Cork locate direct route to survival

Galway 0-24 Cork 2-22: So, having lost every game in the NHL Division 1A proper, Cork relegated Galway yesterday in Pearse Stadium with an exhibition of point-scoring and two goals earned via route one.

Unfair? Critics of a system which allow teams to retain their top-flight status with one play-off win may get a cursory airing on Leeside, but little more. It would have been a nightmare for the Cork team and management to face into the 2016 championship without a competitive win, and ending ahead on the scoreboard was probably more important for them yesterday than any concerns about 2017 status.

For Galway, a few questions remain unanswered, and one wonders if some of them now can ever be answered. Joe Canning showed the full palette of skills yesterday close to goal and far away, but he also committed fouls deep in his own half. Is that where Galway will maximise their return from him?