Daire Connery: 'The Cork public were crying out for a win, and thank God we were able to deliver'

An emotional Daire Connery of Cork celebrates with Feargal Condon. Picture: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Cork wing-back Daire Connery ended Saturday night’s game with three points and an All-Ireland medal.

It went some way to ease “a lot of hurt” from previous defeats with Cork, said the big Na Piarsaigh clubman: “We said it at the start of the year, we weren’t going to be looking at the past, we’d be looking to make our own history.

"There’s a lot of hurt there, I won’t lie, from the U21s, from the U20s, the minors, but it’s incredible now. I can’t put it into words to be honest, it’s just an amazing feeling.”

Cork benefited from the intensity at training, he added.

“I said it all along, that I didn’t feel Dublin were necessarily at an advantage in having had a game (Leinster final win over Galway) when we didn’t play for over six months.

“Our training session were very like what you saw in the game, they’ve been electric. The boys - (strength and conditioning coach) Adam McCarthy, all the physios, they’ve had us in tip-top shape all the way and the intensity in training in the last few weeks.

“I’ve no doubt that it brought us up to the level Dublin were at although they had that game against Galway.

“We didn’t care who came through to play us in the end - whether it was Galway, Dublin, Kilkenny, whoever got through.

“It was all the one to us - we were going out to win an All-Ireland we weren’t going to be concerned about the opposition.”

Connery agreed that the win was a good sign for hurling on Leeside.

“It gives you a boost, obviously - nothing would boost your confidence like winning an All-Ireland medal when the county hasn’t won an (U20/U21) All-Ireland in over twenty years.

“But we’ll focus on the seniors next week, we’ll enjoy the night for what it is first.

“We’ve been getting there and getting there for the past four years, this group of players.

“As a squad we've been one of the most successful Cork groups in the last 20 years, and fellas have a lot of experience in Harty finals, Munster finals, All-Ireland finals.

“The Cork public were crying out for a win, and thank God we were able to deliver.”