Ciarraí V Corcaigh AISF 2008

[tyssam5]

Yous two eejits would want to calm down a wee bit.

Some game from Walsh there today, still a bit of meat to be put on that frame as well, then he will be a really scary prospect.

Really looking forward to this final now.

[INDIANA]

still a bit of meat to be put on that frame

you reckon,i've never seen anyone so fully developed physically at that age, would be an incredible rugby player with his power,pace and size. simply a force of nature and a hell of a player

[tyssam5]

Haven't seen him in person yet, so maybe you're right. They wouldn't be doing weights and the like down in Kerry sure would they?? Hopefully will get the chance to see him now in September, hopefully not too much of him though.

[magickingdom]

cork are an average outfit similar to everyone else bar the top 2 ,kerry let them back into it today and last week for 65 nmins las week and 50 mins today cork were rubbish. that doesn't translate to 2nd best in the country. and clown can see that.

far be it for a kerryman to be defending cork football but todays sindo has a nice bit on them. compare their record against that of the never ending hype dubs, 2 times champions tyrone, or 1 in a row outfit armagh... like i said cork are the second best team in ireland



Give these Rebels an even break
You can slag them all you want but Cork's achievements in football exceed almost every other county, says Eamonn Sweeney


I s there any inter-county team so unloved as the Cork footballers? Guaranteed to draw small crowds, universally derided as underachievers and subject to mockery even within their own county, somewhere along the line the Rebels appear to have been awarded the Pariah Cup.

It's scarcely a fair reflection of their achievement at inter-county level. In the past 20 years there have been two All-Ireland victories, a couple of losing final appearances and a sustained presence in the top echelon. This year sees Cork making a fourth consecutive appearance in the final four. By Kerry's standards, it's not much to write home about but it's better than most other counties have managed in modern times.

Dublin, for example, are hyped as genuine All-Ireland contenders every year and go forward on a wave of fan optimism. Yet their record over the past 20 years runs to one All-Ireland and two losing final appearances. Despite all the excitement which surrounded the Paul Caffrey era, in three out of those four years, Cork stayed in the championship longer than the Dubs. The Rebels' reward has been increasing supporter indifference and media mockery.

You could say that Cork's underachievement in the really big games means that this state of affairs serves them right. Yet Mayo, who are far more culpable in this respect, have never lost the loyalty of their long-suffering supporters. Were they playing Kerry today, it's unlikely that the match could be folded into a double bill along with the Tyrone-Wexford semi-final. Yet this is what has happened to Cork. There was something brutal about the empty Hill 16 and the half-full stands which greeted the players last week and the way these contrasted with the sea of red and white that colonised Croke Park during the hurling semi-final.

The simple explanation for this disparity between the respect afforded to Cork's two teams is to say "Cork is a hurling county," and leave it at that. The only problem with that analysis is that it's wrong. In reality, more people play football than hurling in Cork. There is not one single senior hurling club, or even a reasonably strong divisional team, west of Cork city. In the huge divisions of Carbery, Duhallow and, to a slightly lesser extent, Muskerry, football is the number one game. Even in the city, no hurling team these days enjoys the stature of the great Nemo Rangers, the greatest club football side in Ireland. On the whole, Cork's football championships are supported just as numerously and fanatically as its hurling championships.

Yet the footballers remain lucky if they draw half the crowd that the hurlers do and this situation is getting worse by the year. It may have something to do with that Cork desire to always be seen as the best at everything. Dwarfed in terms of success by the hurlers within their own county, the misfortune of Cork footballers is compounded by the might of their nearest neighbours in football. Any team which has to stand comparison with Cork hurlers and Kerry footballers is going to end up looking a little bit lame.

The result is that many Cork GAA supporters have adopted a pose of insouciance when it comes to the fortunes of the footballers, a "who cares anyway" approach designed to lessen the pain of defeat by the Kingdom. This has led to a kind of inferiority complex in Cork football. During the players' strike, which eventually became all about the identity of the county's next football manager, it was notable how the hurlers made the running and gave the interviews while the footballers stayed in the background, apparently accepting a subordinate status as their rightful station.

This idea that the hurlers are a breed apart from the footballers also manifests itself in the foolish notion, regularly mooted by people who've never seen a game of club football in Cork, that most of the hurlers would in fact make the football team if they deigned to play the big ball game. The truth is, speaking as someone who's seen most of the hurlers play football, at most there are a couple who might make the football panel. Yet this is another example of the cultural cringe which saps the confidence of Cork football people and leads to those rows of empty seats.

The irony is that Cork football might well be on the verge of a new golden age, to match the one which brought them All-Irelands in 1989 and 1990. Before this year, they'd won four Munster U21 football titles in a row, an almost unprecedented feat which means the current crop of youngsters have got used to the idea of beating Kerry. It was a similar phase of underage dominance which led to the previous golden age.

