Mark Coleman: 'If we'd have known it was the last puck of the game, we would have shot'

With the clock already two and a half minutes over the allotted five, Owens allowed play to continue on for a total of six seconds from when Patrick Collins made contact with the sliotar.

Pupils of Scoil Chroí Íosa, Blarney, pose for a photograph with former pupil and Cork hurler Mark Coleman. Pic: Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Mark Coleman has confirmed that referee James Owens did not communicate to Cork players how much time was remaining when goalkeeper Patrick Collins stood over a 78th-minute free at the end of Sunday’s Munster final.

Collins sent the free - taken from just outside Cork’s 45-metre line - short to Coleman, who then sent a second short pass to Tim O’Mahony at halfway. 

Owens blew for full-time as O’Mahony’s delivery fell into the Cork danger area.

With the clock already two and a half minutes over the allotted five, Owens allowed play to continue on for a total of six seconds from when Collins made contact with the sliotar.

Coleman, present at the launch of the All-Ireland SHC in his own Blarney clubhouse on Tuesday morning, said Cork would obviously have tried for an equalising point from the dead-ball if they had known how little time was left.

The Cork vice-captain, who is deputising in the main role while Darragh Fitzgibbon is out injured, had a brief interaction with Owens at full-time where the referee informed the half-back that it’s not his job to tell players that the last puck of the game is imminent.

In both his policing of the game and communication to Cork players ahead of that last play, Coleman apportioned zero blame at the doorstep of the Wexford official.

“Tim probably would have hit [the last free], only he got a bit of a knock. Then Pa came up to hit it. We obviously weren't aware that it was the last puck of the game at the time. But with the wind that was there, Pa probably wouldn't have had the distance for it, so we were trying to just increase our probability of scoring by going short.

“Obviously, if we'd have known it was the last puck of the game, we would have shot. But we weren't aware at the time,” Coleman clarified.

“We were aware [how much was gone on the clock]. But you just don't know how long... like, sometimes they play over a bit. But obviously it was the last puck of the game, so that was it.

“I just said to James Owens afterwards that I wasn't aware it was the last puck of the game and he said it's not up to him to be telling you it's the last puck of the game.” 

On the whole, Coleman had no issue with Owens’ communication right throughout Sunday’s Munster decider. 

And while manager Ben O’Connor said in the immediate aftermath of the one-point defeat that Cork “should have got a few more frees”, Coleman’s verdict on Owens’ performance was that “if you were to go by the letter of the law, he probably had a good game”.

The Cork half-back added: “I must say that I had a few conversations with him during the game. He was fine the last day. But it's not up to him to be talking to players, really. Some refs have their own style, but I have no issue with James Owens at all.

“We just have to accept that we were beaten by a better team. I'm not going to sit here blaming James Owens for anything. I think he's probably right. It's probably not up to him to tell me that this has to be the last puck of the game. He blows the whistle when he feels the time is up and that's it.” 

Although yet to watch the game back, Coleman provided a detailed reflection on what was Cork’s third consecutive final loss across all competitions. 

The outstanding reflection was the insufficient number of scores put on the board, particularly during a second half where Cork managed just one score from play and no score at all from play from the 38th minute onward.

Cork's 19-score total was equal to what they registered in last year’s All-Ireland final defeat when they struck just two second-half points.

“We probably just didn't do enough in the second half to get over the line. You have to be scoring a bit more to be beating Limerick. Obviously, it was difficult conditions, but you still want to be getting a few more scores on the board.

“When you're playing into a wind like that, you're very limited in the range of puck-outs you can hit, especially with the way Limerick set up. Their half-back line are very good at setting up and covering space. 

"You're just nearly forced to puck it down on top and trying to overload one side or something like that. 

"When the wind is that strong, you're not going to be able to spray it into space because they're going to have their half-forwards cutting it out, and they're going to have their wing-backs set up well to deal with that.

“They're obviously so strong in that area of the pitch, they were able to force us long and get their good players under it. I'm not sure of the stats, but I think we did win a good few as well. We probably just didn't do enough when we did get the ball.”

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