Kenny content as Rebels get job done

IT WASN’T world-beating form, and certainly wouldn’t be enough to topple Kilkenny from their perch atop hurling’s pecking order, but ultimately it was a case of job done in Tullamore on Saturday evening for Cork’s Tom Kenny.

He explained: “Offaly were always going to be tough and they put it up to us for 40 or 45 minutes. It was a tight pitch, they had good support and if they had got a good run on us in the second half it might have been trouble. Aisake’s goal before half-time, though, and Patrick Horgan’s goal afterwards, gave us the cushion and the confidence to drive on. It was a tough draw in one sense, getting Offaly away from home but the best draw in another, because it focused the minds. It’s good to get behind us, (now) we’re looking forward to the next game.”

That draw takes place next weekend, and will pit Cork against the winners of either Clare/Galway or Wexford/Limerick. No matter who it is, however, on the evidence of Tullamore, Cork can again expect huge support. For some reason – they are, after all, championship matches, and knockout – qualifier games aren’t usually well supported, and this was a real challenge for even the most avid Cork fan. And yet they were there in their thousands, maybe even outnumbering the home support. This, according to Kenny, was a factor in the win.