Ben O'Connor: Tipp win doesn't change Cork's approach for Limerick

When the fixtures for this year’s Munster SHC were announced, it was natural to look at Cork’s opening two games as a pair.

Away to Tipperary, with Limerick to come to Cork a week later – those of a pessimistic bent were catastrophising a situation where the Rebels would be travelling to Waterford on May 9 needing to save their season.

Thankfully, Ben O’Connor’s first championship game in charge yielded a victory away to the All-Ireland champions – but that doesn’t necessarily mean that anything changes in terms of the approach for Limerick’s visit.

“No, no change at all,” he said, “only we’ve two points in the bag.

“The best team in the country for the last ten years coming to town next weekend, league champions, they're on a bit of form.

“So look, we know we'll have to improve a lot from today, but we have a chance of doing that.

We'll get back to work during the week and we'll work on a few more bits and pieces and hopefully next Sunday we'll get two points.”

Cork asserted themselves with an eight-point surge in the third quarter.

“I suppose we probably upped the workrate a small little bit,” O’Connor said, “and I think there was a slight breeze helping us in the second half, which does make a difference.

“We were winning a lot of the individual battles around us and I suppose we were playing on the front foot at that stage, where maybe at times before that, we were maybe striking the ball going backwards, but we were on the front foot at that stage.”

“We thought we were actually hurling okay,” he said.

“A few sloppy mistakes here and there and we gave away a few points that we shouldn't have given away from line balls and things like that, a few frees that we thought were maybe a small bit harsh.

“But look if you go in at half-time in a Munster championship match, you're happy enough that you can come out and you've 35 more minutes then after that.”

WORTH THE RISK

Some of the sloppiness came from playing short passes out of defence – such an approach is vulnerable to that, but O’Connor felt Cork benefited more from it than they lost.

Yeah, we worked more ball out, we got more scores out of going short than what we conceded from.

“Look, that's not to say that we won't go long the next day or the day after. It's just we're playing what's in front of us. We've fellas inside in that dressing room down there, they can play, play whatever way it falls in front of them.

“So, look, we don't put any pressure on them fellas, they play it as they see it.”

As openers go, it was one to savour, with happy scenes at the end. At the same time, O’Connor was not going to get carried away.

“When you're winning…if we were after being beaten, there wouldn't be anyone looking for a selfie off you, there'd be no one looking to talk to you at all.

“We'll take every good day that we have – again, you see the boys there today after a tough game outside in that heat. They stayed outside, signing autographs for young ones. I just think it's a credit to them.

“You never see a young fella walking off that he didn't get an autograph when he was looking for one off the lads. They're great that way as well.”