Cork negotiate Waterford hurdle despite dodgy shooting

Cork got what they needed from the game against Waterford but Pat Ryan will hope it doesn’t rank anywhere close to his team’s best performance in this year’s championship.

Cork manager Pat Ryan said there was "a lot of negativity around" following his side's defeat to Limerick. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Munster SHC: Cork 2-25 Waterford 1-22

To Limerick, Cork will return on Saturday week - though not as a “sitting duck” as Pat Ryan described their position going into last Sunday’s game. Not as favourites, and certainly not on the back of this unconvincing victory in front of a 42,181 home crowd.

But their following won’t care how they got there. The brief was just get there if you can. The expectation of victory was met but Ryan will hope it doesn’t rank anywhere close to his team’s best performance in this year’s championship.

There were some nerves as Waterford twice drove back at Cork in the final quarter and plenty of questionable shooting with 17 wides but the opportunity is there now to redeem themselves in the Munster final.

The pick and shovel work was done in the first half which they won 0-13 to 0-12 despite a wind gusting into their faces. But the shovels were required again in the closing stages as an eight-point lead was whittled down to three and a five-point cushion slice to three 10 minutes later.

“Credit to our fellas, we had a couple of injuries but the lads that came in did very well and the subs that came off the bench did very well as well,” said Ryan. 

“Everyone stuck together after a bad week last week. A big hurling and sporting county, there was obviously a lot of negativity around. Amateur athletes get to see that because they have to go to work and listen to people. But they stuck together and we drove on.” 

Waterford were in Cork’s crosshairs at the start of the second half. The in-form Brian Hayes flicked in the first goal of the game seconds after the restart. Tim O’Mahony hunted down Paddy Leavey, turned him over and supplied Darragh Fitzgibbon who handpassed to Hayes and, one-handed, he did the rest.

After a Patrick Horgan free, Waterford responded with a brace of points before Shane Barrett sprayed a goal chance wide of the mark in the 40th minute. A second goal did arrive in the 49th minute when Hayes made the most of a Conor Prunty tap down and provided Horgan on his outside and the Glen Rovers man arrowed the sliotar passed Billy Nolan’s far side.

That green flag sent Cork six clear and for good measure the brilliant Hayes and Barrett added two further points but Waterford weren’t done yet. Dessie Hutchinson came off the bench to point and then Stephen Bennett quarried a goal in the 58th minute. Seconds later, he struck the butt of the post as Cork’s full-back line panicked. Jack Prendergast followed up at least with a point and the margin was three.

Cue a time for cool heads and in Darragh Fitzgibbon with his first point and substitute Shane Kingston with his first offering Cork had them. Yet three of the next four points were Stephen Bennett frees and with just over a minute of normal time to go the gap was three.

Diarmuid Healy showed a clean pair of heels to point and Cormac O’Brien landed one from distance to ease the tensions. With Horgan having been replaced, it was left to Fitzgibbon to land a securing free prior to Bennett (free) and Conor Lehane exchanging points.

Peter Queally rued the goals, of course. “The goal after half-time was a sucker-punch. But the lads got off the canvas again and kept coming back. We came back into it, a very good goal from Stephen [Bennett]. The crowd really got behind us, a bit of momentum and then the ball hit the butt of the post. Just very, very unfortunate. We had a lot of momentum at that stage.

“Again, the high ball down the middle that Conor [Prunty] batted and it just went straight to a Cork fella [Hayes], in on goal. Just the break of the ball again. I just felt those little breaks just went against us. But I can't fault the lads, very proud of the lads. They battled away and never gave in.” 

Waterford must have felt like they secured a victory before a ball was pucked when team captain Prunty won the toss and opted for his side to be backed by the gale in the first half.

They would have to be ahead at half-time and after 10 minutes 0-5 to 0-1 up they looked well on their way to their way to that objective. Three of their attack were off the mark and unusually none of them included Jamie Barron and Bennett, who so much they have rested on for scores this year.

Cork settled into the game with a hat-trick of points. Mark Coleman was followed by Hayes and Horgan converted his second free. Another threepeat followed a Mikey Kiely effort and Cork were 0-7 to 0-6 up after 19 minutes.

That Cork finished the half with more wides than Waterford spoke of their superiority in general play when Waterford would have been encouraged by the wind to shoot on sight. The teams were level six times in the remainder of the half prior to the second of two Alan Connolly points giving Cork a crucial advantage at the break.

Despite those unconvincing periods in the second half, Cork protected their lead. One positive aside from the result on a day of redemption.

Scorers for Cork: P. Horgan (1-8, 0-8 frees); B. Hayes (1-1); S. Harnedy, S. Barrett, A. Connolly (0-3 each); D. Fitzgibbon (0-2, 1 free); M. Coleman, S. Kingston, C. Lehane, D. Healy, C. O’Brien (0-1 each).

Scorers for Waterford: S. Bennett (1-7, 0-7 frees); S. Walsh, P. Fitzgerald (0-3 each); M. Kiely, J. Prendergast (0-2 each); B. Nolan (free), M. Fitzgerald, J. Barron, K. Bennett, D. Hutchinson (0-1 each).

CORK: P. Collins; S. O’Donoghue, E. Downey, G. Millerick; M. Coleman, C. Joyce, C. O’Brien; T. O’Mahony, D. Fitzgibbon; B. Roche, S. Barrett (c), S. Harnedy; A. Connolly, B. Hayes, P. Horgan.

Subs for Cork: D. Healy for B. Roche (48); L. Meade for T. O’Mahony (60); S. Kingston for A. Connolly (62); D. Cahalane for G. Millerick (temp 63-ft); C. Lehane for P. Horgan (70+3); T. O’Connell for C. O’Brien (70+5).

WATERFORD: B. Nolan; I. Kenny, C. Prunty (c), G. Fives; T. de Búrca, M. Fitzgerald, K. Bennett; D. Lyons, P. Leavey; M. Kiely, J. Barron, J. Prendergast; S. Bennett, S. Walsh, P. Fitzgerald.

Subs for Waterford: D. Hutchinson for P. Leavey (41); K. Mahony for P. Fitzgerald (51); Shane Bennett for D. Lyons (52); A. Gleeson for S. Walsh (60).

Referee: J. Murphy (Limerick).