Cork footballers must be mentally and physically ready for quick turnaround
Cork's Colm O’Callaghan takes on Brian Kennedy of Tyrone. Picture: INPHO/Laszlo Geczo
THE Cork footballers are facing into the All-Ireland SFC preliminary quarter-final route for the second year in a row, but they are coming into this one in a different state of mind.
John Cleary’s side face Louth on Sunday in Inniskeen at 3pm but they would have hoped to have avoided the preliminary quarter-final route this year. They had destiny in their own hands last weekend against Tyrone at Glenisk O’Connor Park, top of Group 3, requiring a win or a draw to seal their place in the quarter-finals of the Sam Maguire and having a two-week gap between the games.
Instead, a streetwise and clinical Tyrone side came out with the victory on a scoreline of 1-18 to 0-17. The performance wasn’t a bad one, Cork did a lot of things right but it came down to fine margins.
Having a direct route to the quarter-finals in their grasp and seeing it slip away will be difficult to get over but they have no choice but to do so given the quick turnaround.
Maybe having a week between the matches might be a good thing as opposed to having another week to stew on such a frustrating defeat.
Last year was different as Cork knew they were heading into the preliminary quarter-final going into the last group game. Cleary’s troops had lost to Kerry in the second group match meaning their chances of reaching the summit were a very long shot given the Kingdom were in the box seat and wouldn’t leave the chance pass by.
Mentally, the Rebels knew where they were heading, but last weekend they would have been confident of avoiding that preliminary quarter-final route.
Cork finished up on four points, the same tally as this season, but the Leesiders got the nod over Mayo on points scored (2-48 to 2-44). This season, the Rebels can feel very unfortunate that three teams all finished on four points. The most frustrating part of it, after back-to-back wins over Clare and Donegal, one slip has proven costly but the management and team would have known the consequences prior to when the group stage got underway.
From a mental and physical point of view, Cork will be tested on Sunday given the nature of last weekend’s defeat, turnaround, and the pressure that is on. Lose and it’s all over for 2024. Louth did get hammered by Kerry last Sunday, 2-21 to 1-10, but they knew where they were going prior to the match. Cork had their quarter-final place snatched away.
They might yet get it back this weekend.
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