ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION ONE Cork 1-12 Dublin 0-12:IT WASN'T exactly what you might expect from an Easter Sunday summit between the last two All-Ireland champions or if you prefer the current title-holders of league and championship.
A scrappy, often lethargic match played out before the sort of crowd (3,707) that turns Páirc Uí Chaoimh into a mausoleum, ended with Cork a score ahead and into the Division One semi-finals against Down, on the trail of a third successive league success.
Out of the play-off frame in fifth place, Dublin have eight weeks to reflect before their Leinster championship defence begins in June.
Across a range of unsatisfactory indicators – 25 wides (14 from Dublin), 13 yellow cards (seven for Dublin) and sundry errors – the match meandered, as Dublin’s early second-half revival ran out of steam and the holders closed out the game in the final quarter.
The score that ended up separating the teams was symptomatic of the afternoon. A long delivery from Fintan Goold hung in the air above Aidan Walsh and Dublin full-back Rory O’Carroll. Walsh got a hand to it but failed to win possession. The ball somehow ended up eluding Michael Savage in the goal and rustled into the net.
That took Cork seven points clear, 1-5 to 0-1, in the 19th minute and apparently set for a substantial victory. Dublin by this stage had failed to make much headway in terms of attacking and showed no signs of exploiting what chances came their way.
A year ago when they met in the league final, Dublin played the last quarter short four first-choice forwards and saw an eight-point second-half lead evaporate. Yesterday they took the field with only two of last September’s starting attack and with no eight-point lead to blow, looked set for a hiding.
Cork were nearly monopolising the breaking ball, with wing backs Seán Kiely and Graham Canty constantly pushing up and finding unaccompanied support runners.
By the quarter-hour mark they had raced into a 0-4 to nil lead with Donnacha O’Connor, from a free and play, Walsh and Goold all hitting the target. Five of the named forwards would be on the score sheet by half-time.
Dublin’s only early resistance came from Michael Darragh Macauley, in the unaccustomed surroundings of centre forward, but even his input was threatened by a 13th-minute yellow card.
Kevin McManamon ended up the most dangerous of the visitors’ forwards, giving Eoin Cotter a run-around and nearly securing the goal that always looked a prerequisite of a successful comeback. Diarmuid Connolly had an afternoon to forget. Although he posted five points, three from play, his accuracy was awry as a free-taker and overall he had six wides, plus two chances dropped into the ’keeper.
Cork weren’t flattered to be six ahead, 1-8 to 0-5, at the break, but Dublin effected repairs to centrefield by bringing in Denis Bastick for a first appearance since the All-Ireland final and sharpened up ball-winning with the introduction of Barry Cahill.
Four unanswered points closed the margin to two, but just as Dublin pulled up on Cork’s shoulder the holders accelerated, with Colm O’Neill kicking a free. On two further occasions the margin was clawed back to within two points, but each time Pearse O’Neill responded within 60 seconds and Dublin ran out of time.
Gilroy was philosophical about missing out on the semi-finals and looked on the positives from an uneven campaign. “There was a lot there for us. We uncovered a few players and played well in patches. Broadly speaking we’d be reasonably content but yes, we’re a bit disappointed not to make the semi-finals.” He was more exercised on the number of yellow cards flashed by referee David Coldrick.
“There’s national league reffing and championship reffing. Discipline-wise, I thought we were quite good today, we tackled well but got yellow cards for what I deem to be good tackles. It can be frustrating but I thought our discipline was good today.”
His Cork counterpart has now piloted his team to the league play-offs in each of his four seasons in charge. He’ll be facing a Down team who pushed them all the way in the 2010 All-Ireland final but who have proved more compliant since, yielding three double-digit victories between league and championship.
“Yeah, it will be a good game for us – probably in Croke Park, I’d imagine – so we’ll be looking forward to that. We’ve seen a lot of each other over the past three years and it won’t be easy, but we’ll give it our best shot.”
CORK: K O'Halloran; E Cotter; M Shields; R Carey; G Canty; E Cadogan; S Kiely; A O'Connor; P O'Neill (0-2); F Goold (0-1); P Kerrigan (0-2); P Kelly; C O'Neill (0-4, 0-2 free); D O'Connor (0-2, one free); A Walsh (1-1). Subs: P Kissane for Kiely (half-time); N Murphy for A O'Connor (55 mins); N O'Leary for Cadogan (65 mins); J O'Sullivan for Cotter (68 mins).
DUBLIN: M Savage; R O'Carroll; P McMahon; C O'Sullivan; J Cooper; J McCarthy; K Nolan; S Murray; E Fennell (0-1); D Byrne; MD Macauley (0-2); B Cullen (0-2); C Dias; D Connolly (0-5, 0-2 frees); K McManamon (0-2). Subs: D Bastick for Murray (31 mins); B Cahill for Byrne (half-time); D Kelly for Dias (62 mins); P Brogan for Nolan (62 mins); R O'Connell for Fennell (66 mins).
Referee: D Coldrick(Meath).
