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Cork pull away in closing stages

Cork 0-18 Laois 0-9 : THE SCORELINE paints a story of a bad day at the office and it was

Mon Mar 16 2009 - 00:00

Cork 0-18 Laois 0-9: THE SCORELINE paints a story of a bad day at the office and it was. Yet for 50 minutes Laois were in the hunt but in the closing segment were way off the beat.

Cork opened in style with points from Donnacha O’Connor, Michael Cussen and John Hayes. After 18 minutes Cork led 0-5 to 0-1 when Michael Tierney opened Laois’s account and he added three more in the opening half. Cork added five more from Hayes, Paul O’Flynn and John Hayes. Conor McCarthy also got in on the act but just before the break he received a yellow card for an off-the-ball incident.

After a good spell for the home team Cork finished the half well with points by Donnacha O’Connor and Paul O’Flynn and at the break led by 0-10 to 0-5.

Laois supporters were looking forward to a good second half and for 15 minutes were a match for their opponents.

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Donnacha O’Connor was causing havoc any time the ball went his way, however, and Michael Shields made his way up field to score an easy point but by then it was a matter of how many.

It might have been much worse but for a brilliant save by Michael Nolan five minutes into the half. A defence-splitting move saw Pearse O’Neill inside the defence but Nolan cut off the danger.

Cork pulled away in the closing quarter, adding points from substitute James Masters and O’Connor. They left the field content that they had done enough to secure top table and are unlikely to lose that position when Jason Ryan and Wexford visit on Sunday.

CORK: A Quirke; R Carey, N Donovan, A Lynch; N O'Leary, G Canty, M Shields (0-1); A O'Connor, P O'Flynn (0-1); C McCarthy (0-1), P O'Neill (0-3), J Hayes (0-2); N Murphy, M Cussen (0-1), D O'Connor (0-9). Subs: P Cahillane for McCarthy (34 mins, yellow), K O'Connor for O'Donovan (42 mins), A O'Sullivan for A O'Connor (46 mins), K O'Sullivan for J Hayes (55 mins), J Masters (0-1)for N Murphy (58 mins), G Spillane for G Canty (63 mins).

LAOIS: M Nolan; P Begley, C Ryan, R Stapleton; P O'Leary, D Rooney, P McMahon; P Clancy, D Brennan; B McCormack, B Quigley, B Sheehan; P McNulty, R Munnelly, M Tierney (0-7). Subs: K Meaney (0-2)for Sheehan (28 mins), A Fennelly for Begley (52 mins), C Rogers For McCormack (55 mins), D Murphy for O'Leary (61 mins), N Donogher for McMahon (61 mins).

Referee: David Coldrick(Meath).