Kilkenny 2-15 Cork 2-14NATIONAL HURLING LEAGUE/Final: The Allianz National Leagues haven't had great luck with the quality of this year's play-offs, but the best was saved until last at Thurles yesterday. Under blue skies, Cork and Kilkenny played out an enthralling hurling final before 25,036.
If the quality of play wasn't always of the highest, there was some slick work as Kilkenny first threatened to overwhelm their opponents, then lost the initiative and with it nearly the match before points in injury-time from substitutes and brothers Sean and Brian Dowling levelled and won the match for the Leinster champions.
It had been 40 years since the counties had met in a league final and Cork would have happily waited another four decades for the next had the match progressed according to the opening quarter's narrative. By the 17th minute they trailed by 10 points, 0-2 to 2-6.
Kilkenny blitzed their way into the match with a series of fast-moving attacks. Foremost in all of this was Eddie Brennan in the right corner. Of the opening 1-4, he scored two points and set up another 1-1 as Cork reeled under the pressure.
Quickly Brennan's marker, Fergal Ryan, was switched with Wayne Sherlock and the latter quietened things down to the extent that he was able to mind his corner and operate as a sweeper to such good effect that he was named Man of the Match.
But in those opening exchanges Cork's defence was not able to cope. In front of the back seven, they were being beaten at centrefield and their half forwards were getting swatted out of the way as Kilkenny launched wave after wave of attack.
In the fourth minute, Brennan burned in from the right and set up Martin Comerford for the first goal. The full forward took it well, and in general substantiated the view that he is a likely newcomer to the summer starting line-up. He was able to lose Diarmuid O'Sullivan on occasion and ended up with 1-3, all scored in the first half.
His brother and team captain Andy was also causing trouble, out on the left wing where he used his strength to power down the highway that seemed to open any time a Kilkenny player wanted to run at Cork's defence.
It was such an expedition that set up John Hoyne in the 15th minute. The right wing forward finished brilliantly and the match was in danger of going the way of the previous week's football decider, which had one set of fans starting to leave by half-time.
Along with the goals came a flurry of often spectacular points, but inaccuracies also crept into their game and eventually something clicked for Cork.
With Philip Larkin off the field having a cut tended to, his marker, Eamonn Collins, drifted off blood substitute Sean Dowling and foraged a ball left of the goal and banged it into the net to get the margin down to seven.
This seemed to motivate Cork, and going in at the interval they trailed by only five, 1-7 to 2-9.
Certain tactical changes made a difference. Seán Ó hÁilpín restrained Andy Comerford, substitute Timmy McCarthy defied some dodgy club form to make a difference at centrefield (where Derek Lyng and Pat Tennyson had been winning nearly everything) while O'Sullivan's move out to centre back propped up a steadier platform around the middle.
The second half didn't start too promisingly. Timmy McCarthy hit an early point, but it was followed by three hapless wides before Andy Comerford showed Cork how it was done by nailing a point from his team's first decent chance of the half.
But with the match apparently in Kilkenny's pocket, the unthinkable happened and Cork mustered a challenge. Alan Cummins' long ball dropped into the square and was fielded without fuss by James McGarry.
The Kilkenny goalkeeper had been notably assured up until then, but he chose to hand-pass the ball away in front of Collins who volleyed it into an empty net. This cut the margin to a point, 2-10 to 2-9.
Within a minute Jerry O'Connor had a chance to equalise from a free but hit it wide. Had he scored, Cork's momentum might have been decisive, but instead the match settled into an edgy 10-minute period during which each side shot a host of wides.
Eventually in the 58th minute, Alan Browne - who had been struggling terribly for most of the match - lofted a point over from the right wing to kick-start his afternoon, which would end with a personal tally of three fine points.
By now the match was poised for a cracking final 10 minutes or so. Scoring was tit-for-tat with Cork leading for the first time in the 65th minute with a 65 from O'Sullivan.
Scores alternated twice more until, going into injury-time, another Alan Browne hit had pushed Cork in front.
The Dowling brothers accounted for three of Kilkenny's last four points. In the 71st minute, Sean equalised, and then, in one of those moments of harsh irony, Man of the Match Sherlock emerged yet again with the ball only to be blocked by Andy Comerford. Brian Dowling snapped up the break and dropped his shot daintily over the bar.
KILKENNY: J McGarry; M Kavanagh, N Hickey, P Larkin; R Mullally (0-1), P Barry, JJ Delaney; D Lyng (0-1), P Tennyson; J Hoyne (1-0), H Shefflin (0-3, two frees), A Comerford (capt, 0-2); E Brennan (0-2), M Comerford (1-3), S Grehan. Subs: K Power for Grehan (35 mins); S Dowling (0-1) for Tennyson (63 mins); B Dowling (0-2) for Power (66 mins).
CORK: D Cusack; W Sherlock (capt.), D O'Sullivan (0-1, a 65), F Ryan; D Barrett, J Browne, S Ó hAilpín; A Cummins, J Gardiner (0-1); J O'Connor (0-4, two frees), K Murphy, N McCarthy (0-1); E Collins (2-0), A Browne (0-3), B O'Connor (0-2). Subs: T McCarthy (0-1) for Gardiner (32 mins); K Murray (0-1) for N McCarthy (52 mins); P Ryan for Murphy (57 mins).
Referee: M Wadding (Waterford).
