Getting the replay head just right

Cork have had the upper hand in recent replays against Kerry. Ian O'Riordan talks to Larry Tompkins about two of those close encounters

Everyone knows the original match favourites nearly always win the replay. If the outsiders fail to close the deal the first day it's a lot harder the second. They've lost the element of surprise. Warning signs are set flashing all around them. And if they had the favourites on the ropes but couldn't knock them out then they've almost certainly blown their chance.

That's the perception anyway. We've already seen three replays in the football championship this summer, and each time the original match favourites progressed (Armagh, twice, and Tyrone). Yet the most recent replays between Cork and Kerry suggests otherwise - and adds a little extra intrigue to their rematch at Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

Despite their great rivalry and series of meetings over the years, tomorrow's game is only their third replay since 1987. And Cork, surprisingly, have won the last two, and on both occasions were definitely the outsiders. Naturally enough that will have little or no bearing on tomorrow, but it does illustrate how a replay can be more mental than physical. If Cork can get their heads right they definitely have a chance.

At least that's what Larry Tompkins thinks, and he should know. Tompkins made his first breakthrough for Cork on the team that drew with Kerry in the 1987 Munster final, against all the odds, and then beat them in the replay. And Tompkins was manager when the sides last drew in the 2002 Munster semi-final, another game Kerry were heavily fancied to win, with Cork again beating them in the replay.

Their 1987 meeting is filed somewhere under classic Munster finals, partly because it started the demise of arguably the greatest Kerry team ever. Having been denied the famous five-in-a-row in 1982, Kerry came back to win another three-in-a-row, 1984-1986, and thus went into that game as defending All-Ireland champions.

Tompkins, however, was new to the Cork scene and went to Páirc Uí Chaoimh without fearing much. "It was only my second championship game for Cork," he recalls. "We'd played Limerick a few weeks before, and with all due respects, and like Tipperary and Clare and Waterford, Cork and Kerry were a good bit ahead of them all.

"So it was my first Munster final, and in ways I wasn't really aware of all the excitement that goes along with Cork playing Kerry, and the great rivalry that was synonymous with the two teams over the years. When you haven't played in those games before you don't really know what to expect, so I was really just approaching it as any other game.

"I can remember the fierce interest in the lead up to it, and the huge crowd on the day. We were seen as the up-and-coming team. And Kerry had shown the world over the previous 10 years that they were the kingpins of football. So it was a real challenge for us at the time, and in a sense if we'd been told before the game we'd get a draw we'd be very happy. As it transpired we did come back at the end to equalise, but on that day I felt we were the better team, and probably should have the won without the replay."

The game itself was a nail-biter, with Tompkins tormenting the Kerry defence throughout. What it will be most remembered for though is Mike Sheehy's late, late goal, which briefly put Kerry a point in front, before John Kerins's lightning quick kick-out ended with a free for Cork, which Tompkins duly converted.

"There was a feeling that we really surprised Kerry that day," adds Tompkins. "Kerry had all the big names, and we had a lot of youngsters. Like myself and Shay Fahy were new to the scene and a lot of people in Cork didn't even know us. But as the years passed that Cork team proved themselves as a very able side. We did have a lot of good players, and proved that for the guts of the next 10 years.

"So I don't think we felt we'd missed our chance. I certainly didn't feel any inferiority complex, especially after drawing with them. We would have felt as well that Kerry had a lot of older players with a lot of football in the legs, so we would have been fairly confident going into the replay.

"Of course, the fear of a backlash is always there, especially with a team like Kerry being the overwhelming favourites the first day. Some people were saying that Kerry's attitude would be different the next day and there's no way they'd be complacent." As it turned out Kerry were well beaten in the replay - 0-13 to 1-5 - with Sheehy having a nightmare with his free-taking on the freshly cut grass of Killarney. Tompkins reckons the lessons of that day should be an example to any team, and that replays are largely about self-belief.

"To me it always boils down to the individual players. If their will is strong and their mind is right then I don't think these things count for much, that the chance was lost or whatever. I think if players just concentrate on their own game and their ability then there should be no greater obstacle the second day."

Cork proved that again in the 2002 semi-final, although under different circumstances. Once again Kerry were strong favourites, on their home turf of Killarney and looking for their third successive win over Cork. Yet on one of the worst days of the summer Cork pulled off a draw, 0-8 each.

"It was also the same day Ireland were playing Spain in the World Cup," explains Tompkins, "and there was big interest in that. I remember I'd a plan to take the team on a quiet walk around the hotel just to get away from the World Cup, and try to get their own heads in order. As it transpired it was a terrible day and you couldn't go outside, so all we could do was watch the match. And maybe that was the best thing to do at the time.

"The playing conditions were horrendous, but I still thought it was a cracker of a game, very competitive and both teams really gave it 100 per cent. We came back to draw it, but again were very unlucky not to win it the first time. We'd a few chances to win it near the end."

The following Tuesday, however, the death occurred of Micheál Ó Sé, the father of Kerry players Marc, Tomás and Darragh. Despite efforts to get the game postponed an extra week the Munster Council fixed it for the following Sunday evening at Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

"I felt very sorry for the lads, having to play so soon after their dad dying, which was an awful blow. Everyone in Cork felt for them, and they should have been given at least another week to recuperate. So naturally their heads weren't really focused on the day, and we managed to win. But of course Kerry came back with a bang and beat us well in the All-Ireland semi-final."

So to the latest replay in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Like the rest of us, Tompkins was a little surprised with the battling qualities of Cork a week ago, and if they repeat that tomorrow afternoon they can obviously pull off the win on the second attempt.

"It was certainly very encouraging last Sunday, especially the guys who were thrown in for the first time. It was nice to see so many players step it up and show a bit of leadership without waiting for things to happen on the field. And that's what you need if you want to win at this level. You don't want to be looking at one or two players, and quite a number of Cork players, particularly in defence, were willing to do that last Sunday.

"If they can show that same desire on Sunday of course they've a chance, and it will definitely give us another good reading of where this team is going. I just feel that whichever team comes out of the draw with the right attitude can drive it on the next day."