The crosscode question: what will Cian O’Neill bring to the Cork hurlers?

Cork will be O’Neill’s first senior inter-county hurling involvement since he finished with Tipperary in 2011, but his methods back then were ahead of their time. Can he repeat the trick for the Rebels in 2027?

Cian O'Neill will be Head Coach with the Cork senior hurling team in the 2027 season. Pic: Laszlo Geczo/Inpho

Before they conquered the Cats, Tipperary had to steel themselves for battle. A fundamental part of that was the physical sessions in The Ragg. Everyone knew what was coming. The message would land: Cian O’Neill had them for half an hour. Brace yourselves.

“Our training was absolutely animalistic at the time,” says Tipperary All-Ireland winner Darragh Egan of their 2010 triumph. The former Wexford manager is friendly with O’Neill on two fronts, having worked with him as a coach while also crossing paths professionally through PE and education.