Waterford dynamism leaves Cork soul-searching

Cork 1-21 Waterford 3-19: An afternoon of affirmations played itself out in Thurles yesterday as Cork were once more found wanting when confronted by the energy and wit of Waterford, who delivered the better championship performance.

A better side? There’s only one way Cork can prove they are superior to the upstarts who have taken this season by storm. And yet the path in front of them is booby-trapped from here until September.

Performance-wise, Cork improved on what they delivered in the Division 1 final but so did Waterford, shrugging off a shaky start to lead this game from the half-hour mark onwards.