Cork footballers fail to deliver as they lose again to Kerry 

Kerry: 1-23 (1-2-19) 

Cork: 1-15 (1-3-9) 

Cork were left with deep disappointment after a brave fight fell short in the Munster SFC final against Kerry at a packed, sun-splashed Fitzgerald Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

The Kingdom simply had that extra bit of quality and experience when it mattered most. When the need was greatest, they stepped up.

While the talk will inevitably focus on Cork’s 31-year wait for a championship win in Killarney, John Cleary’s side emptied the tank, and you can’t ask for much more than that. But they didn’t quite produce the level required to beat a Kerry team who, despite injuries, still carried serious threat.

Cork were three points ahead at the short whistle, helped by three orange flags, but they lacked the composure and cuteness to open up the Kerry defence after the restart. A return of just 1-2 in the second half will be a source of huge frustration.

In front of nearly 33,000 spectators, Kerry opened smartly through Keith Evans, but Cork settled quickly. Brian O’Driscoll raised an orange flag before Steven Sherlock landed an outrageous point from a sideline. 

With the wind at their backs, Cork made it count. Chris Óg Jones pointed, and Mark Cronin added another orange flag to push them 0-6 to 0-1 ahead after seven minutes.

Two classy David Clifford points steadied Kerry, but Cork remained sharp in the early stages when it came to two-pointers. Seán McDonnell kicked their third orange flag to open a five-point lead. Kerry responded with three white flags, helped by the Clifford brothers, David and Paudie.

Cronin pointed a free before goalkeeper Patrick Doyle stood tall to deny David Clifford a goal. Kerry were beginning to find rhythm, and Micheál Burns cut the gap to two, 0-9 to 0-7, with 17 minutes to the break. The reigning All-Ireland champions then levelled with two points on the trot.

Cork hit back with quick scores from Jones and Colm O’Callaghan as the game ebbed and flowed, both sides enjoying spells of dominance without fully kicking on.

Armin Heinrich pointed for Kerry when it could easily have been a goal after Cork coughed up possession, leaving it 0-11 to 0-10 after 30 minutes. 

Jones then had a great goal chance, his effort destined for the corner before a scrambling Kerry defence deflected it out for a 45. Sherlock converted, and Cronin added another point as Cork led 0-13 to 0-10 at the break.

Kerry now had the wind and made immediate use of it. Sub Tony Brosnan pointed before creating the goal that allowed David Clifford to finish brilliantly, pushing Kerry 1-11 to 0-13 ahead after 39 minutes. Brosnan added his second, and Clifford slotted an incredible orange flag as Kerry began to accelerate.

Cronin kicked a badly needed point for Cork — their first of the half — to leave it 1-14 to 0-14 after 47 minutes, but they were being outplayed at this juncture, not helped by some poor decision making.

Jack O’Connor’s side moved 1-17 to 0-14 clear by the hour mark before O’Driscoll blasted a piledriver into the roof of the net to give Cork renewed hope. It was only their second score of the half. Cork sub David Buckley added a point and suddenly it was game on again.

But Kerry always had the answers. They tacked on four points to move 1-21 to 1-15 ahead entering the final minute. Cork battled gamely to the end, but they simply weren’t good enough on the day. 

A Brosnan two-pointer capped a deserved Kerry victory.

Back to the drawing board for the Rebels.

Scorers for Kerry: D Clifford 1-6 (1 2pt, 0-1 f), T Brosnan 0-5 (1 2pt), K Evans, T Kennedy (0-2 f), A Heinrich 0-2 each, M Burns, M Breen, G White, K Spillane, D Geaney, P Clifford 0-1 each.

Cork: M Cronin 0-5 (1 2pt, 0-1 f), B O’Driscoll 1-2 (1 2pt), S Sherlock (0-1 45, 0-1 sideline), S McDonnell (1 2pt), C Óg Jones 0-2 each, D Buckley, C O’Callaghan 0-1 each.

KERRY: S Murphy; E Looney, J Foley, D Casey; T Morley, M Breen, A Heinrich; M O’Shea, S O’Brien; M Burns, P Clifford, D O’Connor; D Clifford (c), T Kennedy, K Evans.

Subs: G White for D Casey (26-h-t, head inj), T Brosnan for P Clifford, G White for A Heinrich (both h-t), K Spillane for T Kennedy (54), D Geaney for S O’Brien (55, inj), E Healy for M Breen (60-65, temp), C Trant for M Burns (62), E Healy for T Morley (65).

CORK: P Doyle; S Meehan, M Shanley, D O’Mahony; B O’Driscoll, T Walsh, L Fahy; C O’Callaghan, I Maguire (c); P Walsh, S McDonnell, R Deane; M Cronin, C Óg Jones, S Sherlock.

Subs: C Corbett for R Deane, S Brady for S Meehan (both 48), D Buckley for P Walsh (59), S Walsh for S McDonnell (63), R Maguire for S Brady (65, inj).

Referee: Paul Faloon (Down).