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Cork set to steal Cats’ cream?
by Larry Cooney
 There is no doubt that next Sunday’s All-Ireland hurling final will involve two of the greatest power-houses in hurling down through the years. Both counties have 28 titles and when they do lock horns neither county will want to be overtaken in the roll of honour.
Similar to Waterford’s two games against Cork in the Munster final and Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final, next Sunday’s game has all the ingredients of being another potential classic.
Both teams play a very open style of hurling with a very high level of skill. Kilkenny’s style is based around a possession game by winning the ball high in the air, usually by handling and passing the ball around and then implementing their direct style which is their traditional trademark.
Cork adopt much more of a free-flowing style if they are allowed and this has been particularly noticeable in their last three games since their defeat by Waterford in The Munster final. Cork usual ploy of the quick ball out of defence looks like being the cornerstone of their game-plan and which is something Kilkenny will be attempting to stymie.
Kilkenny are also a very strong physical side who are also able to mix it as well as play openly, which is a huge advantage for any team to have both these strengths. Kilkenny are also very tactically aware of what’s happening all around them and never seem stuck for an option.
Of course the other fact to consider is both sides’ familiarity with one another and the intense rivalry between the two sides. However, the over-riding factor on this occasion has to be Kilkenny’s intense desire to win a three All-Ireland’s-in-a-row. On the other hand Cork certainly will not want to lose two consecutive All-Ireland finals as they did in the early ’80s during the great Jimmy Barry-Murphy era. There are certainly many side issues attached to next Sunday’s game.
Looking at both teams the immediate conclusion one can draw is that Cork certainly look the fresher team. However, Kilkenny survived their most demanding spell of the championship campaign last July and early August and will have benefited from the four-week break from inter-county competition.
The Kilkenny players will also have been kept in tune with their own county championship and by all accounts all their county panellists seem to have come out of those games unscathed. While the Cats have had some very impressive individual performances in this campaign there is no doubt that Henry Shefflin is definitely their key player.
All through the championship Shefflin has been in outstanding form and he can play in any of the six forward positions. Kilkenny’s attacking game-plan is
always built around Shefflin, wherever he takes his place in the Kilkenny forward line.
He has all the traits of any outstanding player where he can be completely out of a game for long periods and then suddenly explode into action. That was certainly the case in last year’s final when he was well watched for much of the game and then when the sides were closely locked together he suddenly took the game by the scruff of the neck won a ball out on the wing cut through before passing to Comerford who scored what proved to be the winning goal. Shefflin is certainly their play-maker and main man.
It is some indication of the extent of Shefflin’s impact on Kilkenny team that I haven’t even mentioned DJ Carey - one of the greatest hurlers in the modern era who still hasn’t had a good All-Ireland final display against Cork. One cannot rule out the fact that Carey could have a contribution to make. One thing is certain and that is that Kilkenny are likely to get more goals than Cork but I believe Cork will need to score at least two goals if they are to win the match.
For that reason I believe the ever-reliable Joe Deane will be Cork’s key figure. While not quite the influential figure that Shefflin might be on the Kilkenny team, Deane is a very experienced campaigner and a great finisher. Free-taking duties will also be Deane’s responsibility.
 Cork’s inaccuracy from frees cost them dearly in last year's final and Deane is likely to maximise as many scoring opportunities from placed balls as from open play. However, no individual player on the Cork team really stands out like Shefflin for Kilkenny.
Brian Corcoran could also have a big contribution to make but that will depend very much on the tactics deployed by manager Donal O’Grady and his selectors.
There may be a temptation to play the ball in directly to Corcoran in the hope of him getting the better of Kilkenny full-back Noel Hickey but it is more likely to be just another option rather than a definite game-plan.
The one big factor in Cork’s favour going into next Sunday’game is that they have had three handy games since they lost to Waterford in the Munster final.
They certainly will not lack confidence going onto the game and unlike 12 months ago, Kilkenny certainly don’t appear to be the awesome side they were then. Brian Cody's team looked very vulnerable against Clare in the drawn quarter-final and against Waterford had to rely on the cushion of the three first half goals to secure their place in next Sunday's final.
Cork are also not wholly reliable on just one player performing whereas if Shefflin failed to shine for Kilkenny, they would certainly need a Plan B, if they were to succeed in winning their three-in-a-row. Another factor which should be borne in mind with regard to Kilkenny is that they rely on a good start to many of their games and in a tight finish are sometimes quite suspect and even falter as they did in the 1999 All-Ireland final.
