Cork Hurling: League final could be a distraction but Ben O'Connor doesn't seem to mind

Cork secured a rare victory at the home of Kilkenny hurling on Sunday as Ben O’Connor’s side showed excellent battling qualities to come out the right side of what was a right tussle.

Sunday’s game felt like a throwback, thanks mainly to the conditions and the state of the Nowlan Park pitch. This certainly was not one of those open games of recent years where if you did not see a score every 90 seconds, you would think there is something wrong.

The less-than-optimum scoring conditions meant that possessions that would normally be pops at the posts ended up being dangerous deliveries into the full-forward line. Old school stuff. It made for great viewing, and the Cork trio certainly enjoyed themselves.

Sean O’Donoghue was Cork’s best player in the middle of a game that was a scrap for over 70 minutes, but it was Brian Hayes who was awarded the honour on TV. The Barrs man scored a class volleyed goal early on and had some lovely touches, as well as winning some excellent primary possession in the second half when needed.

Alan Connolly will have been annoyed with his penalty miss, but other than that, his free-taking display was extremely impressive. He held up the ball brilliantly on a number of occasions, including for that aforementioned Hayes goal.

Barry Walsh ended up having a dream debut. The first half flew by for him, and while he battled gamely for possession, he was finding it hard to get the ball into his hand given the conditions and the ferocity of the Kilkenny defending.

After just 35 minutes of getting his eye in at senior level he took off in the second half, with him brilliantly winning the penalty that Connolly unfortunately drove wide, while he smashed home his goal attempt with aplomb. 

We definitely need to see the Killeagh youngster in action again. We need to see how he fares in better conditions.

Alan Walsh replaced his namesake in the 68th minute and he soared into the air, caught the sliotar and blasted home with his first touch to effectively wrap it up for Ben O’Connor’s side.

Those two second-half goals brought back memories of George Hamilton’s famous gaffe during the 1994 World Cup when he was referencing the Italian footballers Roberto and Dino Baggio. The Walsh brothers, who of course are not related, took their goals well.

Hugh O’Connor was the other newcomer in attack. 

The Newmarket man certainly showed he offers something at this level, with him showing a great ability to be able to hoover up ball. 

He will have been frustrated that his hurling just let him down when presented with a couple of goal-scoring opportunities, but, like Walsh, it would be worth seeing how he goes on firmer ground.

Sunday was not a day designed to extract William Buckley’s main attacking attributes, but he got stuck into everything and anyone worried about his lack of fight or physicality will not be too worried after that showing. Shane Barrett is the likely starting centre-forward come the championship but we can expect Buckley to be buzzing around that sector too, as he looks for pockets of space to open up defences in the Munster Championship.

One of the main features of Sunday’s victory is that not a single one of Cork’s starters up front can be pulled up for lack of fight or work-rate, which is something that would have been taken as a given a couple of years ago.

With Shane Barrett, Diarmuid Healy, Declan Dalton, Seamus Harnedy, Ben Cunningham, Robbie O’Flynn, Shane Kingston, Paudie Power and Jack Leahy also in the frame, Ben O’Connor certainly is not lacking in attacking options for the upcoming campaign.

IMPRESSIVE

Fr O’Neill’s Paudie O’Sullivan debuted in goals and while he had a few nervy moments, he can be extremely satisfied with his first outing. It would be no surprise if he got the game against Offaly in the final round to get more experience under his belt.

Cork’s fourth win in a row means that qualification for the league final is now almost assured. 

Some might argue that it is a distraction that might be best avoided, but Ben O’Connor seems intent on winning every game and it is difficult to be critical of such an approach.

The fact that Limerick look the most likely opponents in that final makes the clash next weekend a tad awkward. It may end up being interesting viewing, but it likely to be the least important Limerick v Cork showdown of 2026.