Mike Quirke: Cork leaders were struggling for oxygen

The last time I can recall a match like we had in Killarney on Saturday night was the ‘rain game’ in 2008 between Kerry and Galway in the big house in Dublin.

It was the same darkness and cold, with walls of rain sweeping down the length of the pitch. July morphed into December, and had people scampering for ponchos instead of sun cream.

Success in replays is normally based around two aspects; adjustments made by management, and the players mindset.

This is where managers earn their crust, and Eamonn Fitzmaurice started with his tweaks long before throw- in by making four personnel changes. Those adjustments gave the team more solidity and teeth at the back, more size and ball winning capabilities in the middle, and a more physical poacher at corner- forward.

The four that came in were four of Kerry’s top six performers, along with David Moran and Shane Enright.

I’ve long held the belief that replays are won and lost in the mind as opposed to the body. The psychology of sport is a curious thing, and just two short weeks ago Cork were coming to terms with the disappointment of not closing the deal when they had Kerry staggering against the ropes.

They went from being regarded as cannon fodder to a real live championship threat in what seemed like a heartbeat. They must have been struggling to compute the contrasting emotions of performing very well, and getting praise from every corner for the way they dismantled Kerry, but somehow trying to marry that with the angst of not being able to land the knock-out blow.

The ‘if only the referee hadn’t given that penalty’ mentality can fester — the ‘poor us’ mindset is not a winning one. If that lingers in the head, it can give you doubts and makes you question yourself. Cork were back to looking like a team with doubts again at the weekend.

Kerry’s psychology coming out of the drawn game was very different. They were looking at it from a positive angle where they had been well beaten over the 70 minutes and had completely under-performed, yet had stubbornly refused to wilt. They had fought on their back and found a way to escape. They would have felt like they had taken Cork’s best shot and were still standing. If they could improve their individual and collective performances there was no way Cork could get inside their jab.

Cork’s glass was half empty, while Kerry’s was half full.

A player’s mindset going into a big game is what gives him belief and energy. It gives you the confidence to go out and perform knowing everything is in order and every box is ticked — your fitness is solid, there’s a discernible game-plan understood by everyone and you trust in your team-mates… that all combines to give you the belief to express yourself on the pitch.

But a strong body has been undone by a weak mind far too often for management to ignore its importance in a game with a short turn around.

The agenda is set by the gaffer and it feeds down to the senior players before trickling throughout to the whole squad. Eamon Fitzmaurice and Brian Cuthbert would have been battling to set a tone of positivity in their players’ minds over the past fortnight. Desperate to get their squads into the right head-space. Fitzy and Kerry definitely found it.

It may seem like a small thing, but we saw Kerry demonstrate their mindset from the first whistle — Alan O’Connor who was Cork’s top dog the first day out, got completely man-handled by Anthony Maher at the throw-in while David Moran rose uncontested and grabbed possession cleanly. Marker laid… there would be no bullying by the Cork number 8 this day.

Maher and Moran certainly wouldn’t have enjoyed listening to all the chatter in the last fortnight about how Alan O’Connor came back, and after 6 weeks training or so, he tore the Kerry midfield asunder from start to finish. Battered and bullied them.

With the Maher-Moran axis fully re-instated and highly motivated, they took on the responsibility of dominating O’Connor and O’Driscoll and assumed control of the most important sector. That platform gave Kerry an abundance of go-forward ball, which they were starved of in the original fixture.

This phrase ‘hammer the hammer’ is being bandied about and used a bit indiscriminately in some quarters of media to describe Kerry’s approach to last Saturday. It’s a concept that was first brought into the Kerry dressing room by Fitzmaurice when he served his apprenticeship as selector under Jack O’Connor, but its meaning has become more distorted and misinterpreted with each regurgitation.

It originated from New Zealand and the All Blacks; the basic premise is not about physically battering specific opposition players, but is more concerned with targeting the best players and leaders on the other side and focus great attention on winning those key individual match-ups and stopping them having a real influence on the game.

It’s a war of attrition that’s all about gaining a psychological edge. Go right after the head of the snake.

Cork’s hammers the first day were Alan and Donnacha O’Connor along with raiding half back Barry O’Driscoll and sniper Colm O’Neill. Kerry targeted all four and turned each match-up on its head.

Maher took a sledge to Alan O’Connor and had him looking like a man with only 6-8 weeks training in the tank. Paul Murphy completely nullified Donnacha O’Connor’s influence after he had pulled all the strings for Cork the previous day. Murphy’s limpet like defending gave O’Connor none of the breathing space he had enjoyed against Fionn Fitzgerald. Marc Ó Sé too used the conditions and craftiness to his advantage and restricted Colm O’Neill to a much more peripheral role, while a combination of Kerry half forwards took all the energy and zest out of O’Driscoll’s legs and had him running backwards towards his goal more than attacking the Kingdom’s one.

Where Cork were strong the first day out, they were weak last Saturday… that’s what hammering the hammer is all about.

With the Cork leaders struggling for oxygen, Kerry eventually wore them down. Typical Colm Cooper brilliance led to the Paul Geaney goal. His mind may be quicker than his legs these days but Colm is still absolute box office. His introduction transformed Kerry’s play and brought a more assured calmness to the attack. It was interesting to see him as an inside forward again, which is the first time he’s been in there for three years.

Another Fitzmaurice adjustment. That goal sucked all the life and fight out of Cork. They were not to score again.

Kerry now find themselves in an ideal position and have secured an easier route to a potential All-Ireland final date with Dublin. They ground out a low-scoring, hard fought win by making fewer mistakes, but also have loads to work on and are far from the finished article. Kerry looked disjointed at times, unsure of how best to use Kieran Donaghy. And there are plenty of questions. Does Gooch now start inside? Do they go big or small?

Lots for Fitzmaurice to ponder, but I’m sure he’ll be delighted to capture his third Munster Championship in a row.

Cork don’t have much time to lick their wounds, and Cuthbert’s interview after the game was that of a dejected man under a lot of pressure. That’s a worry.

Kildare are after finding some form and some confidence and won’t fear the Rebels in Semple Stadium on Saturday night.

It’s not tired bodies that will do for Cork next Saturday, but it might just be tired minds.