John Cleary: Cork players released to play for Castlehaven a 'non-story'

Tommy Walsh and Conor Corbett are injury-free and available for selection against Roscommon. 

'NON-STORY': Cork football manager John Cleary has described as a “non-story” Rory Maguire and Conor Cahalane lining out for Castlehaven in a club league fixture the morning after they were introduced as second-half subs in Cork's All-Ireland series defeat to Meath. Pic: ©INPHO/Bryan Keane

Cork football manager John Cleary has described as a “non-story” Rory Maguire and Conor Cahalane lining out for Castlehaven in a club league fixture the morning after they were introduced as second-half subs in Cork's All-Ireland series defeat to Meath.

Maguire and Cahalane saw the last 19 and five minutes respectively of Cork’s 1-13 to 0-12 defeat to Meath on Saturday, May 24. The following morning, the pair were released by Cork management to play in Castlehaven’s bottom-of-the-table Division 1 league win over Carrigaline.

They were the sole pair, from the Cork bench in Navan, to line out in a club league fixture the day after the Meath defeat and six days before the Kerry game at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Ruairí Deane and Éanna O’Hanlon were two more introduced against Meath, and while their respective clubs, Bantry and Kilshannig, were also in League action on Sunday, neither played.

All non-matchday Cork panelists, as is standard procedure, were free to line out with their respective clubs the day after the Meath defeat.

A Cork GAA statement in the days after the Meath defeat and appearance of Maguire and Cahalane in Castlehaven colours said “those who played less than 35 minutes on Saturday were all released to play with their clubs on Sunday, subject to them being fit enough to do so”.

Cleary, though, had not been asked about the release of matchday panelists six days before Kerry’s visit until the Irish Examiner broached the subject at Tuesday’s press briefing ahead of this Saturday’s sink-or-swim Sam Maguire group fixture against Roscommon.

Asked if all subs from the Meath game were aware they were allowed to line out for their club the following day, he said they were.

“Of course they were aware. That’s a non-story, total nonsense. To me that was total nonsense,” he said with regard to reporting of the story by local media the week after the Meath defeat. Neither Maguire nor Cahalane were used off the bench in the subsequent defeat to Kerry.

Looking forward to Saturday, Cleary said Tommy Walsh and Conor Corbett are injury-free and available for selection. Corbett has not featured this year as he recovered from corrective ACL surgery. Walsh, meanwhile, hasn’t featured since the Munster semi-final defeat to Kerry in mid-April when he departed injured just 13 minutes in.

“Conor got a bit of a setback three or four weeks ago, he is on the mend. It was a muscular thing, which often happens with cruciates. Tommy Walsh is on the mend.” 

Cork, beaten by Meath and Kerry, must overcome Roscommon to finish third in the group and secure an All-Ireland preliminary quarter-final place. Roscommon, who lost to Kerry and drew with Meath, will advance if the game finishes level. When they clashed in Division 2 at the beginning of March, Roscommon scored a 2-21 to 0-13 win on their travels to Leeside.

“The mood is quite good. A day or two after the Kerry match, maybe heads were down. But the very fact we had an extra week, I think by the end of last week, lads were back up again because they realised that we have another chance.”