Gardiner keen to stress the positives
The Rebels were rocked by Séamus Callanan’s goal just after half-time but, having trailed by seven points at that moment, they recovered to get within a single point of the winners with 12 minutes remaining.
Gardiner pinpointed Callanan’s deflected effort and Timmy McCarthy’s disallowed strike in the 41st minute as key factors.
Referee Barry Kelly infuriated Cork by awarding a penalty for an infringement on McCarthy, just seconds before the Castlelyons man found the net.
Gardiner acknowledged that real pride was restored to the Cork jersey with a battling display but added: “We thought the game was there for the taking and that we did most of the hard work in the first half. We had played against a stiff breeze, went in a couple of points down and thought we’d set a platform.
“Tipp got a deflected goal just after half time which was a blow to us. It was an uphill battle after that but we kept battling away and if the (McCarthy) goal was allowed, it could have been a different story. We’re very disappointed but we can take a lot of positives from it.”
Cork registered nine second-half wides, compared to just one for Tipperary, and Gardiner said: “That’s the most disappointing thing – we were on top for most of the second half but couldn’t put them away, couldn’t get the scores. We never got ahead and that was the thing. The goal was vital for them and our disallowed goal was crucial as well.
“It’s hard to be positive when you lose but it was a good enough performance.”
Gardiner also paid tribute to full-back Eoin Cadogan, perceived as a weak link on the edge of the Cork square. Cadogan, stepping into retired Diarmuid O’Sullivan’s shoes, performed admirably and Gardiner agreed: “The new fellas that came in were super. I thought Conor (O’Sullivan) was good there as well.
“A lot of people had us written off. It could have been different but it wasn’t to be. They got the breaks, Patrick Horgan had a chance that just went wide. On another day they could be going into the back of the net and we could be driving on.”
Following on from another winter of discontent, Gardiner admitted he was relieved the players were up to the pace of championship fare despite relatively little hurling under their belts. He said: “You could see we were up to the pace of the game. We weren’t concerned coming into it, we knew we were up for it.”
