Prodigal Cork football fan returned on Saturday, but isn't sure if he'll be back again...

Bless me football fans for I have sinned. It’s almost three years to the day, July 2, 2023, since my last confession or football match.

It was a Sunday. A lovely day for a game of football as I remember. Cork took on Derry in the All-Ireland Football quarter final in Croke Park and I was there.

It was awful. It was boring and as a game, it lacked inspiration and enjoyment. It was very negative and a game that lingers in the memory like a bad smell.

Cork, then, also managed by John Cleary, lost 1-12 to 1-8 having trailed by a point at the break 0-6 to 0-5 and I promised that day that never again would I go see the Cork footballers play.

I had enough of poor performances, negative, defensive football, lateral movement where forwards were afraid to shoot on goal.

Here is a piece from my match analysis as a fan that day.

“I found it hard to watch, understand, comprehend and could not make sense of the game and how it unfolded right in front of my eyes.

“I have been at noisier, more enjoyable funerals. This game was lifeless.

“How players can train for eight or nine months and perform like this is beyond me.

“I know this is a strange statement to make, but it didn't seem to matter to either team whether they were behind or ahead in the game or if they had won or lost.

“They never adjusted their tempo or tried to do something different.

“I could not understand why the senior players in the Cork team did not take it into their own hands to win this game.

“They should have thrown away the tactics book and taken Derry on.

“Where was their in-game intelligence? Where was their experience?

“Where was the realisation that they needed to do something differently?

“For long spells of this game, I watched the fans sitting in the stands arms folded and looking on with strange looks on their faces. They looked bored.

“Simple as that.

“Players were happy to go left, right, right, left and then back just to keep hold of the ball.

“There was no direct play, no urgency, and no desire to get the ball into the forwards.

“I was taught growing up that the purpose of the game was to kick points. When did this stop?

“Then, when they did get the ball forward the standard of kicking at goal was awful.

“I say this to myself every week when I watch an inter-county game, but what are they doing in training?

“Does any team practice the skills of the game anymore? How come inter-county forwards can't or are not allowed kick at goal from 30 metres out?

“How come most forwards don't want to score?

“Why do they turn down scoring opportunities to turn around and go backwards and pass the ball left and right and then back further?” 

I kept good with that promise until Saturday when I made my return to Croke Park to see Cork take on Mayo in another All-Ireland quarter final. The prodigal football fan returned.

No fatted calf sacrificed, just me and a big Cork crowd on Jones Road.  Hoping. Expecting. 

This time I travelled with more confidence that I would see a different game, a different Cork, thanks in the main to Jim Gavin and his new rules, which have transformed the sport.

Cork were also playing well, had a great league campaign, which ended in promotion to division one, did ok in Munster, but were winning games, scoring lots of points, kicking several two-pointers a game, and starting to show the consistency expected from them in big games with wins over Meath and Donegal.

Several key forwards were having career best seasons, and the new two-point rule had transformed this team.

The minor football team, under Keith Ricken were also going well and have an All-Ireland final to look forward to next weekend against Tyrone Cork football appeared to be on a high. I was excited.  I was expecting a statement win.  Mayo are not a top team, they are rebuilding and they certainly were not the Mayo of old.

This was a game Cork needed to win for a number of reasons.

I was eagerly looking forward to seeing what would unfold in front of my own eyes. 

I was expecting a performance, I was expecting Cork to die with their boots on, I was expecting less lateral movement, and I was expecting more two-pointers to be scored by the Cork forwards.

In the end, I was disappointed and very frustrated.

Again.

It was Groundhog Day.

Why does this type of performance happen regularly for the footballers?

It is the hope that kills you. I expected more from the team. 

I expected leaders to come forward, I expected more accuracy in front of the posts. I expected more.

If you are looking for proper analysis from this game, see the other pages where Barry and Eamonn will break it down for you in fine detail.

This is a fans perspective. 

My thoughts, my ramblings on the game, how it went and where I felt it was lost.

Despite being level at the half, 0-9 to 0-9, Cork underperformed in that 35 minutes. There was not enough urgency, direct play or hunger to take responsibility for kicking points.

The second half was more of the same. Mayo got better, their inside forward trio cleaned us out for 19 points, and they deserved to move on to the semi-final in two weeks’ time.

We lost another big game we should have won. It’s hard to understand why we freeze on these big days.  It's happening to often.  We can't win in Croke Park.  2014 was the last victory by a Cork football team.

But, we do need to understand why this constantly happens and we need to find a way to win these games, or this dark cloud will forever hang over the football team's head in the fan’s eyes.

There is a belief Cork footballers can win the odd big game, but when they are expected to win, should win, and are favourites to do so, they under perform time and time again.  They just can't do it when it matters.

To sum up, the constant lateral movement, the constant passing back and sideways, the 14 wides, the deflected shots, the two shots saved and a conversion rate of about 50% for Cork.

Their day in a nutshell.

Will I be back? 

I’m not sure.