KEITH DUGGAN on the important contribution the Carrigtwohill man has made to Cork hurling, not least with his selfless display last weekend

IN THE 66th minute of the Munster final last Sunday, Niall McCarthy raced infield to collect a clever pass from Paudie O’Sullivan and struck a point.

It was the Carrigtwohill man’s first point of the afternoon, a deserved reward for what had been an immense and selfless hour of hurling. Nobody could have guessed that such a frantic, thrilling finish was around the corner and so McCarthy’s score, at the stage of the match, seemed vital.

It gave Cork a two-point lead and restored the sense that they would do enough to edge their way home. And it underlined how important the roving half forward remains to Cork’s plans.

They must have breathed a sigh relief around Cork this weekend when it was confirmed that the hand injury McCarthy suffered in the drawn match would not prevent him from lining out this evening. With Seán Óg Ó hAilpín battling a hamstring injury, losing McCarthy would have been a huge blow to Cork.

He is rarely the most heralded of the Cork forwards but, over the summer, his importance to the Cork team has again become apparent. Brought into the Cork senior squad during the 2002 All-Ireland championship, when a dispirited Cork side simply evaporated in a qualifying match against Galway, McCarthy has, over the years, become a core part of whatever internal engine has driven this team.

He is not the most vocal in terms of his public profile and he rarely lights up the headlines but Cork fans once again had good reason to give thanks for the presence of the man in the green and white helmet. He has paid his dues and then some.

Flash back six years and the All-Ireland final of 2004. Kilkenny are chasing down the third All-Ireland title in a row in a rematch of the previous year’s final.

In the end, Cork ran out rather comfortable winners but when the contest was still alive, it was McCarthy who landed the decisive punches.

Commanding in the air, his three points from play were telling: two he struck to level the match and his other score put Cork two points ahead.

They mattered and that night, McCarthy claimed the man of the match award.

It marked an impressive recovery from his experience the previous year when, in an equally tense match, he saw one shot hit the post and another trail narrowly wide when the match was in the balance.

But in 2004, in what was one of the most important hurling matches for Cork in the last decade, McCarthy was their leader.

Six seasons on, he remains vital to the heart of a forward unit that now revolves around Aisake Ó hAilpín rather than Brian Corcoran.

Two points from play in the quietening of Tipperary was the first statement of intent. During Cork’s rather flat disposal of Limerick in mid-June, it was McCarthy who led the way in terms of enthusiasm and scoring, firing five points from play and he remained hungry for possession even after the match had tilted in Cork’s favour.

On Sunday, the scores did not come easily and McCarthy did not try to force them. But on a day when Michael Walsh was imperious in the Waterford defence, seemingly collecting any ball that fell along the half back line, McCarthy foraged tirelessly through a first half when the Cork forward unit struggled to get any change from Waterford.

In the 21st minute he raked a ball to which he had no right from a crowd of players and let fly with a delivery that gave the younger Ó hAilpín his first chance to stretch his legs and just before half-time, he again popped up on the fringes of the Cork half-back line, clearing a ball under pressure, fumbling, and then recovering possession while on the ground.

Not the stuff that gets the flags waving but enough to keep Cork on course when direction was badly needed.

In a summer when Cork are beginning to look like the team who might provide the most serious challenge to Kilkenny’s domination, the Carrigtwohill battler’s fine formline may be a good omen for the Rebels.

GAA Draws

THE draws for the fourth round of the All-Ireland senior football qualifiers and the All-Ireland hurling quarter-finals will take place in McHale Park, Castlebar, on Sunday evening after the Connacht football final and will be shown live on TV3.

The draw for Round Four of the football qualifiers will involve the four winning teams from round three and the four defeated provincial finalists (ie round three winner versus beaten provincial finalist).

The hurling draw will involve the beaten Leinster and Munster finalists (Galway and Cork/Waterford) in one bowl and the Phase Three winners (Tipperary/Offaly and Dublin/Antrim) in another bowl.

Teams who have met previously in the championship cannot meet again, therefore:

If Offaly beat Tipperary there will not be a draw (the pairings will be Galway v Dublin/Antrim and Cork/Waterford v Offaly)

And if Cork lose and Tipperary win there will also not be a draw (the pairings will be Galway v Tipperary, Cork v Dublin/Antrim)

Any other sequence of results will necessitate a draw.

The venues for the football and hurling draws are not determined on a home and away basis and the CCCC will meet on Monday when all times, dates and venues for the games will be confirmed.