BACK IN BLACK
Cork giants are on the Wayne no longer..
THEY say that if you wait long enough, everything eventually comes back into fashion. The Cork hurling scene is a good example with the county’s two most successful clubs, Blackrock and Glen Rovers, back in vogue again. Blackrock are the most storied and successful club in Cork with 32 county senior titles to their credit, five more than Glen Rovers. Yet Blackrock haven’t won a county title in 15 years and the Glen have only claimed two since 1989. Those two, crucially, came in 2015 and 2016, propelling the Glen right back to the forefront of the Cork scene. And Blackrock believe their time to recreate past glories is now too with a first final place in 14 years. Wayne Sherlock is selector and nobody knows more about the glory days than the former Cork star. A three-time All-ireland winner with the Rebels, the ex-allstar captained Black- rock to back to back titles in 2001 and 2002. Sherlock told Mirrorsport: “In a club like Blackrock, with such a history, it’s a matter of fact that you’re going to be hearing about all the great teams of the past. “All of the players have parents, uncles, relations or whatever who were involved in the past. I’d absolutely love these guys now to grab a bit of that success for themselves. “They’ve listened to the stories about the 1970s teams, and even the side I played on, but I’d love the talk to switch to this team. “Now is their time to be successful and to get everyone talking about the players of today. I think they want to do that and that they grasp that idea and that opportunity that’s there for them.” Sherlock played for Cork for eight years. He lined out in the 1999 and 2004 All-ireland final wins and was an unused sub in the 2005 final win over Galway after coming back from injury. At his best, he was a brilliant man marker and his is one of the great Cork hurling careers. Yet a win tomorrow, given the relative drought Blackrock have experienced, would be up there with anything he’s achieved in the game. Sherlock said: “It would be one of the best days I’ve had as a sportsman, for sure. But only time will tell if it happens. It’s totally different from playing. You’re only looking after yourself as a player, you’re selfish in a way. “Seeing the joy that 32 fellas would get if we could win this would be fantastic.” There’s another small piece of history on the line because either Blackrock or Imokilly, the divisional outfit, will win the first county hurling final at the redeveloped Pairc Ui Chaoimh. Sherlock said: “It’s a big arena, definitely different to the old Pairc. It just felt totally brand new. It would be great to be the first hurling champions there.”