HURLING: Seán Moran recalls the hinge on which a whole season turned - Waterford's defeat of Cork

At about 5.10 on the afternoon of June 27th, Waterford's hurlers got a free in Semple Stadium, Thurles. They were at that point trailing by two points, 2-12 to 1-17, as the Munster hurling final entered its final quarter.

Seán Ó hAilpín had just been judged to have tugged at Dan Shanahan, and referee Seán McMahon from Clare penalised the foul, which the Cork player briefly disputed.

Paul Flynn stepped up to take the free. After being asked to move back by the referee, he eventually placed it a little over 30 metres out and slightly to the right of the goal.

The ball was hit right to left with a low trajectory, dipping viciously as it passed Cork goalkeeper Donal Cusack and full back Diarmuid O'Sullivan on the line.

"I think there was a bit of sun shining on that goal," says Flynn. "I hit it high so that it would dip towards the crossbar. If it didn't go in there was a chance that it might be deflected over the bar.

"I hit it well enough but it wasn't a bullet. It travelled faster than I expected but because of the sun I didn't even see the flight. The first I knew was the noise of the crowd."

O'Sullivan doesn't have a precise memory of the strike. "Only someone like Paul Flynn was going to try it. I didn't even see the ball. There were too many people in front of us because it wasn't a high, dropping shot."

Waterford didn't quite lead from then on but there was no doubt it was the afternoon's most significant score in a match that was the hinge on which a whole season turned.

Cork went on to win the All-Ireland, so defeat in Thurles proved galvanic. For Waterford winning was vital, but the match left their longer-term prospects damaged.

John Mullane's red card in the third minute of the second half would earn him a 12-week suspension, ruling him out for the rest of the season.

At the Manager of the Year awards earlier this month, Waterford manager Justin McCarthy said that he believed his team would have beaten Kilkenny had Mullane been available.

But last June the corner forward's absence was more immediately pressing. In the event, Flynn stepped forward and carried the team's scoring threat both that day and in the All-Ireland semi-final. He says that he wasn't overly pessimistic as Mullane walked off.

"When I saw him going it wasn't that I was unconcerned, but I didn't think that was the end of it either. I knew it would be harder, but not that Cork were going to beat us by eight points - like some people thought. I still thought that there were scores to be got if the ball came down.

"We played two full forwards, myself and Paul O'Brien, and that's the way I like to play. I'd be confident I'd get onto 50-50 ball so if anything came near me I felt I'd have a chance."

The afternoon marked a watershed for O'Sullivan, who had made a rickety start to the championship against Limerick. In the final he missed Dan Shanahan's run for Waterford's second goal and was a central figure in the much-criticised tactical call after Mullane's dismissal.

He stayed deep as Cork's spare man, receiving quick puck-outs and feeding ball to a transformed opposition half-back line.

O'Sullivan's season recovered to the extent that he ended the year as an All Star. But he doesn't share the view that his performance graph rose steeply once June was over, even though his play became more restrained and disciplined.

"I personally thought I did okay (against Waterford), and Donal O'Grady (manager) was pleased with my performance. I had a sticky 10 minutes at the start against Limerick and that can happen to anyone.

"But you mature in your hurling in a way. Before, when I was rushing out to ball, I'd get caught. You learn as you go on."

He is, however, in agreement with the impact the Munster final defeat had on the team.

"We were very disappointed, because in a way you prefer to be beaten by 10 points than by one. And we had plenty of chances to win. The match could have turned out differently - there was only a point in it - but the amount of criticism was a real motivating factor.

"People around Cork and local journalists gave us a really hard time and players and their families got hurt."

The rehabilitation came against Tipperary in Killarney within two weeks, and two months later the previous year's All-Ireland defeat by Kilkenny had been avenged. But for Waterford the best was past. For 2004 anyway.