ALL-IRELAND SFC QUARTER-FINAL/CORK 1-27 DONEGAL 2-10:CORK ANNOUNCED their return to the All-Ireland stage in devastating style in the curtain-raising quarter-final at Croke Park yesterday. Their long hiatus after winning the Munster championship clearly did them no harm as they brought the Donegal night-train to a shuddering halt here.
Their total dominance provided strong evidence that the traditional provincial system does not necessarily leave teams exposed to teams that have come through the qualifiers. Donegal were always outsiders but were thought to be travelling at a speed that might worry Cork after such a long period of playing in-house games.
But Donegal soon found themselves hopelessly at sea against a Cork outfit that is a very different machine than that which struggled to beat the same opposition at the same stage three years ago.
Cork’s chastening afternoons at the hands of Kerrymen have toughened them and they are beginning to reap the rewards of their rich under-21 vintage in a serious way. It was clear before half-time that this contest was going to be a mismatch.
The lowest moment for Donegal came about 10 minutes into the second half, when they trailed by 1-17 to 0-6 and it became clear that Cork were not interested in going for goals.
For a period, with the Corkmen long out of sight and full of running, strength and inventive patterns, it looked as if Donegal were in for the kind of eviscerating experience that Cork handed to Mayo on a black afternoon in 1993.
But there was no element of glee in the Cork performance: it was polished and businesslike and it ultimately belonged to a different class.
Donegal, faced with a winding morale blow in the opening half, had sufficient self-respect to keep playing into the abyss and rewarded their travelling faithful with two fine – but ultimately irrelevant – second-half goals finished to the net by Rory Kavanagh and Stephen Griffin.
Had they been told beforehand they would finish the game with 2-10, they probably would have taken it. But they could not have banked on shipping a whopping 1-27. And had the Cork men been in vindictive mood, it could have been worse.
Alarm bells were going off throughout the Donegal ranks from the 11th minute, when Pearse O’Neill slapped a ball away from Rory Kavanagh and initiated a break that ended with Colm O’Neill driving the ball wide.
The shot may have been errant but it signalled Cork’s intent. From then on, they cut through the Donegal men relentlessly, and effectively kept their opponents penned in for the remainder of the half.
Cork had all avenues closed off. They were superior in the air and appeared to have the legs to win the various one-on-one contests that began to appear as the Donegal cover was stretched beyond ripping point.
The points began to flow over for the Corkmen and they were all keen to decorate the scorer’s sheet, with Patrick Kelly popping up to land a couple of fine scores from distance and O’Neill fully justifying his late inclusion with two excellent first-half points.
Dangerous as the Cork forward line was, Donegal’s troubles were originating far out at sea. Donegal’s practice of bringing Conal Dunne and Rory Kavanagh back to galvanise the back lines and forage for ball gave the adventurous Cork half-backs licence to roam and they raided with impunity.
Graham Canty led the charge, breaking free to thunder home a 15th-minute point but John Miskella extended his excellent scoring record by racing from his home at left-half back to take three perfectly-timed points. Cork were sniffing for goals at this time too and Daniel Goulding ought to have found the target in the 14th minute, his low-driven shot hitting the side-netting.
As bigger ambitions quickly grew more distant on the horizon, the Donegal players were preoccupied in the more fundamental business of winning their own kick-outs. The 13 first-half points Cork scored gave them plenty of practice but, apart from one spectacular take from Kevin Cassidy early on, Donegal were woefully outmuscled when it came to owning the sky. They need to roam the hills and find some tall men.
Despite the steady concession of scores, some Donegal defenders coped admirably: Karl Lacey kept Daniel Goulding scoreless in the first half and Neil McGee made two brilliant interventions. But it was all one-way traffic.
Worse was to come. A Cork goal felt inevitable but when it materialised, it was worth waiting for. Donegal had been pressing – Kevin Cassidy saw a half chink of light and drove low at the other end but when Alan O’Connor hoovered up the loose ball and moved out of defence, Donegal were in trouble.
Cork broke up the left wing at pace and Patrick Kelly played a perfectly-placed ball for Paul Kerrigan. One on one against Michael Boyle, Kerrigan’s finish was sweet, outside of the right boot on the run, perfectly finding the top corner of the net.
Donegal had scarcely restarted when the Cork attackers were sniffing again, Donncha O’Connor grazing the post with another strike on goal.
After that, it was just window dressing for Cork. Daniel Goulding rattled off three lovely points, Paul Kerrigan retired just short of the hour in the manner of a batsman after delivering a century: his haul of 1-4 from play was a lesson in craft.
That Paudie Kissane could come in and land two points unmarked from the same spot as Patrick Kelly had illustrated the gaping holes in the Donegal game plan. Cork will not expect the luxury of such shooting practice for the remainder of the championship.
So this year’s All-Ireland ends just as it began for Donegal, on a disquieting note. Cork roar on into the All-Ireland semi-finals. It remains to be seen if those bogey-men in green and gold hoops will be back to haunt them.
