'Very harsh' - Cleary contests O'Callaghan red card and hails Rebels' resolve

"It isn't, to me, a deliberate strike or anything like that,” said the Cork manager after a gripping win over Meath. 

OFF EARLY: Colm O'Callaghan of Cork leaves the pitch after being sent off during the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Round 1 match between Cork and Meath at Páirc Uí Rinn in Cork. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile

“Very harsh” was Cork manager John Cleary’s verdict of the straight red card shown to midfielder Colm O’Callaghan.

Given the 51st minute sending-off did not derail Cork’s lead position, there are a great many positive reflections from Cleary that we could have led off with. After all, it was the three-point victory over last year's All-Ireland semi-finalists that would eventually supersede the red card as the chief talking point of the evening.

Nevertheless, Cleary had watched the potentially game-defining incident back on video by the time he spoke to the assembled media post-match, and the following was his take.

“I just had a look at it there now. It seems very harsh. It isn't, to me, a deliberate strike or anything like that,” said the Cork manager.

“He's trying to free himself, and it's just his arm trying to get away, and Colm does that. He was trying to get away, the player was holding out of him, and he just put his hand back. But we’ll just see during the week now.” 

The same as the League win over the same opposition at the same venue, Cork were not for overtaking when reduced to 14 men for the final quarter. Meath twice achieved parity. Twice Cork answered.

“The sending off changed things. But fair play to the lads. They showed tremendous character, resolve, passion - whatever you would say there - to get us over the line," added Cleary. 

“The Donegal win two years ago here was on a par with that, particularly the way it happened today. We dug ourselves into a small bit of a hole and then got back at it again in the second half. Backs were to the wall. But guys stood up and were counted.” 

Backs were to the wall when O’Callaghan walked. Backs had earlier been to the wall when Meath outgunned their hosts by 1-6 to 0-1 between the 25th and 31st minute for an eight-point interval lead.

That lead would have been 11-strong had O’Callaghan not denied a Seán Coffey goal drive in the final seconds of the half.

“We said at half-time, keep chipping away at it and when we get the momentum, then try and work the two-pointers because the breeze will give you that. And in fairness, a couple of the lads, particularly Steven [Sherlock], were on form with two-point shots.

“When you have momentum, and that's what we had in the second half, it gets you back into games very, very quickly. I think the crowd inspired the players, as well, and they really responded to it.” The Cork players responded to far more than the almost-9,000 crowd. They responded to an utterly tame Munster final effort. This Sam Maguire opener was their true reflection.

“We were all a bit frustrated after Killarney. We didn't think we played horribly bad. But we just didn't maybe play the way we wanted to play.

“And I do think in a peculiar sort of way that the game in Killarney helped us today. I think when the crunch came, we were a bit more battle-hardened than Meath were. They hadn't played for seven, eight weeks.

“We went up to Meath last year. We hadn't played for five or six weeks. And although Meath had been beaten in the Leinster final a fortnight earlier, when it came to the crunch, they got over the line. And I think that was a factor again today.

“It's fantastic to win a game like this. It's great for [Cork] football. It's great for the lads. It's great for everyone.

“Before today we were two steps from an All-Ireland quarter-final. Now we're one step. And I think the big advantage will be trying to get straight into the quarter-final because the games will otherwise be week-on-week. A game such as that takes so much out of you, and then if you had to go out next week again, it would be fairly tough.”