OPPORTUNITY MISSED?

Before the ball was thrown in at the start of the second half, Cork held a three-point lead against a Kerry team without the combined talents of Shane Ryan, Paul Murphy, Joe O’Connor, Sean O’Shea, Paul Geaney, Graham O’Sullivan, Tom O’Sullivan and Brian Ó Beaglaoich. There was an audible groan from the home support when news of Paudie Clifford’s substitution was announced. This was an opportunity for Cork in Killarney, if they delivered a performance. Instead, they fluffed their lines, with a passive second-half showing that deserved what it got: nothing. Cork boss John Cleary opined: ‘I thought we had too many turnovers, too many poor shot selections and at this level it comes back to haunt you.’

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SECOND-HALF SLUMP

We’ve raised it here in this panel before: how Cork have lost the second half of most of their league and championship games this season. After the Munster final, the stats show the Rebels have been outscored in nine of their 11 second halves between league and championship. That’s a worrying trend. On Sunday, Kerry turned a three-point half-time deficit into an eight-point winning margin – the Kingdom outscored Cork by 1-13 to 1-2 in the second period. This is a wrinkle that needs to be ironed out if Cork are to keep progressing and move closer to the top teams.

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BEST IN CLASS

Apart from Brian O’Driscoll (Cork’s best performer) and Mark Cronin, the Cork attack stuttered. The half-forward line struggled to make any notable impact. Steven Sherlock, after a bright start, found himself on the periphery, while Chris Óg Jones struggled in the second half. In the second half, as Cork scored just 1-2, those three scores came from ten shots – that’s a below-par 30 percent conversion rate. Never enough to get close to winning any final. Now, look at the Kerry attack spearheaded by man-of-the-match David Clifford who kicked 1-6 and gave Daniel O’Mahony a tough afternoon. The best footballer in the country put on a show – his goal was a combination of power, pace, skill and clinical finishing.

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NO BENCH IMPACT

Whereas Kerry, despite their injury struggles, were able to bring on players who made an impact, Cork’s subs failed to make a meaningful imprint on the contest, apart from David Buckley – the Newcestown forward at least tried to inject some intent into the Cork attack. Kerry brought on All-Star Gavin White who showed his class, while half-time substitute Tony Brosnan kicked 0-5 in the second period, and Kerry subs combined for 0-8. David Buckley was the only Cork substitute to score. The Rebels were without the injured Brian Hurley and Dara Sheedy, which weakened Cork’s attack, but they needed more impact off the bench in the second half. It wasn’t there as Cork chased the game.

David Buckley impressed off the bench for Cork.

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BOX OFFICE FIGURES

Okay, it’s certainly not the result Cork wanted, but this was the final pairing the Munster Council wanted. There’s just something about a Cork v Kerry Munster football final in Killarney, with last Sunday like a day borrowed from July. Sun shining, blue skies, the town packed, and fans came out in force in anticipation of a competitive game. The official attendance of 32,961 made this the biggest Munster SFC final attendance since the 2015 Cork v Kerry draw at Fitzgerald Stadium. Cork fans travelled too, again sensing maybe this was a chance to finally end the Killarney hoodoo while enjoying a good day out. It was a familiar result at the final whistle, but it showed there’s still an appeal to Cork v Kerry, provided Cork are competitive.