Munster final

Sport
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Cork are very quiet in the build up. The banner are talking about all Irelands it’s laughable. Hope Cork do a proper beating on em

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Np one who knows hurling is

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You can’t ignore the fact this is one in SS. Cork, love the place & will be hard beaten.

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I had ignored this and am now completely changing my prediction in an epic flip flop

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ill be on clogherhead beach at about 12 tomorrow if you are around

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The greatest Irish sporting day of the year. I simply cannot wait.

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2 days 2 nights 4 off?
first kid is a steep learning curve allright, i wouldnt say its the kid tho that’s the problem as he can throw that in a creche and i assume the mother is of use
nights are murder- also when ure working shift u abandon the mrs the 4 days - she’s lumbered with that then- thats his problem id say

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I’m over in Cardiff pal on a work trip but that’s a smashing spot.

We’re leaving the other side of the water

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The Cork Senior Hurling team for next Sunday’s Munster Championship Final v Clare in Semple Stadium, Thurles @ 2pm has been announced as follows.

  1. Anthony Nash - Kanturk

  2. Sean O Donoghue - Inniscarra

  3. Damien Cahalane - St Finbarr’s

  4. Colm Spillane - Castlelyons

  5. Christopher Joyce - Na Piarsaigh

  6. Eoin Cadogan - Douglas

  7. Mark Coleman - Blarney

  8. Darragh Fitzgibbon - Charleville

  9. Bill Cooper - Youghal

  10. Daniel Kearney - Sarsfields

  11. Conor Lehane - Midleton

  12. Seamus Harnedy - St Ita’s ( Capt )

  13. Luke Meade - Newcestown

  14. Shane Kingston - Douglas

  15. Patrick Horgan - Glen Rovers

Subs

  1. Patrick Collins - Ballinhassig

  2. David Griffin - Carrigaline

  3. Conor O Sullivan - Sarsfields

  4. Tim O’ Mahony - Newtownshandrum

  5. Lorcan McLoughlin - Kanturk

  6. Brian Lawton - Castlemartyr

  7. Michael Cahalane - Bandon

  8. Dean Brosnan - Glen Rovers

  9. Robbie O Flynn - Erins Own

  10. Jack O Connor - Sarsfields

  11. Rob O Shea - Carrigaline

173

Are cork even playing? I thought it was just Clare.

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174

That Cork bench is beyond shite.

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175

Whoever loses tomorrow will need the full two weeks to get over that heat

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Decent breakdown from Donal O’Grady

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A the winners will not the feel the heat? :man_facepalming:

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You won’t anyway

giphy%20(5)

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179

Denis Coughlan is an alright sort

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180

Fuck off out of here with that useless cunts articles.

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181

Cadogan ?? Clare by 12

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SHANE STAPLETON
june 30 2018, 12:01am, the times
The shadow-boxing is over – it’s time for 70 minutes of truth
shane stapleton

All things considered, this is the first Munster game this year where we will truly know where any two teams are at by the end. Clare understood that their loss to Cork on day one at Páirc Uí Chaoimh wasn’t do-or-die, as did the victors. There were quirks in the calendar too, with Clare playing twice and getting a week’s break, giving them time to prepare for their final two games.

Cork played for the first three weekends: winning first, then frittering away a nine-point lead against Tipperary, failing to beat 14-man Limerick, before scraping past the dead ducks of Waterford. We have been left guessing and rationalising as to why results went certain ways.

Now, the shadow-boxing is over. The excuses over venues, over who had a break, are over. This is a final, a cup is on the line, we will get 70 minutes of the truth.

You could make a case for Clare being favourites and challengers beyond that simply by looking at their exceptional form. They aren’t too reliant on any one star either.

Tony Kelly sat in a holding pattern in the first half against Limerick, and then landed four points after the break. A haul of 1-14 from play over four games is a fine tally, but it looks even better for Clare that John Conlon has produced exactly the same during that time-frame. The latter is a forerunner for Hurler of the Year, and in no small part thanks to the role being played by the meandering Shane O’Donnell. Like a pilot fish sticking close to a large predator, O’Donnell is working off scraps and moving cleverly to create space, while Conlon barrels in for the kill.

Podge Collins would have been Hurler of the Year in 2013 if the final hadn’t gone to a replay and, after four erratic seasons since, he has rubbed some flint together during this Munster campaign. Tipperary, more than anyone, felt the burn when substitute Collins scored three points and set up Ian Galvin’s crucial goal.

The more you dive into the details, the more appealing this Clare team begins to look. They hit five of the last six points to steal victory against Tipp, marrying the twin needs of haste and poise, when previously they might have faded. They made Limerick of 2018 look like any old Limerick we have seen for the best part of this century.

Who are Cork, though? Are they the team that was en route to an All-Ireland final in 2017 only for a red card to Damien Cahalane? That may go down as a missed opportunity, but John Meyler is likely sick of excuses. He wants his team to deliver and no doubt he’ll be unhappy with failing to kill off Tipp and Limerick this year.

What will sit easier is an average scoring return of 1-24 across their four outings (the same as Clare’s), but more so, a spread of lethal threats in Séamus Harnedy (2-10 from play), Conor Lehane, Shane Kingston, and Patrick Horgan (1-10 apiece), and Darragh Fitzgibbon and Daniel Kearney, who have each pitched in with 0-8. The common denominator is pace, allied to good ball going into the forwards.

Their game-plan came awry against Tipp when the rain fell, as a short passing game began to look over-elaborate. That shouldn’t be an issue on a dry Semple sod, and their abundant pace could trouble a Clare half-back line anchored by the towering Conor Cleary. Expect Lehane to stand in at 11 for this very reason.

Gerry O’Connor and Dónal Moloney will see this coming, but outside of their careful planning what has been notable is how they have attempted to drum up an emotional link with the supporters. O’Connor spoke of local tragedies before the win over Tipp, and latterly the impact fans made on players after rushing on to the field afterwards. This all points towards men on a mission.

That so many players are standing up on different days suggests a real team. Peter Duggan looks like he will never miss, and his only failure from placed balls in the past two games came off the post. If he can add to his average of just one point from play per game, Duggan can become a consistent leader.

Clare last beat Cork in Munster when PJ “Fingers” O’Connell and Ollie Baker were doing the scoring, and what better way to blast away two decades of misery than by becoming the first ever team to win Munster when beating every single contestant along the way.

Whatever way the coin falls, it will be hurling’s first real truth of 2018.

183

10am train.

See you there, chaps.

1 Like