However, Kilkenny will be only too aware of the challenge before them but I still feel Cork will have benefited enormously from last year’s experience. The fear of Kilkenny is certainly not as pronounced as it was then after their poor League campaign, losing to Wexford in the Leinster championship and almost losing to Clare in the All-Ireland quarter-final.
I know Kilkenny had one big day in Thurles against Galway last July which was frightening for any Galway fan that day. However, Kilkenny cannot be expected to reproduce that kind of form or more important are unlikely to be allowed to play like that again. That was a one-off grudge game played at an unseemly late time on a Sunday evening.
Cork will, nevertheless, also be very mindful of the fact they had one big test this year against Waterford and they failed. Cork probably failed that day because they underestimated the determination and ability of Waterford after they were reduced to 14 men.
That probably wasn’t all that surprising because it was 45 years since Waterford had beaten Cork in a Munster final.
However, I believe Cork have progressed well since that defeat and are peaking just at the right time to deny a Kilkenny team whose frailties have been exposed more than once in this championship campaign.
Cork — the ones to watch
Brian Corcoran
 Until his shock retirement two years ago at the age of 29, Brian Corcoran was the most decorated of all Cork’s inter-county players.
However, his welcome return to the Cork team has somewhat cushioned the blow for the Rebels in the wake of Setanta O’hAilpin’s departure to Australia.
Although Corcoran excelled in the early years of his dual-playing career as a defender, he is now back playing on the fringe of the square at full-forward. Twelve years ago he was voted Hurler of the Year and also won an All-Ireland medal with Cork minor footballers and with the U-21 team.
The return of Corcoran certainly adds to Cork’s attacking options, particularly by enabling Joe Deane to operate very effectively at corner forward. The Erin’s Own man’s duel with Kilkenny’s Noel Hickey will be crucial and if Corcoran can win the aerial battle as Clare’s Tony Griffin did in the quarter-final, then the All-Ireland champions’ defence will be under extreme pressure.
Diarmuid O’Sullivan
 Cork’s burly full-back will certainly be hoping to reproduce the kind of form in next Sunday’s game that has made him one of the top defenders in the game. Now fully focussed on the small ball after a short spell with the Cork county footballers, Diarmuid O’Sullivan looks like he could be pitted against DJ Carey for next Sunday’s game.
Martin Comerford’s duel with Diarmuid O’Sullivan in last year’s decider was one of the features of the game and although this year’s Kilkenny captain had a fine game including scoring the decisive goal, O’Sullivan still remains a formidable opponent for the Noresiders next Sunday.
Cork’s game plan is sure to depend on the Rebels establishing a stong spine throughout the team from Diarmuid O’Sullivan right up to full forward Brian Corcoran. Although not really tested in the last two games against Antrim and Wexford, O’Sullivan will be expected to turn in another big-match performance just as he did against Tipperary in the game before this year’s All-Ireland quarter-final.
Kilkenny — the ones to watch
Tommy Walsh
 Soon after Tullaroan’s Tommy Walsh exploded onto the hurling scene in last year's championship, it didn’t take long before he was being hailed as the new ‘DJ’. However, Walsh’s fledgling career has since taken quite an unexpected deviation in this year’s campaign with Brian Cody deploying him very successfully at corner-back.
Previously Walsh had played in the same defensive role at Fitzgibbon Cup level with UCC.. Walsh’s performances this year have made him one of the hottest properties in the game and one of the most versatile players around. Even in Kilkenny’s shock defeat by Wexford, Walsh was one of the few Kilkenny players who played up to his full potential that day.
However, it was in Kilkenny’s avalanche victory over Galway in the second round of the qualfiers where Walsh really shone and outplayed a number of different markers in that game. Cork will be well aware of the problems that are likely to be posed by Tommy Walsh.
Walsh, who is also an important member of the Kilkenny U21 team which be playing Tipperary just six day after next Sunday’s date with Cork, is a player destined for a long inter-county career.
J J Delaney
 J J Delaney has been hailed as one of the outstanding defenders in this year’s championship.
A supremely talented member fo the The Fenians Club in Johnstown, Delaney already holds the 2003 Texaco and GPA Hurler of the Year awards and is a certainty for another All-Star award this year.
J J played a pivotal role in Kilkenny’s All-Ireland success last year before going on to win an another All-Ireland medal in the U-21 grade. A wing back who plays with a mature confidence and assurance that belies his age, his ability to win possession, mark intelligently and hit quality ball forward has established him as one of the best defenders in the game.
A student of Waterford IT which has a great record as a hurling nursery Delaney, who is studying Construction Economics, is just the latest of a number of All-Stars from the Waterford college. Cork’s half forward line will have to quell the influential J J Delaney early in next Sunday’s game if they have any hope of lifting the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
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