John Horgan: Cork hurlers don't have time to feel sorry for themselves, they must find a way to win on Sunday

There are days, some of them very long, when you just have to put your hand and accept that you were second best by a distance.

In a nutshell, that was the fate that befell the Cork hurlers at the Gaelic Grounds on the Ennis Road in Limerick last Sunday.

Cork were not just beaten by Limerick, they were battered by a Limerick team that produced, in the opening half anyway, maybe their greatest performance that we have been privileged to witness since their emergence as a powerful force in the game.

That performance was a demonstration of power, pace and togetherness that might well be described as champagne hurling in the opening 35 minutes.

Given the fact that in some recent times, we have seen teams all but come back from the dead in the second half of games, 12, 14, 15 point advantages being wiped out, one could not categorically state at the interval that the game was done deal.

Cork were 15 points in arrears, the deficit at the end of the day was one more, so need we say more...

The intensity and energy of John Kiely’s team in the first half was mind-blowing, something that Cork simply had no answer for at all.

The full array of everything that has made this Limerick team one of the greatest of all time was on view, this was a statement of what they still very much are, a top, top bunch of players.

Yes, the pendulum had swung very much in Cork’s direction last season, the shoe had gone on the other foot. Alas, at the end of the day, no silverware was handed out.

DAY OF WOE

Cork must now and in a very short space of time take a lot of learnings from this day of woe and the only morsel of consolation for them on Sunday night departing Shannonside was that their hurling year is still alive.

A victory on Leeside next Sunday against Waterford and their initial objective of being in the top three in the province will be achieved and subsequently almost certainly a place in the Munster final.

They will enter that game against the Déise as the fancied side but nothing can be taken for granted anymore when it was envisaged that the margin between the teams in Limerick last Sunday would be wafer thin as it has been in their recent championship jousts.

As one Sunday newspaper stated, nobody was leaving before the end when they opposed each other. Let’s be honest, not one pundit saw this coming, one team completely outclassing the other.

Very little if anything went right for Pat Ryan’s team and the loss of Deccie Dalton was a huge blow so early in the proceedings.

His dead-ball finery from distance was certainly missed as was his physical presence.

All over the lush turf, Cork were, for the most part, second best, the space afforded to Limerick in the opening half was bewildering and the latter certainly capitalised on that.

Tom Morrissey, at times, had the freedom of the city, the Cork marking was nowhere near what it should have been and the Limerick defending, when it was required was top drawer with Kyle Hayes and Dan Morrisey exquisite in everything they did.

Hayes received the man of the match accolade, it could have been any of five or six others.

To be fair, Cork’s second-half return was a bit more positive, Seamie Harnedy rifled over a tasty brace of points after his introduction.

Back in defence, Eoin Downey handled the physical threat of Shane O’Brien quite well before Seamus Flanagan came in for the player who had been so impressive against Waterford.

Being brutally honest, not nearly enough of the Cork contingent played anywhere their their full potential and as a unit, their shortcomings on this best-forgotten day were all too obvious.

Limerick’s hurt from last season’s two championship losses to their fierce rivals was acute, they accepted their fate on those occasions but it was clearly obvious from the throw-in that they were hell-bent in ensuring that Cork were not going to make it three-in-a-row against them.

The biggest loser of all, of course, last Sunday was Clare, their All-Ireland retention hopes now well and truly ended after Limerick set out their stall from the word go and in doing so they have sent out a loud and clear message to all those who remain the chasing pack.

This was, by far, the best performance we have seen from any county in both provinces up to now.

Kilkenny were leading Dublin by 16 points at one stage in Nowlan Park but they ended up in a frenzy of worry coming down the stretch and got home by just four points.

WILD HOPES

We expected Cork to respond in the second half and at one stage the margin was down to 10 points after Patrick Horgan smashed a penalty. But any wild hopes of the margin being further reduced didn’t last too long as Aaron Gillane did likewise at the other end.

Nickie Quaid made a few big stops in the Limerick goal, one or two more half-decent goal chances were not converted but this was just a powerful illustration of one team’s superiority over the other.

Cork have very little time to get this game out of their system and there is always the biggest of dangers of the effect that a heavy defeat like this can do for your well-being.

Waterford were second best against Tipperary in Thurles after a blistering start but the momentum that they had from that early positivity was not capitalised on enough with a substantial haul of wides that followed. They are on a similar mission of recovery this week before next Sunday’s all-or-nothing showdown in SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

One thing is now a certainty, Cork are no longer the favourites for the All-Ireland championship and the quickest of resets must be the only priority before we see them in action again.

At the time of writing there are injury concerns and the great likelihood too is that there will be changes.

Those won’t be wholesale, it does not work like that but the perceived depth of the panel must come more into play in advance of Sunday’s team selection.

Cork have not become a bad team overnight, what transpired last Sunday was a result of trying to cope with a rampant opposition who had one of their best days since they lorded it over everybody else as they secured four All-Irelands on the trot.

When Tipperary held them to a draw in Thurles a few weeks back there was a ridiculous suggestion that their best days were behind them What balderdash that was.

Cork can still have a very big say on how this season of championship hurling pans out but this very poor day at the office must be very quickly be put to one side before the horse is mounted again.