Christy O'Connor: Limerick fitter, sharper and in better form than last year, Cork have questions to answer

Straight from the throw-in of the Limerick-Tipperary match two weeks ago, Adam English won possession and slipped the ball back to Will O’Donoghue, who played a perfectly angled delivery into Aaron Gillane.

As soon as Gillane snapped the ball, he turned Ronan Maher and struck the ball from outside the 20-metre line straight past goalkeeper Rhys Shelly. Bang. Gillane and Limerick landed the first haymaker on Tipperary’s chin inside 14 seconds. It already felt like lights-out.

Limerick kept swinging. Gillane went for goal again just six minutes later but the ball went out for a 65. Aidan O’Connor’s strike was short but it still ended up in the net.

Limerick raised five green flags in total, which took their return from the four round robin games to 10. That volume of goals carries even more value for Limerick in the circumstances of them having struggled to raise green flags. 

Prior to the Clare game in early May, Limerick had failed to score a goal from play in three of their four previous championship matches.

Limerick’s failure to find the net against Dublin in last year’s All-Ireland quarter-final was a critical factor in that defeat, but this is a vastly superior team to that Limerick model from 12 months ago. And it already looks an even slicker machine from the one that lost to Cork seven weeks ago.

The goals factor is an obvious indication, but Limerick are just in better form. Gillane is back. Cian Lynch, who was sent off that afternoon, has been returned to his best position at centre-forward.

OPTIONS

Dan Morrissey’s return from injury has increased their options at the back, but Limerick have a depth on the bench now that they didn’t have on their last visit to Páirc Uí Chaoimh. When they needed fresh legs in the last quarter that afternoon, they sprung Tom Morrissey and Darragh O’Donovan, hugely experienced veterans but who had restricted game-time during the league through injury.

When they wanted to make a second change in their attack that day, Limerick brought on Colin Coughlan at wing-back and pushed Kyle Hayes into the half-forward line.

That wouldn’t happen now but there has been a fluency to Limerick’s play that they only showed for 20 minutes against Cork seven weeks ago. Limerick’s conversion rate in the second half that day was just 43% but their accuracy levels have dramatically improved in the meantime. And they are scoring goals again.

Limerick are delivering more ball into their inside line, which they didn’t do against Cork last time out. 

After scoring his second point in the 11th minute that afternoon, Shane O’Brien didn’t secure possession again until the 36th minute, which also resulted in a point. O’Brien was restricted to just two possessions in the second half.

It was unrealistic to expect O’Brien to carry such a big load in the absence of Gillane. That was clearly built into Limerick’s gameplan that day because they were doing more shooting on sight from distance. Gillane’s absence was eventually telling in the second half, but Cork were still hugely effective in how they shut down that supply inside.

Limerick had threatened to cut Cork open in the first 10 minutes, but Cork gradually got a handle on that flow by dropping bodies back closer to the full-back line, or getting more heat on the intended Limerick targets.

The Cork half-back line of Rob and Eoin Downey and Mark Coleman were impressive. Coleman did concede seven shots to Cathal O’Neill but he was giving up that space by trying to keep some defensive shape. Playing Lynch at number 11 now though, presents Cork – and especially Rob Downey – with a totally different kind of headache.

This match is still going to come down to how well both full-back lines hold up. There were question marks about the Limerick defence last year but the full-back line in particular looks far better. If anything, they appear to have gotten faster and better at closing down players in threatening positions.

Dan Morrissey will pick up Brian Hayes, Seán Finn (assuming he’s playing) will surely tag Alan Connolly, while Barry Nash (assuming he’s playing) will be detailed on William Buckley. The St Finbarr’s man struggled against Limerick seven weeks ago but he has been outstanding ever since and he goes into this game now full of confidence.

At the other end, Damien Cahalane is a better match-up on Gillane or Shane O’Brien than Aidan O’Connor. Seán O'Donoghue will be tagged to Aidan O’Connor with Niall O’Leary chasing after Peter Casey.

Cork will have taken note of how well Paddy Leavey did on Gillane and Mark Fitzgerald played on O’Brien, mostly by spoiling possession. Limerick lost 15 of the 23 balls they played into their full-forward line that afternoon, but they adapted to compensate.

DEADLY

Gillane and O’Brien were hauled off and Limerick suffocated Waterford off their own puck-out in the last 10 minutes. They also found their range, especially from distance, nailing 2-11 from their last 15 shots.

When Cork broke Limerick twice in 2024, and in last year’s Munster final, it came down to their half-forward line dismantling the Limerick half-back line. 

Their constant rotation was critical in the final 12 months ago but the Limerick half-back line is in better form now. And the team, as a whole, looks to be fitter and sharper.

Limerick are better than last year. Are Cork? 

They haven’t been as goal-hungry, having only scored four goals, five less than they did in last year’s round-robin, but they have been defensively better. Functional has replaced flamboyance but Sunday is the ultimate test of whether that blend is going to work against Limerick now.