Rebels deliver as Liam makes his way back Leeside

Full-time: Cork 1-21 Galway 1-16

Galway failed to end their 17-year wait for an All-Ireland senior hurling title at Croke Park today as champions Cork retained the Liam McCarthy Cup in manager John Allen's first season in charge.

A crowd of 81,136 may have watched Sean Óg Ó hAilpín lift the trophy but the day truly belonged to last year's captain Ben O'Connor. The Newtownshandrum attacker notched a goal and seven points to almost single-handedly steer Cork to their 30th All-Ireland senior crown.

The Tribesmen never hit the heights of their epic semi-final win over Kilkenny. Agonisingly, with the decision still in the balance, they never pushed on from Damien Hayes' 49th-minute, tallying 11 wides by the finish.

For players like Alan Kerins, who was on the Galway side that lost the 2001 decider to Tipperary by three points, there was nothing but bitter disappointment left at the finish.

The champions adopted a direct approach from the throw-in, abandoning their short puck-out game in favour of lengthy clearances from Donal Óg Cusack and company.

The switch worked a dream as, with Galway’s defence pulled all over the field, four Cork forwards had their names on the score sheet in the opening 11 minutes.

O’Connor, Brian Corcoran, Niall and Timmy McCarthy, with the latter three noticeably fired up to deflect recent criticisms, all pointed, along with impressive midfielder Tom Kenny, for a 0-05 to 0-01 lead.

Kerins was the only Galway man on target before the scoring machine that is Ger Farragher cranked up through the gears.

The championship’s top scorer had landed two points – one free – before Cork’s early dominance yielded a goal for O'Connor.

A long 16th-minute clearance off the hurl of Diarmuid O’Sullivan, who was out well in front of Niall Healy, was dithered on by the Galway rearguard and O’Connor latched onto it, in plenty of space, to race through and drill it past Donoghue to the bottom left corner of the Galway net.

Now the underdogs’ mettle would be truly tested. How would Conor Hayes’ side answer back at 0-03 to 1-06 down? Well, they reeled four points in by the interval.

Kerins was denied an immediate response, only seconds after O’Connor’s goal, as Cork net minder Cusack batted his waist-high shot away.

Castlegar forward Farragher tallied up six points – five from frees – in the first half and allied to welcoming points from play from David Tierney and Fergal Healy, Galway squashed Cork’s lead down to two – 0-10 to 1-09 – on the half-time whistle.

Despite the Tribesmen getting back to within a single point on three occasions, Cork's experience in their third straight final told in the second half.

First, a Damien Hayes catch and pass allowed Kerins point off a somewhat subdued John Gardiner.

The Rebels rallied with scores from Jerry O'Connor and Timmy McCarthy to put a goal between the sides at 1-11 to 0-11. It stayed like that until Corcoran put over his second point on 46 minutes.

Moments later, the match looked to have been turned on its head when, from a Richie Murray blocked shot, Hayes scrambled his goal through Diarmuid O'Sullivan's legs and into the Cork net, with Cusack recovering from an earlier save.

The champions reacted in true style and showed their undoubted class with Gardiner, two minutes later, landing a massive free.

Farragher tagged on his seventh point to keep the difference to the minimum at 1-14 to 1-15, but from there on in, Allen's charges pulled the strings.

Kenny, Ben O'Connor, having discarded his helmet in the sunshine, and O'Connor again struck over scores, sandwiching a monster score from Galway defender Derek Hardiman.

As the hour mark passed, the dependable Farragher sliced over his eighth and final point, yet a Deane free, and fittingly, two final overs from Jerry O'Connor, who bagged two points, and his twin brother Ben sent Liam McCarthy back on his way to Leeside.

CORK: D Óg Cusack; B Murphy, D O'Sullivan, P Mulcahy; J Gardiner, R Curran, S Óg Ó hAilpín (Capt); J O'Connor, T Kenny; K Murphy (Sarsfields), N McCarthy, T McCarthy; B O'Connor, B Corcoran, J Deane. Subs used: N Ronan for Murphy (39 mins), K Murphy (Erin’s Own) for N McCarthy (63).

GALWAY: L Donoghue (Capt); D Joyce, T Óg Regan, O Canning; D Hardiman, S Kavanagh, D Collins; F Healy, D Tierney; R Murray, D Forde, A Kerins; G Farragher, N Healy, D Hayes. Subs used: K Broderick for N Healy (56 mins), A Callinan for Kerins (61-65), K Hayes for Forde (65).

Scorers: Cork: B O’Connor 1-07 (2f), T Kenny, J Deane (3f) 0-03 each, T McCarthy, B Corcoran, J O’Connor 0-02 each, N McCarthy, J Gardiner (1f) 0-01 each.

Galway: G Farragher 0-08 (6f), A Kerins 0-03, D Hayes 1-00, F Healy 0-02, N Healy, D Tierney, D Hardiman 0-01 each.

Booked: Cork: D O’Sullivan (19 mins), J Gardiner (60); Galway: T Og Regan (62).

Referee: S Roche (Tipperary).