'This has now become a team': Mulcahy salutes Glen Rovers after sealing final spot

Glen Rovers manager Tomás Mulcahy celebrates with his players Rhys Dunne, left, and Lee Quilligan after the Cork Premier SHC victory over Kanturk. Pic: Tyler Miller/Sportsfile

Cork Premier SHC semi-final: Glen Rovers 2-20 Midleton 1-18 

Old money is back in circulation as Glen Rovers set up a tantalising premier senior county final with St Finbarrs.

They did so with conviction. Micheál Mullins, described as “a revelation” by his manager Tomás Mulcahy, wouldn’t have been on most people’s bingo cards for a brace of goals but he took them so well.

His driving solo runs were a key component of The Glen’s victory as was Patrick Horgan’s almost unerring free-taking and the calming presence of the Downey brothers in defence.

The second of Mullins’ goals in the 54th minute really finished off Midleton who were off the boil for a large part of the first half and were chasing shadows in the closing stages.

Tomás Mulcahy’s side led 0-10 to 0-9 at the break and the opening goals of the game came inside the first five minutes of the second half. Mullins finished low to the net after a menacing solo run.

It skipped Glen Rovers into a three-point lead, 1-10 to 0-10, and Luke Horgan followed up a point. However, two minutes after Mullins’ hit, Paul Connaughton cancelled out the major with a snap effort from an acute angle. Struck so powerfully, it deflected off Cathal Hickey’s hurley beyond him into the far corner.

With The Glen still holding sway and leading by two points, Mullins struck again in the 54th minute and they were empowered, adding on three more points. They were awarded a penalty too but Horgan skewed his strike wide.

It mattered not a jot. His team weren’t going to be caught, not like last year, as much as Midleton’s bench provided three points in the closing stages. Dean Brosnan’s third point of the game topped off a fine Glen Rovers display.

The response since the opening day defeat to Blackrock has thrilled Mulcahy. “I know we got a bit of a pasting for the Blackrock match, 15 against 14, why didn't we close out the game, why we didn’t shut out the game,” he recalled.

“We kind of backed ourselves into a corner, going to play Kanturk, who were the talk of the town, going down to play them in Castletownroche. What I saw that day kind of made me believe this team is going somewhere, this has now become a team, the older generation, the younger generation.” 

Midleton’s four weeks out of action looked to be written all over their play in the opening quarter. Their tackling was sluggish, they were second to a lot of breaking ball and in their inside forward line Rob Downey was dominating Conor Lehane.

Losing Tadhg O’Leary-Hayes to an early injury was also a blow for The Magpies and after 21 minutes they found themselves six points in arrears, 0-2 to 0-8, facing the wind.

Horgan scored all but two of them and five of his six came from placed balls. Simon Kennefick also had a sniff of goal but failed to connect with the ball as he attempted to bat it beyond Bríon Saunderson in the 21st minute. Compensation came in the way of a free converted by Horgan.

Only when Lehane came out to the half-forward line did he and Midleton improve. Earlier, he had caught a great ball in front of The Glen’s defence only to strike it wide.

He added another as he went for goal with a close-range free after Hickey had put his body in the way of Alex Quirke’s shot in the 27th minute. Quirke was one of four Midleton forwards that had broken their opponents’ cover. They were spurned chances that would come back to haunt them.

By that stage, Lehane had scored two points, one from play, and wing-back Cormac Walsh had sent over the first of three long-range efforts into the breeze. A 13-minute spell without scoring had been broken by an audacious Ross O’Regan effort over the shoulder in the 22nd minute.

Walsh sent over a point either side of a Kennefick point and Lehane rounded out the scoring for the half when he sent over a free he had won when Adam Lynch had caught him in the chest.

If anything, the interval came at the wrong time for Midleton in a game in which they never led. “I know people said there was a strong breeze there, we didn't feel it was that strong to be honest with you,” said Mulcahy.

“Like the last day against Charleville, we had a great 10-minute period into the second half, and we had similar today. Sometimes you go after half-time, you fall flat, you give the opposition the chance to come back in, but I think we pushed on today brilliantly in the second half, some great performances and some great scores. I thought defence, magnificent, the young fellas in the middle of the park were tremendous.” 

Scorers for Glen Rovers: P. Horgan (0-11, 9 frees); M. Mullins (2-0); S. Kennefick, D. Brosnan (0-3 each); E. O’Leary (0-2); L. Quilligan, L. Horgan (0-1 each).

Scorers for Midleton: C. Lehane (0-7, 3 frees); P. Connaughton (1-3); C. Walsh (0-3); P. White (0-2); D. Cremin, R. O’Regan, C. Beausang (0-1 each) 

GLEN ROVERS: C. Hickey; E. Varian, A. Lynch (c), R. Downey; L. Horgan, E. Downey, L. Coughlan; R. Dunne, C. McCarthy; D. Brosnan, M. Mullins, L. Quilligan; S. Kennefick, E. O’Leary, P. Horgan.

Sub: B. Moylan for L. Quilligan (51); D. Noonan for C. McCarthy (59).

MIDLETON: B. Saunderson; T. O’Leary-Hayes, E. Moloney, T. Dunlea; C. Walsh, T. O’Connell, S. O’Sullivan; M. Flnn, S. Quirke; R. O’Regan, A. Quirke, K. McDermott; P. Connaughton, D, Cremin, C. Lehane.

Subs: E. McGrath for T. O’Leary-Hayes (inj 4); P. White for S. Quirke (temp, 34-35); P. White for K. McDermott, C. Beausang for R. O’Regan (both 44); L. O’Farrell for S. Quirke (51); C. Morley for P. Connaughton (59).

Sent off: T. O’Connell (60+4).

Referee: C. O’Regan (Ballyhea).