Cork Hurling: Blackrock puckout stats mask dominance from opening two games

Given the calibre of Gavin Connolly – one of the finest goalkeepers in Cork – and the balance that runs right through Blackrock, you’d expect them to have won the puckout battle in at least one of their opening two games.

But they haven’t. And yet, they still walked away with maximum points, two wins banked and momentum growing.

Against Kanturk they mixed it, long and short, though more often the latter, looking to break the lines rather than rain ball in on top. They won just seven of 15 long restarts. Kanturk, with the breeze, preferred to go short, and against it, opted mainly for mid-range.

When Connolly did choose to strike deep, he utilised both flanks fairly evenly. But in both games, the Rockies were superior, not in how they used their own restarts, but in how they curtailed their opponents’.

Nowhere is that better shown than in the impact of Tadhg “Tiger” Deasy. The wing-back hoovered up several Kanturk restarts and, crucially, offered Connolly a reliable short option. He was often the launch pad for attacks when they did go short. It’s no surprise either that he played such a pivotal role in their opening goal against St Finbarr’s.

The Rockies finished with 17 wins from 26 puckouts against Kanturk – the exact same as their opponents – a success rate of 65.38%.

Their meeting with St Finbarr’s told a richer story.

The breeze wasn’t as prominent, though Blackrock still had its help in the first half. Connolly went short three times, and they held all three. One of those puckouts lit the fuse for the opening goal. Deasy out wide on the left, was the immediate option for Daniel Meaney after he collected Gavin Connolly’s restart. Deasy drove forward, and while his shot saved, Michael O’Halloran was on hand to pounce on the rebound after 12 minutes.

More significant again was Deasy’s role on Barrs’ restarts. Five of their 19 in the first half came his way. Three were turned over. The rest were hard won. 

Blackrock pressed, swarmed, and harried the Barrs for all of their restarts in that first half. That pressure was, in truth, the winning of it.

The Barrs eventually went short with greater joy, but the damage was done. Blackrock had the game in their grip, even if their own long puckouts misfired (two retentions from six). They still squeezed St Finbarr’s whenever Shane Hurley went long, Deasy prominent again, and Niall Cashman commanding in the pocket in front of the half-back line.

For all that dominance, the numbers tipped ever so slightly in the Barrs’ favour – 19 from 34, compared to Blackrock’s 11 from 20 (55%), a margin of 0.88%.

EFFECTIVE

Blackrock’s puckout profile isn’t far off Midleton’s – they avoid the middle third, go long and short, and have been effective in disrupting their opposition’s restarts.

But where Midleton’s performance against Newcestown was scattered, Blackrock’s in both games has been deliberate, the terms set by them.

They’ve leaned on the wind when it was there, but never been dependent on it. The range Gavin Connolly offers, coupled with a half-back line that doesn’t bend and Alan Connolly’s ruthless edge inside, means Blackrock can prise open any defence and dictate the terms.

Douglas face a stern assignment tomorrow. Their qualification hopes are already slim, and now they run into a side that has gathered momentum with every step, from that first round league loss to Charleville, through to the authoritative win over St Finbarr’s in round two of the championship.