Gritty Cork pitch up but Kerry’s class pulls clear
AS expected, Kerry moved on to a Munster final in three weeks after a no-fuss 12-point win over Cork yesterday evening, however the Rebels won’t consider this such a huge loss as they made a real contest of the encounter for 50 minutes.
At that stage they were just a point off the provincial champions and neighbouring rivals, 0-11 to 0-10, and giving the Rebel support in the 10,743 crowd something to lean forward about.
But Kerry were in no mood to panic or get dragged into a Saturday night scrap, and they smoothly and efficiently moved through the gears to open up a nine-point lead just after the hour mark. They subsequently closed it out for a well-deserved victory.
Whatever Cork drew from the battle to have this tie played at Páirc Uí Rinn over the last few weeks, they certainly displayed plenty of that much needed fighting spirit in the first half.
That grit was epitomised by Seán Powter in defence, and underpinned by
Stephen Sherlock’s accurate free-taking that kept the Leesiders well in touch.
Cork opened the scoring inside the first minute, Cathail O’Mahony winning a free for Stephen Sherlock to convert, and by the 10th minute it was 0-2 apiece as the teams sized each other up.
Paudie Clifford, Stephen O’Brien and Sean O’Shea (two) pushed Kerry into a 0-7 lead, and it seemed as if the visitors might be making their second quarter push to kill off the Rebels.
However, a dogged and measured Cork side never wavered and by the interval they were just 0-9 to 0-7 behind.
No prizes for guessing which was the happier dressing room, or which one was on the end of the hairdryer treatment, and whatever stern words Jack O’Connor aimed at his players, they eventually had the desired effect.
Kerry pulled three clear early in the third quarter but O’Mahony nailed two monster points to haul Cork back to within one before Kerry sent for the cavalry.
Paul Geaney, David Moran, Paul Murphy and Micheal Burns were sent on, and after kicking eight successive points, Kerry final shook off a limited Cork side, who worked the ball well through the channels but simply couldn’t pick off scores in similar fashion to their opponents.
It’s a Munster final in three weeks for Kerry, against Limerick or Tipperary in Killarney, while Cork head out on the qualifier route. Neither team will be unduly upbeat or beaten down by this, their first step into the Championship, in what was middle-of-the-road football from both.
KERRY: S Ryan; G O’Sullivan, J Foley, T O’Sullivan; B Ó Beaglaíoch (P Murphy 51), T Morley, G White; D O’Connor (J O’Connor 67), J Barry; S O’Brien (M Burns 63), S O’Shea, A Spillane (D Moran 50); T Brosnan (P Geaney 48), D Clifford, P Clifford. YEllow CaRds: J Foley, D Clifford sCoRERs: S O’Shea 0-10 (7f, 1 45), D Clifford 0-4 (3f), S O’Brien, P Clifford, P Geaney 0-2 each, D O’Connor, T Brosnan, M Burns 0-1 each.
CoRK: MA Martin (D Foley 24); K O’Donovan, M Shanley, K Flahive; J Cooper, R Maguire, M Taylor; I Maguire, C O’Callaghan; D Dineen (E McSweeney 56), S Powter (T Corkery 59), J O’Rourke (B Hayes 66); S Sherlock, B Hurley (D Gore 57), C O’Mahony.
YEllow CaRds: M Shanley, J O’Rourke sCoRERs: S Sherlock 0-6 (5f), C O’Mahony 0-3, K O’Donovan, E McSweeney 0-1 each.
B Cawley (Kildare)