Cork GAA: How important are two-pointers in club games on Leeside?

The introduction of Gaelic football’s new rules had caused some critics to raise the prospect of the game becoming dominated by two-pointers.

An analysis of the Cork Premier Senior Championship this autumn shows that orange flags are a factor, but much less so than the inter-county game.

In fact, there have been almost as many goals (64) as two-pointers (66) in the 25 games played to date.

It should be noted that the three-game divisional section back in July, which featured a whopping 20 goals and just six two-pointers, tilts those numbers towards parity. In the 'championship proper', the ratio is 44 goals to 60 two-pointers.

Overall, the volume of goals per game has increased from 2.1 in 2024 to 2.6 this year. The scores-per-game total has also seen a modest increase from 25.1 to 26.8.

Each team left in this weekend’s semi-finals has taken a different approach to the new scoring system.

St Finbarr’s six-goal salvo against Castlehaven makes them the championship’s top goal-getters alongside Duhallow on 10 apiece. Those two teams account for almost a third of the goals scored in this year’s championship.

Their semi-final opponents, Ballincollig, rely mostly on white flags. The Village have scored no more than one goal or one two-pointer in any match, while keeping the scoreboard ticking over from inside the arc.

SEEING ORANGE

Newcestown are a much more orange-flag-focused team. They have just one goal to their name, Séamus O’Sullivan’s opening-round strike, but tallied nine two-pointers. The ever-dependable David Buckley has supplied eight of those.

They meet Nemo Rangers, who have the most even spread. The Trabeg team have recorded six goals, eight two-pointers, and 33 one-pointers across their three games to secure the semi-final bye.

In tandem with the extra goals scored, clean sheets have decreased from 24 to 16. The semi-final quartet have been strong in this respect, led by the Barrs and Newcestown. They have both conceded just once in four games.

The Barrs also stand out for their arc defence, allowing only three two-pointers thus far.

Going by the statistics compiled by @dontfoul on X (formerly Twitter), Cork’s championship ranks below average for scores per game. That account tallied the scores from a sample of 18 championships across Ireland, primarily drawing on counties above the Dublin-Galway axis, plus Kerry.

With lower scoring, the Rebel County ranks higher in terms of competitiveness.

The average margin of defeat/victory in the Premier Senior grade comes to 6.2 points per game. In Kerry, for instance, the average is 9.2. The most competitive county, Louth, has so far seen five points separate teams per game.

The new scoring system has brought an increase in the average winning margin. In Cork, that number stood at five points per game in 2024.

Whereas 14% of games were decided by double-digit margins last year, that has doubled to 28% now.

Of course, breaches of the 4v3 structure, kick-outs that fail to reach the 40-metre arc, and disciplinary infractions can permit cheap scores through the 50-metre advancement.

At this stage of competition, the hope is that teams’ comprehension of the new rules has bedded in. At a game last month, one side coughed up 1-5 through such slip-ups. Players’ new-rule literacy will face its most intense test yet this weekend.

Sometimes, the two-pointer can mask the low-scoring nature of certain games. 

At Cill na Martra against Clyda Rovers last month, the half-time score read 0-9 to 0-2. Adjusting for those doubles, the old-money score was 0-5 to 0-2.

Senior A shows even more of a contrast between the effect of the new rules on teams’ source of scores. Games involving Knocknagree have featured 19 two-pointers (nine for and 10 against). Games involving Béal Átha’n Ghaorthaidh have featured four two-pointers (two for and two against). Who can best impose their style of play on Saturday evening?

LEADING LIGHT

Buckley’s eight two-pointers, seven of which have come from frees, show the penalty for such indiscretions. Behind him, Steven Sherlock is next on the list of Premier Senior’s long-range kickers with five doubles from placed balls, including an incredible sideline. He has accounted for all of the Barrs’ orange flags.

Mark Cronin has landed four, evenly split between frees and play. Bryan Hayes’s hat-trick of two-pointers against St Michael’s, all from play, shows how much of a threat Nemo hold in that department.

At Senior A, Cill na Martra’s Jason Mac Cárthaigh has chipped over an orange flag on each outing for his total of five. A couple more would go a long way against Éire Óg.