Anyone tempted to believe that nine years' absence had been the only factor fuelling all the hype surrounding Cork and Tipperary got their answer at Thurles yesterday. In a rousing Guinness Munster hurling final Cork held on to their provincial crown despite a furious battle by Tipperary who kept the match alive until the very end.

On a glorious afternoon before a full house in Semple Stadium, the challengers went down by two points in the end and had managed to miss two penalties - one in each half - by the time the curtain came down on their brave performance.

A disappointing first half during which Tipperary managed 12 wides gave way to a startlingly good second 35 minutes. Cork led it all the way but just as a riptide of points looked to have taken them clear at two distinct stages, Tipperary hit back with goals to keep the crowd of approximately 55,000 on the edge of their seats.

In the end it was Cork's forwards who decided the issue. They were sluggish in the early stages but once they got a rhythm going, they riddled Tipperary with well-crafted, deftly-finished points. As is their wont, Cork rarely threaten goals and even when an opportunity presents itself, the option is generally to put the ball over the bar.

By the end, though, the full forwards had left their mark all over the hitherto glowing reputation of Tipperary's inside defensive line. Philip Maher found Joe Deane hard going and conceded three points in play plus a few more in conceded frees and another which came directly from Deane slipping free.

Maher's corner men Paul Ormonde and Michael Ryan were equally harassed by the end. Ben O'Connor and Sean McGrath each took three points and sped around menacingly, with O'Connor drawing a good save from Brendan Cummins in the 49th minute.

Rarely perturbed, Cork concentrated on taking their scores and always looked to have the stomach for a close finish. When required, they had the players capable of making a significant contribution.

Surprisingly their defence which is rated the best in the game, wasn't as convincing as usual - particularly early on when it was just the providential gift of Tipperary's inaccuracy which kept the score down. The problem was most pronounced on the right-hand side where Fergal Ryan and Wayne Sherlock suffered at the hands of Eugene O'Neill and Brian O'Meara, who both maintained the fine form of the semi-final against Clare.

To be fair to the champions, they also had some superb performers. Diarmuid O'Sullivan was probably foremost. He won virtually everything that came his way, launched his mighty clearances and cleaned out Paul Shelley so that the Tipperary full forward had to be substituted in the second half.

On the left wing, Sean O hAilpin gave a thunderous display. Athletic and aggressive, he drove Cork forward. After he had swapped wings with Sherlock, O hAilpin managed to rein in O'Meara's influence.

Otherwise, Brian Corcoran was his dependable self if not the supremely dominant influence he frequently is, and John Browne was in total command of his corner.

The experimental centrefield pairing of Mickey O'Connell and Derek Barrett was eclipsed in the first half but not to any disastrous extent and Pat Ryan's arrival for O'Connell in the second half completed the turnaround. Even before Ryan's arrival Cork had prevented Tommy Dunne and John Leahy taking the crucial grip on proceedings which they had established against Clare. Eventually Dunne moved in to full forward where he had a major impact.

Eddie Enright as expected came into the Tipperary team for the injured Declan Ryan. On the other 40, Fergal McCormack got a nasty gash early in the match - possibly from an accidental swing by a teammate - and was eventually replaced.

David Kennedy had another fine afternoon pivoting the Tipperary defence. His colleagues had mixed fortunes with Eamonn Corcoran well in control of Timmy McCarthy for most of the match but John Carroll in a more even contest with Alan Browne.

The early stages were spoilt by foostering and fumbling and a great deal of nervousness which also found an outlet in a large wides' total, most of it Tipperary's. With the champions ahead at 0-3 to 0-2, the first talking-point of the afternoon crackled across the atmosphere. O'Meara unleashed Shelley on goal and he was blatantly pulled down by Cork goalkeeper Donal Cusack. Referee Pat Horan gave the penalty but curiously declined to caution the miscreant.

In Declan Ryan's absence Tommy Dunne addressed the ball. His shot was hard but was saved on the line by O'Sullivan. Cork stayed ahead, mainly through Joe Deane's free-taking, but at 0-6 to 0-5, Tipperary struck. After O'Sullivan had beaten Shelley to a dropping ball from Mark O'Leary, Fergal Ryan attempted to complete the clearance but O'Neill intercepted and took a smart goal. Cork recovered to level the score by half-time.

Five minutes into the second half with Tipperary leading by a couple of points, 1-8 to 0-9, Cork hit the turbo charge and outscored their opponents by 0-7 to 0-2 over the following 15 minutes. Tipperary rescued the situation with a great solo goal by Dunne who advanced through the heart of the Cork defence before off-loading a deceptive shot off the left which cleared four defenders and Cusack and found the top corner of the net. It was 0-16 to 2-10.

Once more, Cork responded immediately. Alan Browne, thriving at centre forward, pointed. Cork then endured the anxiety of conceding a second penalty when Fergal Ryan fouled Eugene O'Neill, but Leahy's shot went straight at Cusack who blocked well with his legs.

Cork then took the opportunity to stretch to four with three more rapid-fire scores from Deane (two) and Pat Ryan. Just as the book had been again closed, Tipp reopened it. O'Meara set up Dunne for a blistering goal in the 68th minute and within a minute Paul Kelly reduced the deficit to a point.

McGrath then had the final say, copperfastening the title on a day well fit for rheumy-eyed reminiscences in the future.