'We worked our socks off': New Cork boss Ryan delighted with his comeback kids

NEW Cork manager Pat Ryan praised his players for sticking at it when overturning an eight-point half-time deficit during their opening night come-from-behind League win over Limerick.

Trailing by 0-16 to 0-8 at the break, Cork outscored the All-Ireland champions by 2-6 to 0-2 in the 22 minutes after half-time to move two in front.

“We were in the game an awful lot in the first half, but Limerick got six great scores there in the last five minutes of the first half. We missed a score at 0-10 to 0-8 down, which would have brought us to 0-10 to 0-9.

“They are very good at transitioning the ball and finding the spare man, and they got six points before half-time. Obviously, it was a disappointing end to the first half for us, but we are delighted with our lads, they showed great heart in the second half. Got 1-1 straight off to bring us back into the game. We worked our socks off thereafter to get back into it. I think our fellas just stuck at it.

“We defended manfully in the second half. They got six points in the second half. Very proud. We had two fellas making their League debut (in defence), Eoin Downey and Conor O’Callaghan, I thought they were outstanding, along with all the rest of them.

“Great to get the win in the end and we move onto Galway now next weekend."

Ryan had no update on the ankle injury incurred by forward Robbie O'Flynn that caused a 10-minute stoppage late in the second half.

"We’ll get him x-rayed and see."

Limerick manager John Kiely, meanwhile, took full responsibility for his side being so late in returning to the field for the second half. Kiely said it was not intentional that Cork were left waiting out on the field for as long as they were before the start of the second half.

Teams are given 15 minutes at half-time, Limerick mistakenly took 19 on Saturday night.

“We got our half-time clock wrong today. That was not an intentional thing to stay off the field for 19 minutes. It was my mistake. I interpreted the information that was available to me incorrectly,” said the four-time All-Ireland winning manager.

“It was completely my fault that we ended up in the dressing-room for 19 minutes. That shouldn’t have happened. It was my fault, but not intentional under any circumstance at all. It wasn’t to protract the situation, I just didn’t get the numbers right in my own head.” 

Kiely said Declan Hannon sustained a nasty cut to his finger that will likely keep him out for a number of weeks.