Stuttering start will be punished, says Shields

Even in the All-Ireland-winning year of 2010, slow starts haunted Cork.

In the quarter-final, semi-final and final against Roscommon, Dublin and Down respectively, they had to rely on strong second-half showings to turn games their way, and it’s a habit which has proven hard to shake.

Against Kerry in this year’s Munster final, and that of 2011, the fightbacks fell just short, though last Saturday against Galway, Cork timed things right — Aidan Walsh’s goal the catalyst for the turnaround.