Form lines skewed for Tribe and Rebels

Michael Moynihan

AS players, Denis Walsh and John McIntyre lived under the old dispensation, the pre-backdoor era of win or bust. They won't be pertubed by suggestions that Saturday night's game between Cork and Galway is a snapshot of their stewardship of those counties.

Clare's collapse and Patrick Cronin's indiscipline against Offaly skew perceptions of their last days out.

Galway destroyed Clare in Pearse Stadium, but the alignment and technique of some Banner players in attempting blocks and tackles indicated zero morale: take Joe Canning's goal as the basic text in that regard. Accordingly, how much weight can be attached to that result?

Cork were cruising against Offaly in their qualifier in Páirc Uí Chaoimh when Cronin was red-carded: 20 minutes had passed. That means the men in red played over fifty minutes with fourteen men, so it was hardly surprising they tired towards the end and were almost caught on the finishing line.

Go back further and the picture doesn't clear up either. Run a line of form through Tipperary and you'd say Cork were better than Clare, but Cork only finished one point closer to the All-Ireland champions (eight behind) than Clare did, when all is said and done.

Galway ended their Leinster championship game with Dublin six points in arrears, with fifteen men to Dublin's fourteen after Ryan O'Dwyer's second half dismissal. Unlike Cork-Tipperary, though, Galway could have changed that result if Cyril Donnellan had popped a pass to Joe Canning fourteen metres out just after half-time.

On that basis Galway have room to manoeuvre. To improve. McIntyre will be happier with his side's four goals against Clare than Walsh will be with his side's ten against Laois, for instance.

The Galway manager also has a slightly more mature team physically, which should count for something, and more of an idea where to play Joe Canning, which should count for a lot. The bizarre positioning of Canning out on the prairies of midfield has been abandoned, which is good for Galway – and bad for Cork.

For all that, Walsh will know he has a couple of trumps. The fact that Paudie O'Sullivan had to withdraw to midfield in the Offaly game has obscured the understanding he's struck up with Patrick Horgan in the full-forward line; they'll reawaken that in Limerick.

But how will Cork win puck-outs against Galway without Patrick Cronin getting his hand up? This may be the area that gives Walsh a sleepless evening or two.

And it may be the reason John McIntyre is the happier man on Saturday night.

 

Source: http://feeds.examiner.ie/~r/iesportsblog/~3/l35wpwewPRg/post.aspx

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