Inventive Nemo Rangers put weary Dr Crokes to the sword

Provincial championship victories for Cork clubs over Kerry are infrequent enough for yesterday’s Munster Club SFC final to be toasted beyond the confines of Nemo Rangers’ expansive Trabeg base. But giddy suggestions their 0-16 to 0-11 victory over Dr Crokes may be the trigger for a Cork football resurgence might be stretching the point some.

In times of football depression for the county, Nemo has regularly been an outlier. Accumulating 16 Munster football titles says all that, which makes that 11/4 offering from the odds-setters on a Nemo win at Páirc Ui Rinn all the more absurd (absurd but appreciated, Paddy).

As incongruous as a betting slip might look pinned to a dressing room, doubtless the insult added spice to the intent of the Cork champions as they plotted the downfall of the All-Ireland holders yesterday. As things panned out, they didn’t even require the additional bite. The Kerry champions looked stale and ponderous for long periods, lacked a cutting edge and above all, were heavy-legged as Nemo cut them open repeatedly in the first half.