Not to labour the point- but i don't think that's what Sweeney is saying. Cork appear to have no recognition that they were a moderately talented team. they appear to believe they operated on a different plane than everybody else skillwise as well as everything else. Credit to them for their professionalism -but they weren't the Kerry team of the 70's.
josey, yes, they believed that. But so what. We all have our opinions on it. That they believed that is just part and parcel of how they prepared psychologically for games. I think every year that 2 or 3 teams believe the same thing about themselves. Again, its just spin by Sweeney on something that anyone who ever played the game already knows, and won't be surprised about.
And on the 'golden era' comment. Colombia might chastise me for saying it, but the last 'golden era' involved none of the 'big 3' (yes Colombia, '3'!!). 'Golden Eras' typically refer to the number of teams in with a shout rather than the standard of play. Cork and Kilkenny's all-Irelands in recent years came at a time when the standards being set by those at the top was far better than anything in history. Of course thats my opinion, but I think it hard to argue against the superior fitness levels and preparation that goes into todays game than anytime past.
I don't believe Cork are/were a moderate side. As someone else said, that they achieved the maximum of their potential is the greatest compliment anyone could pay them. As a team they are/were certainly better than the sum of their parts and it didn't matter that they weren't littered with superstars.
One of the most interesting aspects of the hurling championship over the next 2 years will be to see where they go next. Other counties (Tipp and Waterford in particular) will be queuing up to see if they can overtake them in the pecking order (assuming they do go into decline). How they respond and how they cope with the loss of some of their older players will tell us a lot about them.
