Getting to grips: Waterford's Brian O'Sullivan is tackled by Cork's William Egan. | Photos: Michael Kiely
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The former Cork hurling manager Jim “Tough” Barry once said that good Cork hurling teams are like mushrooms because they can spring up overnight. Whether that is wholly true is a debate for another day but it certainly felt like it in Pairc Ui Chaoimh last Wednesday evening when the Rebels brushed Waterford aside to set up a semi-final clash with Tipperary.
Last year Waterford recorded a famous victory over Tipperary on their way to a Munster final. With many of those players still underage, many Deise supporters travelled down to the Southern capital expecting a Waterford victory. Indeed, some scribes including this one predicted a Waterford victory. In hindsight, we were probably foolish to be so confident as in the corresponding minor fixture in 2007 Cork came away with a fifteen-point victory.
Last Wednesday they went one better. When the final whistle finally sounded, Cork held a sixteen point advantage.
The game had a hectic start and referee Declan O’Driscoll had four yellow cards dished out in as many minutes as the sides went through the traditional ‘getting to know you’ period.
When the game eventually settled down and some hurling was played, it soon became apparent that Cork were vastly superior in almost all sectors of the pitch. In the half-back line, William Egan was majestic and he must have needed a massage on his shoulders at half-time for he cleared an amount of ball in the opening period.
See The Munster Express newspaper for full match report.
