Kieran Shannon: Even with Aaron Gillane (on fire), Limerick found a way

Cork still have as good a chance of winning this All-Ireland as they had Sunday morning. If anything, perhaps their chances are higher?

REBEL RAID: Limerick players, Dan Morrissey, Sean Finn, Diarmaid Byrnes, Peter Casey and Ethan Hurley Gearóid Hegarty and Mike Casey celebrate in the Páirc Uí Chaoimh dressing room with the Mick Mackey Cup. Pic: Ray McManus/Sportsfile

In trying to solve the puzzle that is Limerick, the first question Cork have often had to ask themselves is what to do with Aaron Gillane? It was all the more pronounced heading into this fixture; while he had been unavailable through injury for the round-robin game in Páirc Uí Chaoimh, he had raided them for 1-7 in the league final, 1-4 from play.

Since been sent off early in a 2018 Munster championship game, Gillane had played Cork 11 times in either championship or a league final and racked up 4-82, an average of 8.5 points per game, with 3.5 points from play. Even the one time Cork held him scoreless from play – the 2021 Munster semi-final – he still scored 0-6 from frees.

Sunday, Gillane did not score at all. He was man-marked brilliantly by Seán O’Donoghue and then briefly Damien Cahalane. He was repeatedly double-teamed, hounded, and on the few occasions he got a shot off, was either blocked or pressurised into shooting wide. When Aidan O’Connor was moved off the frees near the end of the game like he was in the league final, Gillane wasn’t even around to assume such duties. He had been subbed off just 15 minutes into the second half.

In those first 50 minutes the team had been too occupied trying to get Gillane into the game. In taking him out of it altogether they got Adam English into it and freed up the rest of their forward line.

2. Gearóid Hegarty going inside changed the game

Though Limerick were right to cut their losses with Gillane, they still needed a fulcrum to win here. Gearoid Hegarty was another attacking totem that could have been whipped off before the end; he had been largely peripheral, bar his 15th-minute goal. But ultimately Kiely and Kinnerk valued clutch-time pedigree over anything, taking Shane O’Brien off instead and moving Hegarty inside. In those final minutes he missed a goal chance, an easy point and gave away a free which Cork could have equalised from. But the outlet he gave Limerick, and all the ball that broke off him for Peter Casey to pounce on was reminiscent of what this venue witnessed 50 years ago when Seánie O’Leary and Charlie McCarthy fed off Ray Cummins.

3. The empire has struck back. But the Jedis will return

Cork would really like to have won this, just like they’d have liked to have won the league final back in April; Limerick for one, whatever about anyone else, would have remembered this week Alan Connolly’s candid admission of Cork’s wishlist for the year. But it’s hard to sweep up all three of hurling’s majors in the one year. Especially when you’re not Limerick, and even when you are Limerick and not quite at your peak a la 2020-2023.

When Cork and Limerick made it through to the league final, no-one bar perhaps a Connolly would have been confident that one side would win all of the remaining games between the counties this year; the prevailing wisdom was that each would take games off the other. So it has proved. So far it’s 2-1 Limerick, and 2-0 when it comes to trophies. 

Cork will gladly live with losing that trophy count 2-1 by the end of the year, having beaten Tipp 2-1 last year but having to endure Slievnamon rather than After All ring around Croke Park. Cork still have as good a chance of winning this All-Ireland as they had yesterday morning. If anything, their chances are higher. The law of averages suggests Limerick will hardly sweep them 3-0 in finals. Could they?