John Horgan on hurling: Patrick Horgan showed what Cork were missing to send Glen to last four

It's all starting to come together now, the semi-final stage of the premier Cork senior hurling championship has been reached.

And the complexion has changed quite a bit from last season, only two of the four teams that made it into the last four in 2025 are still standing, Midleton and the Barrs.

The other two, Sarsfields and the Rockies are no more, replaced by the Glen and Kanturk, the latter one of the stories of the Premier SHC thus far.

There will be new champions crowned next month, Sars failing to retain their title.

It's never easy putting titles back-to-back. On the recent occasions when the Riverstown club were the top unit on Leeside, 2008, 2010, '12, '14, 2023 and last year, they came up short the season.

That, of course, should not take away from their achievements in a glorious era but it illustrates that putting two together is never easy.

A new team putting themselves in the frame for the ultimate prize is always a welcome development and the credentials of Kanturk have certainly been proven this season.

En route to the final four, they have beaten one of the leading title contenders, Blackrock, trouncing them to the tune of 11 points at the group stage, an outcome that eliminated the Church Road outfit. And things got a whole lot better last Sunday in Mallow, putting up the hugely impressive tally of 4-19 in putting an end to Sars reign as champions.

So, when those players returned to the training ground this week their confidence levels must have been sky high and there will be an inner belief now of their capabilities when facing teams that are ranked much higher than them.

And what a difference 12 months has made for the club, last season they managed just one point from their three group games but that was just enough to keep them out of the murky waters of a relegation decider.

They certainly are a welcome addition to the semi-finals where they will take on another perceived top contender in the Barrs and where the men from Togher are concerned, being forewarned is forearmed.

There is plenty of experience at inter-county level, underage or adult running through this Kanturk team and the team contains a strong physical presence that will test any team now.

The Barrs are back where they set out to be at the outset, taking Sars to the wire in last season's semi-final, losing by just a point, they proved much too strong for Imokilly in Midleton.

It wasn't what one might term a scintillating display but it was more than sufficient to put them back very much into the equation.

There would have been a bit of apprehensiveness in taking on Imokilly but this was not the Imokilly team of old when plenty of intercounty personnel were doing their job.

There are always difficulties for divisional teams at this stage of the championship, players having had to play with their clubs less than 24 hours earlier as was the case with Cillian O'Callaghan and Jack Leahy with Dungourney in their epic victory over Aghabullogue.

The Cloyne contingent were in a similar situation after their heavy loss to Carrigaline as were players from Aghada in their fine win over Mallow.

There would be many who believe that the situation is unfair. Unfortunately, that has to be the case now with the more condensed season. But where the Barrs were concerned, they could only play what's in front of them and they were impressive at stages in their 11-point victory.

The Glen are back in the last four again after a few years on the absent list and there was obvious delight in their victory over a highly rated Charleville team who had beaten Sars at the group stage. There is the perception that when you take a city team into a rural venue, they can be vulnerable and similar to Sars against Kanturk, the Blackpool unit had to be a bit wary.

But there was no real worry for them and despite things getting a bit more difficult in the closing stages when Conor Buckley goaled for Charleville, this was good day at the office for the Glen.

Class is permanent

And for the umpteenth time in his glittering career, Patrick Horgan was the standout player, constructing a tally of 1-12 and still illustrating that he is one of the top club players in the county. One or two of his points were exquisitely taken and one is convinced that if he was in the Cork equation this season, he would have been an influence.

But that's not here nor there now and who knows he might well bag another county medal over the coming weeks.

Both the Glen and the Barrs have recovered well from their opening day losses, the Glen to the Rockies and the Barrs to Midleton. That put them under immediate pressure but their riposte has been admirable.

The biggest loser of the lot over last weekend was Douglas, their defeat to Fr O'Neill's in the relegation play-off has ended their tenure for now as a Premier Senior club.

Relegation is a huge blow for any club but Douglas cannot have too many complaints. Twelve months ago, they were hovering around that drop zone too, securing their status by drawing with Kanturk after losing to the Barrs and Blackrock.

Fr O'Neill's will be thrilled to have survived but there will be an awareness too that things must be a whole pile better next season.

Although to be fair they gave a good account of themselves in some of their group games and when adversity stared them in the face they came up trumps with Deccie Dalton leading by example and Jason Hankard doing good business too.

Douglas must now reflect on a lot of things over the next few months, try to ensure that their stay in the lower grade is a short one.

This is a club with a brilliant underage structure and things should be a lot better.

So, as we are now very much at the business end of the campaign, the question of who will win the county will be more frequently posed.

Given that they were runners-up last season, were unbeaten at the group stage this time and with their intermediate team containing many former seniors in their semi-final too, there has to be a feelgood factor around Clonmult Memorial Park.

They are probably ranked in pole position for the title but we continue to declare that the race to the finish line is still wide open.

Key questions

Could we have an all-city final again?

Can Kanturk continue on their upward trajectory? 

Or will the title remain in East Cork?

All will be revealed shortly but what we want most of all from the three games that are remaining are a few newcomers who will put up their hand to be considered by the Cork management.