The fascinating aspect about the two matches over the weekend was their utter dissimilarity. Moreover, within each match, teams had to modify their strategies at various instances to ensure a win.
In the match between Cork and Limerick, it became evident early on that Cork had spotted numerous subtle weaknesses in Limerick’s defence that they intended to exploit. One particular area was the full-back line. Prior to the game, I presumed that Barry Nash’s absence was bound to influence Limerick’s possession due to his exceptional ball-out-of-defence linking skills. However, it was Nash’s defensive absence that Cork focused on.
Cork strategized by placing Brian Hayes and Alan Connolly further from the goal than usual, challenging the agility of Limerick’s full-back line. This yielded fruitful results with Brian Hayes, who scored 1-4, earning himself the title of ‘Man of the match’, and Alan Connolly scoring 0-3 from a rather withdrawn position. Besides scoring, Connolly also assisted Patrick Horgan in achieving his remarkable 700th point in championship hurling.
The game witnessed multiple intense physical contests and memorable moments. Ciaran Joyce’s powerful presence in the game and his confrontations with Gearóid Hegarty were extremely significant. Cork physically targetted Hegarty, as seen when Tim O’Mahony blocked him in the 40th minute, followed by Joyce winning the subsequent ruck and then a free, which Declan Dalton efficaciously shot over from inside his own 45.
Another noteworthy duel was between Diarmuid Byrnes and Séamus Harnedy, with the Cork player proving superior, contributing 0-4 to the scoreboard. This showdown was epitomised in the first half when two Cork puck outs in a row had Byrnes snatch one from the sky and send it back over Patrick Collins’s bar. Moments later, Harnedy, in an impressive feat of possession, repelled the puck back at the pair.
To reiterate, Connolly demonstrated his tenacity across the pitch, exemplified by a noteworthy play in the 30th minute when he and Shane Barrett managed to overpower Declan Hannon and an out-of-form Will O’Donoghue. This resulted in a score and was a clear illustration of their determination to engage with and combat Limerick’s main players.
Another significant instance was Tim O’Mahony making an impression on O’Donoghue during the second half’s initial throw-in. However, the most defining moment was Ciarán Joyce’s hook against Aaron Gillane as he attempted to capitalise on a rebound following Collins’ saved shot on Hegarty’s goal. In the ensuing scramble, Cork cleared the ball and Dalton eventually scored from afar. Thus, a significant change was seen in the scores.
Cork deliberately chose not to go near Kyle Hayes, a strategy mirroring the one used in an earlier Munster championship game. Collins preferred to steer clear of territory 7, a region where Hayes excels in receiving the high ball and launching his offensive forays. As a result, Limerick’s usually dynamic offensive play was halted due to the ball not being passed to that area.
Interestingly, Limerick didn’t explore alternative ways to employ Hayes, thereby failing to challenge Cork’s technique.
Cork demonstrated commendable prowess in the third quarter, which saw them surge with a nine-point swing in their favour. This achievement was largely due to them gaining control over both puck outs, winning the first six in the latter half and successfully scoring a point each time.
The first trio of puck-outs were long, aiming straight for Hayes, resulting in an aerial mismatch. Cork prevailed in these exchanges, thanks to Shane Barrett capitalising on the resulting chaos, reminiscent of their previous summer encounter. Collins then incorporated variation with a shorter pass, targeting Barrett, whilst also managing to successfully put the ball into play with Darragh Fitzgibbon and Declan Dalton spanning across the 65s.
Cork’s puck out strategy has visibly improved since their match with Waterford, with a standout moment arriving in the 55th minute, showcasing Collins’s tactical acumen. An expertly executed “golf” sideline by Gearoid Hegarty to Kyle Hayes, his lone score, was quickly followed by an incursion into the departed Hayes’s area by Fitzgibbon. Unerringly, Collins despatched the puck out across the vacant pitch, allowing Fitzgibbon to notch a comfortable point.
Despite losing by a mere two points, Limerick is far from being counted out — the end of this era is nowhere near. Cian Lynch showcased his skill as a link player in midfield, while Aaron Gillane delivered stellar performance as a consistent forward outlet, amassing 0-6 from play — both players remained phenomenal throughout the match.
Down by seven in the 51st minute, Limerick demonstrated faith in their juniors, whose roles were clearly defined. Substitutes Shane O’Brien and Adam English entered the fray, each claiming a clean aerial puck out and taking an aggregate of six shots, scoring 0-2 each. This underscores Limerick’s core policy of aiming for the posts, a principle clearly instilled in their upcoming ranks.
The lethal 30-point target that usually guarantees a win for the team led by John Kiely and Paul Kinnerk was narrowly missed. They are well aware that achieving this is crucial for success at the senior intercounty level, even though they fell short this particular time.
Kilkenny v Clare
Clare’s tactic of defending against puck-outs resulted in Eoin Murphy resorting to short options. In the initial half, Kilkenny executed six short puck outs. This strategy nearly bore fruit for Kilkenny when a short dish from Murphy to David Blanchfield resulted in a trademark dummy and long delivery, but the strategic play was thwarted by an excellent double save from Eibhear Quilligan, denying Cian Kenny and Adrian Mullen.
However, a pay-off eventually came for Kilkenny at the 24-minute mark. A goal by Eoin Cody resulted from a short puck out from Richie Reid, who then long-released it to Cody, who sprinted across to the empty space, won and circumvented Adam Hogan.
In the first half, Kilkenny was able to score only one goal from the six short puck outs. Clare opted for the short puck outs even more in the second half, with 14 out of 23 Kilkenny’s puck outs being short. However, only one point was scored by John Donnelly from these 14 puck outs.
Kilkenny favours a long ball approach following initial short puck outs, bypassing the middle third. Of the 14 short puck outs, Clare managed to reclaim the possession 10 times by the time the ball was in their half of the field. Adam Hogan secured victory in four of these instances as Kilkenny’s backs attempted to locate Cody’s runs. From the 20 short puck outs throughout the game, Kilkenny scored 1-1 with a relatively low productivity of 2.0 (productivity being defined as scores per every 10 team possessions).
Hogan triumphed in his contest with Cody as a premier man-marking corner back, relishing competition with headline opposition forwards. He successfully secured four frees when in possession of the ball and a fifth when Cody fouled him in their rush for the ball. This seemed to irritate Kilkenny, evidenced by TJ Reid showing his annoyance to the referee when Hogan secured his first free in the second minute, a repeat of what happened in the NHL final between the two teams in April where Hogan managed to secure four proactive frees while in possession of the ball.
Other Clare defenders also succeeded in the man-marking battles. The Ballyhale forwards from Clare were tightly controlled. Conor Cleary was assigned the duty of marking Reid, a wise choice. Cleary kept ahead of his task and ensured that Reid could not impact the game in his usual way. Although more at ease on the edge of the square, Cleary persisted in his duty even when Reid moved out to field, maintaining the same diligence of a full back.
David McInerney was given the responsibility of monitoring Adrian Mullen as he ventured into Clare’s half of the pitch, a challenge McInerney successfully overcame. This was one of three significant achievements for Clare, despite the strain their man-to-man strategy experienced in the first half. Kilkenny manipulated Clare’s defenders, disorienting their formation. If Mossy Keoghan and Mikey Carey had demonstrated greater efficiency, Kilkenny could have had an unassailable score by half-time. Clare adhered rigidly to their one-on-one approach, leaving no spare players. John Conlan was assigned to John Donnelly, showing less flexibility than is typical for him.
Paul O’Brien, working as a performance analyst for The Performance Process (twitter.com/NoPlanBGAA), made these observations.