John Horgan on hurling: Cork gave Ray Ryan a fitting tribute

It had been an emotional and traumatic couple of days for Cork hurling in the aftermath of the desperately sad passing of manager Pat Ryan's brother Ray, a player and a person who drew immense admiration from all those whose lives he touched.

Therefore, it was perfectly understandable that the atmosphere at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh last Saturday evening was somewhat subdued but there was still a job of work to be carried out by the Cork hurlers against one of their oldest foes from Noreside.

In the end the victory was theirs after a game that never really ignited although, to be fair, it held the interest of the 22, 000 plus attendance throughout.

As the season deepens and the fare becomes much more intense the game will become just a footnote in the review of the secondary competition but going forward it meant that Cork are now firmly in the equation to be one of the top two teams that will contest the final.

Two victories, a draw and just the one loss from four outings represents a decent return from a competition that is by its nature is very unpredictable and how things can change quickly from one week to the next.

Yes, there was disappointment and some dissatisfaction after the defeat in Thurles to Tipperary and a positive riposte to that performance was important.

It wasn't perfect, far from it in fact against a Kilkenny team that was far too wayward with its final delivery and Cork's greater economy in front of the sticks was a telling factor in the night's proceedings.

The brace of goals conceded were annoying to some extent and as always will be reviewed.

The big story of the night was told in bold capitals by a young man from Lisgoold who was a unanimous choice for man of the match.

Diarmuid Healy stood apart in the Cork attack, an attack as a unit that didn't function to the degree that might have been expected and three of the starting six failed to register on the scoresheet.

Two Cork players, young Healy and that man again, Patrick Horgan shared 1-15 between them from an overall tally of 1-22.

Healy is just a infant on the intercounty stage, Horgan is a battle-hardened veteran from a career that marks him out as one of the great Cork forwards of all time and who remains a key figure in the set-up, a player that sets a shining example to all youngsters who aspire to follow in his illustrious footsteps.

A 10 point haul from his near impeccable free taking and a hat-trick of points from open play represented a very good evening at the office.

Back to Healy and caution is always urged when assessing the performance of one so young but he will remember his full debut in a Cork jersey for many a long day.

His goal was belted home with great aplomb, all five of his points were converted with an impressiveness and authority that a far more experienced intercounty hurler would be very proud of. A scoring return like that won't always be the case, championship days will ask bigger questions but the portents are very promising.

He has the pace and physicality to have a lengthy tenure in the red jersey.

The Cork management will be satisfied to move on from here with at least two more games to play against Clare and Galway before the season takes on an altogether different significance in the minefield that the round-robin stage of the Munster championship.

That word minefield is all to frequently used with regards to the provincial championship but that is the reality of what it is.

Cork worked hard to get the verdict on Saturday and that had to be encouraging for the selection committee whose over riding priority is to have as near as possible a settled team for that all important trip to Cusack Park on April 20. Of course, before all of that the big two from last season's All-Ireland campaign have a date next Sunday in a game that is vital for Cork's chances of being one of the last two counties still standing on final day and of Clare's chances of avoiding the drop.

DRIVEN

Just as Tipperary might have wanted it that bit more against Cork in the closing sequences, it was the opposite in the Páirc on Saturday when the home team stood up to be counted.

After all, it had been very difficult to drive a wedge between the sides prior to the last 10 to 15 minutes when they were level on five separate occasions.

To achieve the victory without the absence of some key players and a number of players not firing enough on all cylinders has to be viewed as a positive for Cork and having team captain, Rob Downey back marshalling the defence with great authority likewise.

Over the 70 minutes he was a commanding presence in the number six jersey.

Cork managed just the one goal with Kilkenny keeper Eoin Murphy denying Deccie Daltion and Brian Hayes on two other occasions and it was important for Dalton to get the best part of an hour under his belt after his spell on the outside looking on with a two game suspension.

Niall O'Leary impressed again in the corner-back position while Tim O'Mahony and Shane Barrett shared a quartet of points between them and Tommy O'Connell made a nice contribution off the bench in the latter stages with a tasty point. Jordan Molloy and Cian Kenny were Kilkenny's standout players on a night that had one of their true greats, TJ Reid returned to the fray to continue the fierce battle with Patrick Horgan on being the game's top scorer of all time.

That will all unfold over the coming months.

At the end of an emotional night by the banks of the Lee it must be stated that the difference ultimately between the teams was the large contribution of that young man from Lisgoold, Diarmuid Healy.

His credentials had been well heralded from his impressive contribution during his U20 innings in Cork's winning years at that grade.

Graduating on the higher stage can sometimes be a very gradual process because the gap to senior inter-county hurling with its great physicality can be vast.

Healy is still at the beginning of that journey and that is something that we should all be mindful of.

And that applies to all the younger players that are involved and in their efforts to try and exert more pressure on those who have been wearing the jersey a lot longer than they have.

The business end of this league campaign will be reached over the next few weekends and Cork are very much in the thick of things.

That's as much as we can ask for now.