Kieran Kingston: ‘People didn’t realise that Tipperary set up with a sweeper last week’

Cork manager Kieran Kingston. Photo by Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

Cork manager Kieran Kingston has played down the negative commentary which surrounded last week’s Allianz League clash with Tipperary.

Both sides were criticised for an excess of short puck-outs, as well as short and lateral passing out the field.

Kingston said a lot of observers did not realise that Tipperary set up with a sweeper in Thurles, and therefore Cork had to commit to working possession through the lines as opposed to launching the sliotar down on top of the spare Premier defender.

“You’re always going to get that. To be honest, I don’t read too much of that,” replied Kingston when asked for his thoughts on the analysis of the fixture.

“My attitude is that we have a group of players, and a backroom, and we’re working together as a unit. We keep all other stuff outside the group and we try to do the best we can.

“If you go back to the championship last year, there were probably a lot people who were maybe passing comment — if there were, and I’m not on any social media, so I can’t comment — about hitting the ball long, down on top of a sweeper. 

“They were probably the same people who were saying last week: ‘Why didn’t you hit it long?’, so you’re never going to win with some people.

“I think the key thing is that a lot didn’t realise that Tipperary set up with a sweeper last week, so we had to work the ball a little bit differently. 

“Did we over-elaborate at times? 100%. We went lateral at times too much, but the alternative was to puck it down on top of seven defenders against six attackers.”

Kingston welcomed the two-week break to their next outing, allowing his players to recharge after three games in 21 days off the back of a six-month break in collective training.