ALL-IRELAND SFC ROUND FOUR Cork 2-20 Down 0-14:CORK'S STATUS remains undimmed, but on this evidence Down's progress to last year's All-Ireland final seems like momentary inspiration.
The repeat of that meeting was supposed to ignite this season’s championship. Instead, Cork barely broke sweat on Saturday night, destroying their Northern opponents despite three of their marquee forwards being lame.
James McCartan’s men went so quietly that a revision of their overall achievements these past 18 months will be unkind. And any future coming will have to be done without Marty Clarke.
At no stage in 2011 have they mirrored the performances that slow burned them into last September’s main event. Even the team is different. They had new corner backs; the defending in general was awful while midfield was overrun by Alan O’Connor and Aidan Walsh.
That meant the forwards were starved of possession. Danny Hughes, the heartbeat of their attack, was patently unfit and withdrawn on 41 minutes. At that juncture it was still a contest.
Barely. At half-time, only five points separated them.
The unerring Donncha O’Connor quickly slipped over two points. This prompted McCartan to send Ambrose Rogers into the fray. Their inspirational midfielder missed last year’s All-Ireland final having only recently recuperated from ruptured knee ligaments. Benny Coulter desperately needed Rogers to generate a supply of clean possession.
Up went Rogers but Brendan McVeigh’s next kick out was gathered by Eoin Cadogan. It was rapidly transferred back up to Fintan Goold whose point snapped Down’s windpipe.
“Whenever Cork had an opportunity to stand on our neck they took it,” McCartan admitted.
With Paudie Kissane relentlessly cleaning up Hughes-type breaking ball, Paul Kerrigan added two more splendid points.
Twenty minutes of irrelevancy followed. This is a genuine shame considering the accuracy of both teams in the opening stages when 10 different forwards registered scores.
The importance of Goold and O’Connor, who coolly goaled when presented solitary opportunities in the first half, increased after Daniel Goulding hobbled off on 19 minutes with an ankle injury that makes his participation in next weekend’s All-Ireland quarter-final against Mayo unlikely.
Cork’s deep well of talent is recognised, but Goulding joins Colm O’Neill and Ciarán Sheehan on the wounded list from their All-Ireland winning six forwards.
His replacement Barry O’Driscoll only lasted nine minutes after a head on collision, which resulted in a yellow card for big Dan Gordon, where he sustained a suspected fractured jaw.
At least Pearse O’Neill, Kerrigan and Paddy Kelly combined for six points with powerful running that regularly left their markers trailing.
Cadogan’s undisclosed and late inclusion instead of Graham Canty solidified the Cork defence.
Mixed messages here.
Cork manager Conor Counihan claimed Canty’s hamstring was not deemed elastic enough in the warm-up, yet the players were informed on Friday night.
The captain eventually arrived to shadow Clarke, once Noel O’Leary picked up his usual booking, and when Clarke was sent off on 56 minutes, Canty glided forward to punch a point.
Clarke arguably should have gone after just four minutes when he split open his niggly marker’s forehead. Referee Michael Duffy was advised by an assistant to only brandish a yellow card.
O’Leary returned heavily bandaged five minutes later with a notably refocused enthusiasm for his game-keeping duties.
It became red on 55 minutes when the Hill 16 end umpires intervened to inform Duffy of an altercation between Clarke and John Miskella. Yellow card each, so red for Clarke. Both men indicated the punishment was unnecessary.
“I didn’t see what he did,” said McCartan. “I would probably just be interested to see if a camera was put on Marty Clarke for 70 minutes of the game. I have no doubt that Marty was probably guilty in two instances but I’d just like to see what the camera might pick up.”
Clarke is now lost to Gaelic football – his return to a professional AFL career with Collingwood supposedly imminent.
“He told me he would be committed to us for two years and he has done that. I’m not going to answer on his behalf. I’m sure you can ask him yourselves.”
So what about yourself?
“I’m definitely not going to Australia.”
Hughes’ replacement, teenager Caolan Mooney, is following Clarke Down Under.
McCartan also made a surprising remark, especially for an Ulster football manager, about how his players are not cynical enough in their systematic fouling. Unlike Cork.
“They’d be more professional or clinical in stopping the opposition forwards from playing. I realise that is part of the game and probably an unfortunate part of the game but, you know, they are better at it than us.
“I just wish we were better at it. I don’t wish to point the finger. We just don’t seem to have the same professionalism in that regard.”
This was more a case of Down going backwards, than Cork pushing on.
That doesn’t mean Counihan’s side are not where they need to be.
Their accuracy remains a class above every county.
Except Kerry, of course.
“We would have been very disappointed with our first half in Killarney so we would have seen it as an area that needed improvement. In fairness to the lads, they responded,” said Counihan.
CORK: 1 A Quirke; 18 E Cotter, 4 M Shields, 5 N O'Leary; 20 E Cadogan, 6 J Miskella (0-1), 7 P Kissane (0-1); 8 A O'Connor, 9 A Walsh (0-1); 11 P Kelly (0-2), 12 P O'Neill (0-1), 10 F Goold (1-2); 15 P Kerrigan (0-3), 13 D Goulding (0-1, free), 14 D O'Connor (1-7, four frees). Subs: 23 D O'Sullivan for O'Leary (temp 5-10 mins), 22 B O'Driscoll for Goulding (19 mins), 24 F Lynch for O'Driscoll (28 mins), 3 G Canty (0-1) for O'Leary (50 mins), 21 M Collins for Walsh (59 mins), 17 R Carey for Cadogan (62 mins). Yellow cards: Shields (29 mins), Walsh (35 mins),O'Leary (47 mins), Miskella (56 mins), Goold (69 mins).
DOWN: 1 B McVeigh; 4 G McCartan, 9 A McArdle, 2 A Brannigan; 6 K McKernan (0-1), 5 D Rooney, 7 C Garvey (0-1); 8 K King, 3 D Gordon; 25 D Hughes (0-1), 11 M Poland (0-1), 12 C Maginn (0-1); 13 C Laverty (0-1), 14 B Coulter (0-2), 15 M Clarke (0-3, two frees). Subs: 21 P Fitzpatrick for King (34 mins), 26 C Mooney for D Hughes (41 mins), 24 A Rogers (0-1) for McArdle (45 mins), 28 D O'Hagan for Branagan (48 mins), 23 P McComiskey (0-2) for Maginn (53 mins). Yellow cards: Clarke (4 and 56 minutes), Gordon (21 mins), Hughes (32 mins), King (33 mins), Maginn (52 mins), Rooney (65 mins), Laverty (71 mins).
Referee: Michael Duffy(Sligo).
