Preview: Munster SFC Final - Kerry v Cork
Preview: Munster SFC Final - Kerry v Cork
Preview: Munster SFC Final - Kerry v Cork
Saturday, July 18
Munster Senior Football Championship Final Replay
Kerry v Cork, Fitzgerald Stadium, 7pm (Live on RTÉ and GAAGO)
It's an oft-quoted statistic that Cork haven't beaten Kerry in championship football at Fitzgerald Stadium since 1995.
That doesn't mean they haven't been able to get results against the Kingdom on their home soil and they have drawn with them plenty of times in Killarney before taking them back to Páirc Uí Chaoimh to hand out a beating.
Saturday will be these teams' sixth championship replay since the turn of the Millennium, with the Rebels winning three of the last five, though granted all of those were at the Páirc, which is now closed due to its lavish redevelopment.
This means this weekend's replay is back in Killarney and Cork will be trying to overturn the weight of history.
[highlight/>
It's fair to say that the Rebels played out of their skin in the drawn game - performing multiple times better than most predicted - and still didn't do enough to win. This was thanks, largely, to a disputed second half penalty and an earlier give-away goal.
Cork had been accused of many things in the build-up to that game, including a lack of tactical know-how and a lack of willingness to put their bodies on the line. Both of those were proven to be myths a fortnight ago.
The problem for Brian Cuthbert is that he has to get the same level of effort and performance out of his players this time around and then something extra. His tactical masterclass, which left Kerry boss Eamonn Fitzmaurice outfoxed by his own admission, is also out in the open.
Can he bring something fresh? Their two rotating sweepers, including Paul Kerrigan before his black card, operated brilliantly, shielding the backs, allowing their team to break hard out of defence, bursting through tackles and creating overlaps with players running off the ball-carrier's shoulder.
Alan O'Connor lorded the middle third in the skies and on the ground while wing-back Barry O'Driscoll surged forward to get 1-1 from play.
That's a lot going right for Cork and they still didn't win. Can they do it again and then some? That's a big question and only time will tell.
It certainly seems fair to say that All-Ireland champions Kerry have more room for improvement in the replay. They only played for one short period in the draw and that was before half-time, winning the second quarter 1-9 to 0-4.
In the second half they mounted just ten attacks yet still came away with 1-6. The defence was pillaged, with the acres of space in front of Marc Ó Sé and Shane Enright a large part of the reason they conceded three goals.
In midfield they were badly beaten, allowing Cork to dominate the breaks and drive forward. Will they be as bad again? History would suggest otherwise. Kerry footballers learn their lessons like no other footballers and they are quick to adapt.
Cork have named an unchanged side for this game, with O'Connor again in midfield following his recent decision to come out of retirement and the impressive Donncha O'Connor leading the line up front.
As expected, Kerry shuffle the pack with Aidan O'Mahony, Paul Murphy, Anthony Maher and Paul Geaney all back in the team, with Fionn Fitzgerald (the man who scored the equaliser to force the replay), Peter Crowley, Stephen O'Brien and Barry John Keane dropping to the bench.
Of course, this means that the great Colm Cooper has failed to make the starting 15 again, though he is just one of many potent weapons that Fitzmaurice has in reserve on the bench.
Cork-Kerry is by far the busiest rivalry in Gaelic football and the introduction of the All-Ireland qualifier system in 2001 has helped to speed up the frequency of their meetings, which number 26 times in the past 15 years.
Kerry have won 15 of those to Cork's five with six draws. Six of the Kingdom's wins came in All-Ireland semi-finals and finals at Croke Park while the Rebels haven't beaten their rivals outside of Munster, or indeed Páirc Uí Chaoimh, since 1995.
The winner of this game will play their All-Ireland quarter-final on the first weekend in August while the losers will play beaten Leinster semi-finalists Kildare in Round 4A of the qualifiers on Saturday week.
The new A and B qualifier system was supposed to end six-day turnarounds for beaten provincial finalists, though this weekend's replay means one of these teams will have to deal with it.
Statistics show that six days isn't enough for most teams to get over losing their provincial final so it's a fate both will be hoping to avoid. It's a scenario that couldn't be avoided as last weekend's Munster hurling final meant the replay couldn't be played any earlier.
KERRY: Brendan Kealy; Marc Ó Sé, Aidan O'Mahony, Shane Enright; Jonathan Lyne, Killian Young, Paul Murphy; Anthony Maher, David Moran; Johnny Buckley, Bryan Sheehan, Donnchadh Walsh; Paul Geaney, Kieran Donaghy, James O'Donoghue.
CORK: Ken O'Halloran; Michael Shields, Eoin Cadogan, James Loughrey; Barry O'Driscoll, Brian O'Driscoll, Stephen Cronin; Alan O'Conor, Fintan Goold; Paul Kerrigan, Donncha O'Connor, Kevin O'Driscoll; Colm O'Neill, Mark Collins, Brian Hurley.
Preview: Peter Sweeney