is a very good side. They played absolutely brilliant hurling. Their skill levels were something else altogether”, said the manager, who will consider his future in the weeks ahead.

“We never performed on the day - we were never allowed to do so. The speed and momentum of Cork’s play was mind-boggling. They were really up for it.

“Their backs were outstanding. They laid the foundation and the rest of the side built on it. They over-ran us in every sector. We had no answer to them, and judging them on this performance, Kilkenny will really have to be at their best to beat them in the final,” he said.

Conran was remarkably upbeat for a man who had watched his All-Ireland dreams torn to shreds. “We have a comparatively young side. We probably peaked in the Leinster championship which we won for the first time in seven years. But these lads, despite this beating, have been great ambassadors for our county.

“I don’t think the six-week lay-off was a factor. Quite simply, Cork did not allow us to perform and you must take your hat off to them for that.

“They ran us ragged and we were helpless to respond. We needed a goal to get us up and running, but unfortunately for us, Donal Óg Cusack had a very good game in goal for Cork.

“He denied us when we desperately needed some sort of injection to get ourselves into contention. But it was not to be. It was a bad day for us,” said Conran.

“Our three half-forwards had to work hard in recent weeks to overcome their injury problems and it might have affected their fitness levels, but on the day, Cork were vastly superior to us. It’s nonsense to say otherwise.”

Goalkeeper Damien Fitzhenry said that the semi final was done and dusted by half time.

“On occasions, even if you are three or four goals down, you can still see some light at the end of the tunnel when you come in for the break. But, in this instance, it was a case of doom and gloom all round. We knew we had an awfully tall mountain to climb and, to be honest, deep down we had a sinking feeling.”

But for some heroics from Fitzhenry, who enhanced his status as one of the leading goalkeepers in the game, Cork’s victory margin of 18 points could have become embarrassing.

He continued: “We were dreadful. Before the start, we felt we had a 50/50 chance of winning, but after just 10 minutes it was obvious that Cork were really up for this one.

“Their half-backs, in particular, were totally dominant and were the foundation for their resounding victory. And an outstanding team display, one of the finest I have ever witnessed in my career, shocked us to the core.

“They swarmed all over us and we had absolutely no answer to their superb team-work and technical brilliance. You can have a good day or a bad day at Croke Park. We have had some good ones and some bad ones. Sad to say, this was the worst day as far as I am concerned.”

Team-mate Larry Murphy concurred. “I came on as a sub in the second-half. We could have played our full complement of 30 players against Cork’s 15 and we still wouldn’t have won. I thought it might slacken off at some stage but it never subsided.

“That hurts. Cork were positively brilliant, but we never got going at all and were never allowed to express ourselves. I suppose you could say we had an off day. But to be brutally honest about it, we had no answer to Cork’s greatness.”