Conor Cahalane attempting smooth transition from Cork hurling to football

Anyone with half an eye on the Cork football championship of recent years will know, as Patrick Kelly alluded to above, that Cahalane has been one of the standout middle-third operators.

Tue, 11 Feb, 2025 - 06:59

Eoghan Cormican

Ciarán Sheehan always wondered. Still does from time to time. Curiosity left unscratched.

Prior to the 2014 inter-county season stretching out its legs, new Cork football manager Brian Cuthbert gave his consent to the players wanting to attempt a dual mandate. Eoin Cadogan had been holding such status for years. Others now had permission to walk in his shoes.

Aidan Walsh and Damien Cahalane jumped at the opportunity. Sheehan would have too were it not for a third knock on the door from AFL outfit Carlton.

There had been previous invitations issued to the 2010 Sam Maguire winner from Cork hurling managers. None, though, had been taken up. And as poor timing would have it, the one year any potential hurling invitation would have been acceded to, Sheehan was settling into a new existence and new sport many miles from home.

“I would have always loved to have tried that for a year,” he said earlier this year of having never scratched his Cork hurling itch.

Whatever curiosity sat with Conor Cahalane, the opportunity to tease it out wasn’t long in landing on his doorstep. Cahalane, to be clear, is not attempting any such dual mandate. What he is attempting to do is successfully switch his existence from six-season Cork hurler to 27-year-old Cork football newcomer.

That existence as a Cork hurler came to an end with the announcement of Pat Ryan’s 37-man League panel last Tuesday evening. Three days later, news emerged of Cahalane having joined the Cork football camp.

Unlike Sheehan, Cadogan, Walsh, and his older brother Damien, Conor did not play both codes at minor and U21. His underage Cork existence was focused exclusively on one code. From his first minor call-up in 2014 right through to his last senior appearance in January’s Canon O’Brien Cup final, it has been hurling all the way at inter-county level. In short, he’s never played football for Cork at any grade.

Will that serve as a hindrance in this bold bid to now establish himself as a Cork footballer? Absolutely not. Absolutely not because Conor has been a leading performer for the leading performing Cork club of recent years.

Prior to Castlehaven’s 2023 county final against Nemo Rangers, Irish Examiner Gaelic football columnist Patrick Kelly observed the following: “While Conor doesn’t get the same recognition as his brothers due to his sole focus on hurling at intercounty level, he has turned into a fantastic club midfielder with an engine and drive to match anyone.”

The Haven won that fixture, and the three in Munster that came after. They might well have continued that winning run and wound up in Croke Park had Conor, among others, not been carrying an injury into the All-Ireland semi-final against St Brigid's. Then Haven boss James McCarthy lamented post-match how Conor had effectively played on “one leg”.

Prior to Castlehaven’s 2024 county final against Nemo Rangers, Southern Star columnist John Hayes namechecked Conor as part of a group of Haven footballers who are either “at or near inter-county standard”.

Anyone with half an eye on the Cork football championship of recent years will know, as Patrick Kelly alluded to above, that Cahalane has been one of the standout middle-third operators. The challenge now is to go from near inter-county standard to at inter-county standard. The challenge is to make the leap from club to county, from Castlehaven to Cork.

Certainly, the setting couldn’t be riper for him to successfully make that transition.

The new rules mean such runners and carriers as Conor are encountering less traffic as they move from one half to the next. Moreover, Cork’s absentee list means he won’t be shy of game-time opportunities.

At midfield, Ian Maguire is still in the sickbay. That midfield list is further reduced for the retirement of Killian O’Hanlon during the off-season. Mitchelstown's Seán Walsh is the newbie currently being trialed alongside Colm O’Callaghan. How long before Conor gets an audition in that department?

Luke Fahy and Seán Meehan’s spring-long hamstring injuries throws up the possibility of him being auditioned in the half-back line too. Management might also decide to look at him on the other 45.

Cork manager John Cleary has spent recent weeks being repeatedly asked about players not around because of injury, retirement, and defection. And that includes his nephew and Conor’s younger brother, Jack, making a late switch to the hurlers after spending pre-season wearing football clothes.

While by accident rather than design, to have a recognisable figure traveling in the other direction is a welcome change of narrative for Cleary. He saw an opportunity and didn’t hesitate in picking up the phone to his nephew. Conor’s curiosity, not to mind his high-performance mentality, meant he was only ever going to give one answer to the invite.