In the All-Ireland SFC Group 3 encounter, Cork nudged past Clare with a 1-13 to 1-11 win, driven by a determined veteran corps. The spirited showdown took place at Cusack Park, Ennis, where Cork secured an early advantage in the series.
Clare, the hosts, experienced a thrilling resurgence in the second half, evening the scoreline for the first time at 1-8 each in the 57th minute after initially trailing by six points. A swift reaction from the Rebels, led by stellar performances from substitutes Steven Sherlock and Mark Cronin, helped John Cleary’s side clinch the lead with five of the ensuing seven points, exhibiting their resilience.
This victory marked a redemption for Cork, who had been defeated in the semi-final by Clare 12 months ago. They demonstrated their deserving triumph by leading at every juncture of the match.
The result was a welcome twist as Cork is set to host Ulster reigning champs, Donegal, in two weeks’ time, marking a promising introduction to both the game and the group.
The initial quarter was marked by Cork capitalizing on early home team’s misses to score three unresponded points and a decisive goal. Cork’s advantage was furthered in the 16th minute, when Colm O’Callaghan’s skilful pass led to a goal while Clare’s goalkeeper Stephen Ryan was out of position.
Although Clare did fight back with three points, their slow-mo and tactics resulted in a 1-6 to 0-4 deficit at the conclusion of the first half. Clare returned stronger in the second half, and closed the gap in the opening four minutes with two points from Daniel Walsh.
To put it differently, it was a missed opportunity for Cork in the 38th minute, when a potential crucial goal was thwarted as Brian O’Driscoll, unguarded following Chris Óg Jones’s swift retaliatory move, saw his attempted flick deflect off the crossbar. This miss would be of great relief to the home team.
The weight of this failed goal became more intense when Clare managed to fly a green flag merely five minutes later. This was made possible by a brilliant sinuous run down the left channel by Manus Doherty, followed by an impeccable pass to Aaron Griffin. Griffin’s ground shot found its way to the bottom left corner of Cork’s net, pulling the deficit back to a barely there 1-7 to 1-6.
Though initially grappling with Emmet McMahon and Ciarán Downes through secured kicks, Cork eventually evened the scores as they entered the last quarter. Yet the balance did not last long; the hosts, having exhausted a significant amount of energy in their initial chase, couldn’t block Cork’s barrage from the bench.
CLARE’s composition included: S Ryan; M Doherty, C Brennan, R Lanigan; I Ugwueru, C Rouine, A Sweeney; D Bohannon, B McNamara; G Murray, D Coughlan (0-1), D Walsh (0-2); E McMahon (0-5, 5f), A Griffin (1-0), C Downes (0-2, 1f, 1 45). Substitutions saw M Garry replace Sweeney (33 mins, inj); E O’Connor take over from Murray (52); J Stack (0-1) come in for Downes (58); J McGann step in for Griffin (67); M McInerney replace Rouine (73).
CORK, on the other hand, consisted of C Kelly; K Flahive, D O’Mahony, T Walsh (0-1); M Shanley, R Maguire, M Taylor; I Maguire, C O’Callaghan (0-1); P Walsh (0-2), S Powter (1-0), B O’Driscoll; C Óg Jones (0-1), C Corbett (0-1), B Hurley (0-3, 1f).
Substitutions were enacted with M Cronin (0-2, 1f) replacing Powter at 56 minutes, followed by S Sherlock (0-2, 1f) for Jones and R Deane for Corbett at 59 minutes each. E McSweeney then took over for Hurley at 67 minutes, and finally, P Walsh was replaced by J O’Rourke at minute 74. The game was officiated by referee S Lonergan hailing from Tipperary.