Waterford 1-19 Cork 2-22
There was no overstating the importance of the occasion at Walsh Park yesterday and, ultimately, only one team rose to it.
Cork had to win to keep their hopes of progressing in the Championship alive and while that imperative didn’t quite apply to Waterford, they could ill-afford to lose a game that their manager Liam Cahill had described as the biggest of his three-year reign during the week.
They now go to Ennis to play Clare next Sunday essentially having to win to keep their season alive having seemingly positioned themselves as Limerick’s closest challengers after a thumping victory over Cork in last month’s League final.
Indeed, merely being contenders wasn’t enough in the aftermath of that victory for their former manager Derek McGrath, who insisted that they were now the “team to beat”, despite Limerick having won three of the previous four titles.
Cahill would hardly have thanked him for that but, typically, he didn’t sugarcoat his own opinions afterwards, feeling that his players had allowed Cork to push them around.
"Cork did absolutely outwork us today,” he admitted. “Cork bullied us around the field today. That's something we committed to that we wouldn't allow any team to bully us.
“From the throw-in, we had players that were introduced to proper Munster Championship hurling. That's what it was going to be here.
“When the questions were really asked around the cut and thrust of Championship hurling, we were more or less looking to the officials and out to the line rather than to what was going on between the lines.”
His side started reasonably well and were 0-6 to 0-2 clear by the 14th minute with the Cork defence having coughed up four frees for Stephen Bennett to convert.
Patrick Horgan had struck two frees at the other end himself to claim the all-time Championship scoring record from Joe Canning but the Cork attack was making little headway with the strong breeze before.
After another Horgan free, Mark Coleman got them moving with a point from distance before Seamus Harnedy became the first forward to score from play and then goalkeeper Patrick Collins slotted another from way out to draw them level.
Darragh Fitzgibbon stormed through the middle to place Robbie O’Flynn for a shot on goal and though Shaun O’Brien saved, Alan Connolly prodded home the rebound to put Cork in front for the first time in the 22nd minute.
Waterford hit back to restore their four-point lead with the help of a Michael Kiely goal, another rebound effort after Collins denied Patrick Curran, but Cork hit six of the last seven points in the first half to regain the lead at the break, 1-12 to 1-11.
They drove on from there, with Harnedy a force of nature, and controlled the second half as Waterford lost their way badly, shooting 11 wides. They never looking like reeling Cork in, particularly once Connolly netted his second goal in the 52nd minute after sub Shane Kingston flicked the ball out to him.
Austin Gleeson, one of the few Waterford players that sparked over the course of the afternoon, was dismissed on a second bookable offence in the 63rd minute as the home side’s challenge petered out in front of 10,986 at Walsh Park.
Cork certainly played like a team whose Championship progress was at stake and that was reflected too in their manager Kieran Kingston’s animated demeanour on the sideline, where tempers frayed at times, resulting in referee James Owens yellow-carding him after he had repeatedly taken issue with his decisions.
Kingston wouldn’t be drawn on the incident afterwards for fear of attracting a suspension, he claimed, though he did say that he felt his caution was “unfair”.
“We’re obviously relieved, pleased,” said the Cork boss, for whom a fourth successive Championship defeat would surely have hastened his exit. “This was a backs-to-the-wall game. The stats speaks for themselves – if we didn’t win today, we were out. I’m proud of the players, the attitude they brought and the performance that they gave.”
Kingston made an interesting call early in the second half by whipping Horgan off after he had fumbled one ball and struck a poor wide after half-time, sending Tim O’Mahony into the full-forward line in his stead.
The versatile Newtownshandrum man proved to be a lively presence inside and played a key role in Cork’s game-breaking second goal.
“Tim had an injury during the week and just wouldn’t be able to play 70 minutes so we couldn’t risk him,” Kingston explained. “We might get 30 was the best case scenario.
“Tim’s versatility, you could bring him in half-back, midfield, half-forward. We’ve used him there in different games, internal games. He gives us that versatility.
“At the time we were solid enough in the back line at that particular juncture so he gave us a good target coming down the stretch.”
WATERFORD: Shaun O’Brien 7; Shane McNulty 6, Conor Prunty 7, Conor Gleeson 7; Calum Lyons 6, Tadhg de Burca 6, Jack Fagan 6; Jamie Barron 6, Carthach Daly 6; Jack Prendergast (0-1) 7, Patrick Curran (0-3, 0-1f) 7, Austin Gleeson (0-4, 0-1f) 7; Dessie Hutchinson 6, Stephen Bennett (0-7, 0-6f) 6, Michael Kiely (1-0) 6.
Subs: Peter Hogan (0-1) for Daly (HT), Darragh Lyons for Barron (46), Neil Montgomery (0-2) for Kiely (46), Shane Bennett (0-1) for Bennett (65), Colin Dunford for Curran (69).
CORK: Patrick Collins (0-1) 8; Robert Downey 7, Damien Cahalane 7, Sean O’Donoghue 7; Niall O’Leary 7, Ciaran Joyce 8, Mark Coleman (0-2) 8; Darragh Fitzgibbon (0-2) 8, Luke Meade (0-1) 8; Robbie O’Flynn 7, Seamus Harnedy (0-5) 9, Shane Barrett 6; Alan Connolly (2-0) 8, Patrick Horgan (0-4f) 6, Conor Lehane (0-5, 0-2f) 7.
Subs: Shane Kingston (0-2) for Barrett (29), Tim O’Mahony for Horgan (40), Conor Cahalane for O’Flynn (63), Tommy O’Connell for Meade (69), Brian Roche for Lehane (70+4).
REFEREE: James Owens (Wexford).
QUOTE ME ON THAT
“We hurled like a car on dirty petrol, just chugging along. Just not acceptable. Not acceptable to the big Waterford support that came here. It's terribly, bitterly disappointing."
Waterford manager, Liam Cahill.
STAR MAN - Seamus Harnedy (Cork)
An all-action display from Harnedy. Hit two points when Cork needed them in first half, another two as the tightened the screw after half-time and, fittingly, the last score to crown a fine performance and victory.
AN OTHER - Patrick Collins (Cork)
Had the rare distinction of scoring a point from play, a score that Cork particularly needed at the time, and was a useful outlet for his defenders
UP NEXT
WATERFORD: May 22 v Clare (a)
CORK: May 22 v Tipperary (a)
