Tipp Defeat Arch Rivals Cork To Advance To Finals

Munster SHC Semi-Final
Tipperary 1-19
Cork 1-13

By Dermot Kavanagh

It was reminiscent of former days at Pairc Ui Chaomh on Sunday: Cork playing host to arch rivals Tipperary, a sweltering hot day and a spillover of some of the near capacity crowd on the side lines.

To round off the picture the game itself matched the surroundings at the build up and saw Tipperary qualify for the final where their opponents on July 13th will be either Clare or Limerick.

To this observer's view the game can be summed up as one of phases. Cork owned the first 20 minutes or so and looked to be cruising to a comfortable win.

Then from Eoin Kelly's goal in the 24th minute, Tipperary took control for the remainder of the half and went in at the interval just one point in arrears (1-08 to 1-07) when only few minutes earlier it looked as if Cork might be out of sight. The play in the second-half was again one of phases.

Cork were the dominant team early on and at times it looked as if they could win whenever they chose to pull the trigger.

However, partly due to their forward weaknesses and a much improved display from the Tipperary defense, Cork were unable to get far enough ahead to cushion themselves against the next period of Tipperary dominance.

Thus when Eoin Kelly shot Tipperary into the lead in the 60th minute this final phase of the game saw Tipperary score 7 points to Cork's 1, to take the game by a 6-point margin.

The game demonstrated that in special circumstances some goals are more valuable than others.

Cork's goal by Ben O'Connor in the 9th minute did no more than add 3 points to Cork's rising tally.

However Eoin Kelly's goal might, before the championship is over, be seen to be the score that not only rescued the match for Tipperary but also saved their season.

If Tipperary leave Croke Park next September with the McCarthy Cup in hand, then and only then will the true value of Eoin Kelly's wonder strike will be appreciated.

Cork were an enigma on Sunday. For the opening 20 minutes they looked as good if not better than the two-in-a-row team of 2004 and 2005.

There was no apparent weakness anywhere and on the odd occasions that Tipperary threatened the Cork defense, they tackled and harried the Tipperary forwards so successfully that they shot 9 wides in that period.

Following Kelly's goal however, Cork looked fragile, conceding 3 points in as many minutes and saw their lead reduced to a single point.

Cork's main weaknesses are in their attack. Apart from the opening stages with the exception of Cathal Naughton and Timmy McCarthy (who was mysteriously and foolishly taken off in the 47th minute) none of their original selection, four of whom were replaced before the end, impressed.

The decision to move McCarthy was equaled by the decision not to introduce Joe Deane until the 67th minute when the momentum of the game had decidedly swung in Tipperary's favour.

Gearld McCarthy will be asking questions of the merits of some of his players.

On Sunday's evidence McCarthy should in all fairness be directing questions to himself in relation to his decision making.

Overall Tipperary were worthy winners. They refused to buckle when not playing well and when their turn came to dominate they were relentless in pursuit of victory. They displayed both a hardness in the tackle and the fluency of play that, with the possible exception of Kilkenny on a good day, no other team would have matched.

Cork have until July 12th (when they meet a Leinster semi-final loser) to regroup. This observer has no doubt that they will, but some serious decisions will have to be made in selecting a forward line that is up to the standard required.