Cork's football tradition deserves a lot more meas than it gets. The trio who engineered last weekend's miracle comeback are steeped in that tradition, goal poacher James Masters is a Nemo man whereas Graham Canty of Bantry, who earned the last-gasp penalty, and John Hayes of Carbery Rangers who scored it are from West Cork clubs where a hurl has rarely been swung in anger.

Cork football may not be as sexy as Cork hurling but it shouldn't be dismissed so easily. Unloved and under-rated they may be, but Cork footballers continue to battle for the respect which is their due, right down to the last second.

- Eamonn Sweeney

[INDIANA]

I think kerry are trying to cover up their own weaknesses by proclaiming corks greatness, cork are not a great football team. if you read my posts generally nobody knows how good dublin are better than me, never once have i said dublin were a great side because they patently aren't. i don't take much notice of a two bob bit former sligo rovers supporter who thinks he now passes for a gaa expert like sweeney , a gobshite of the highest order.
The reality is kerry failed to kill off cork twice when previous kerry teams would have buried them. the Kerry defence is a shambles and this is what gives tyrone a real chance despite kerry's obvious superiority at midfield. I've never seen a more porous kerry defence. but their firepower is what wins them most games and they will rely on that again which may get them over the line. kerry are no as bad as dublin at losing leads and believe me thats bad.

[JMohan]

I will be interested to see how midfield unfolds against Tyrone

[Jinxy]

God I hope the aussies don't get hold of Walsh. He's tailor made for the AFL.

[JMohan]

There's 2 of them!!! lol!

[Gaaboardmod3]

OK, a bit strong, but they're not a very likeable bunch, this current Kerry team, and they get away with it.  Our own Francie has been called a lot worse on this board for a lot less.

rory, That post was out of order. I note you have retracted it, but I have also deleted the original post. Please refrain from that sort of abuse in the future.

[AZOffaly]

Much better game yesterday, and a much more 'manly' exhibition as well. There was one humerous moment, well at least I thought it was humerous, in the second half when O'Mahony was bursting out with a ball. he took a belt on the jaw, and you could nearly see him pause, think about it, and then carry on.

Seamus Scanlon took another shot to the jaw and kept going as well, just like he did last weekend. We shouldn't have to highlight things like that, but fair play to him anyway.

As for the hounding of the referee, well that's just the latest in a line of things creeping into the game that is completely out of order. I thought the ref handled it well though. Declan O'Sullivan has that rep. in Kerry as well, as being someone who loses his rag very easy at refs. He needs to knock it off, without a doubt, because it takes from him as a footballer. I have great time for O'Sullivan as a footballer. He wins breaks, carrys intelligently, scores and lays the ball off. He is a great man to have out around there, so there's no need for him to be at that lark.

Kerry seem to be staggering over the line this year. They've had more 'non-football' issues and controversies this year than I can ever remember, and are definitely in cranky mode. I have a feeling that if they do win the 3 in a row, and beat Tyrone in the final, a lot of the unsavoury aspects will be put to bed, as they will be recognised in their own county as one of the great teams. It's a lot harder to gain respect in a place where every second fella has 2 or 3 celtic crosses, and you are always compared to the men of the 70s and 80s. I'd love to see them winning the 3 in a row but they do need to improve a good bit on their performances so far. If they let Tyrone build up a head of steam like Derry, Cork x 3 and even Galway, Tyrone will put them away.

Good game though, and a good response from Kerry when they looked a dead team.

[thejuice]

Enjoyed the game, thought Kerry were on the ropes just before Coopers goal. Cork will feel that this was the one that got away. And Kerry will be feeling lucky if not a bit annoyed at their brief capitulation.

[lynchbhoy]

still a bit of meat to be put on that frame

you reckon,i've never seen anyone so fully developed physically at that age, would be an incredible rugby player with his power,pace and size. simply a force of nature and a hell of a player

he has too much skill that would not be utilised in rugby union. Would be a waste for him to go play it.
aussie rules would be his only other alternative - or american football as a tight end

[lynchbhoy]

Good game, great win for kerry. Cork imo are a very talented side that just cannot get their act together. I had expected them to beat kerry from a couple of months back (if they met again is what I thought at the time).

tyrone will be a completely different proposition, with asmaller possibly faster and def cuter team than cork.

This will be intriguing as mickey harte the master tacticion and good 'team' v pat cute oshea and his decent team  laden with fantastic individuals.

It will be most intersting to see how Tyrone will cope with the big men in the kerry attack.

Kerry have the talent, but I suspect Harte wont sleep until he gets a gameplan and ambush ready for the kingdom.
I wouldnt back against Harte.
Cant wait.

[comethekingdom]

Before we finish up with this thread

[omaghjoe]

Like that last post

But it would be unfair to Cork for it to remain like that

I never realised there was a dust up in Cork City after this match

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