Cork pitch perfect to set up the predicted final chorus

With ease, Cork became only the second team after Tipperary in 2019 to finish the round stages with a 100% record.

Sean Rynne of Clare in action against Tommy O'Connell of Cork. Pic: John Sheridan/Sportsfile

Munster SHC: Cork 1-30 Clare 1-14 

Sing when you’re winning.

Limerick have been doing plenty of that in their dressing rooms down through the years and Cork are no slouches either.

An interview with Seán O’Donoghue was understandably cut short as Ben O’Connor summoned the players to the dressing room for a quick debriefing before a chorus of Kingfishr’s “Caroline” emerged from their quarters.

They hope to be giving bars of the same tune from the same dressing room in two weeks’ time as their first home Munster final in 12 years await against their hurling and musical rivals. Their fourth sing-off of the season.

Here, Cork were pitch perfect. With ease, they became only the second team after Tipperary in 2019 to finish the round stages with a 100% record.

With the amount of enforced changes to the team over the course of the last six weeks, it’s a pretty record they will hope to retain on June 7. Captain Darragh Fitzgibbon mightn’t be back in time but the ease with which Rob Downey returned to the team after his ankle lay-off bodes well.

A meek Clare weren’t a patch on the side that demolished Tipperary in Round 4 and were beaten long before the final whistle in front of the 42,269 crowd.

Afterwards, Brian Lohan chose not to speak to the media. Clare’s year is hardly done but the nature of this defeat was chastening to say the least so soon after they were humbled by Limerick at home. There will be much to plot in these next four weeks before they face Dublin or Galway.

His opposite number O’Connor could afford to withdraw Brian Hayes in the 45th minute in what appeared to be a precautionary move. Together with his inside men William Buckley and Alan Connolly, he posted 1-9 from play.

Outside them, Shane Barrett was in stellar form with five points and would have had a point to prove after his sending off in the counties’ previous SHC meeting in Ennis 13 months ago.

As their fans made for the exits, Clare’s frustrations manifested themselves in the final quarter with a series of yellow cards for chops. This was their first SHC defeat to Cork in six games, their last coming in the pandemic season of 2021. Shane Meehan’s additional time goal raised only a whisper of the Clare roar.

If there was one bum note for Cork it was only scoring one goal but O’Connor wasn’t counting. Hailing from an All-Ireland winning team that weren’t known for scoring many either, it didn’t perturb him.

“We had a couple of goal chances and they had a couple of goal chances, it could have been a totally different game. There was a nice breeze out there and we coughed up two handy chances at the start and lucky enough didn't concede. We got the goal just before half-time then and that was a right boost.” 

An obviously happy Arsenal fan, he also leaned on the example of the newly crowned Premier League winners to make his point about how high pressing takes the load off “the lads at the back”. And like Arsenal, they leaned on their set piece – Connolly’s eight frees was a fine haul.

Surprisingly, there were no late changes to either side and the game had a conventional hue for the most part but Clare were being pulled out of shape by Cork’s movement and the regularity of the delivery into them.

At the other end, Ian Galvin was as dynamo as he was against Tipperary eight days earlier but again his conversion rate was poor. He had two goal chances inside the opening six minutes, the second of them hitting the post and Damien Cahalane had to be alert to keep the rebound away from anticipating Clare forwards.

Galvin was also blocked down twice and by the 17th minute Tony Kelly already had three wides to his name and David Fitzgerald two.

Cork, on the other hand, were off target with just three chances inside the opening 30 minutes, two wides and one short. They doubled that inaccuracy by the end of the half but by that stage were in full control of the game.

The selfless running of the Cork forwards was not something Clare encountered in their previous game and Buckley was in great form early on. Barrett had three points by the 16th minute.

Cork opened up a three-point lead by the 12th minute and it had developed to five six minutes later before Kelly pinged over a couple of frees.

Another hat-trick of Cork points followed to push them six up and while Shane O’Donnell was threatening the chances of a goal were greater at the other end.

Darragh Lohan was an injury withdrawal after 13 minutes and his replacement Rory Hayes slipped at a crucial time in the 34th minute and Buckley left him for dust. He found his St Finbarr's club-mate Hayes and his bounced effort foiled Eibhear Quilligan.

Hayes then claimed a free off David McInerney, which Alan Connolly converted and Cork made for the dressing room pleased with their work, nine points to the good.

As early as that, as word filtered from Limerick that they were going great guns against Tipperary, the return to SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Sunday week was being plotted.

Cork will chase “Caroline”. Limerick, perhaps, The Beach Boys’ “Caroline, No”. We have the Munster final we have long anticipated, ladies and gentlemen. We may just have our All-Ireland final too.

Scorers for Cork: A. Connolly (0-11, 8 frees); B. Hayes (1-2); S. Barrett (0-5); W. Buckley (0-4); S. Kingston (0-3); B. Walsh (0-2); T. O’Mahony (free), E. Downey, D. Healy (0-1 each) 

Scorers for Clare: T. Kelly (0-8, 6 frees, 1 65); S. Meehan (1-1); D. Ryan (0-3); S. O’Donnell, C. Galvin (0-1 each).

CORK: P. Collins; N. O’Leary, S. O’Donoghue, D. Cahalane; E. Downey, R. Downey, M. Coleman (c); T. O’Mahony, T. O’Connell; B. Walsh, S. Barrett, D. Healy; A. Connolly, W. Buckley, B. Hayes.

Subs: S. Kingston for B. Hayes (45); G. Millerick for D. Cahalane (55); C. O’Brien for R. Downey (57); H. O’Connor for T. O’Mahony, P. Power for B. Walsh (both 58).

CLARE: E. Quilligan; D. McInerney, A. Hogan, D. Lohan; D. Ryan, J. Conlon, N. O’Farrell; T. Kelly (c), C. Malone; D. Fitzgerald, D. Stritch, S. Rynne; P. Duggan, I. Galvin, S. O’Donnell.

Subs: R. Hayes for D. Lohan (inj 13); D. Reidy for D. Stritch (temp, 23-28); C. Galvin for J. Conlon (42); J. Kirwan for D. Fitzgerald (45); S. Meehan for I. Galvin (47); D. Reidy for C. Malone (57).

Referee: J. Murphy (Limerick).

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