IT ain’t over til it’s over. How often have we heard that phrase over the years? It still rings true today just as much as it did when legendary American baseball coach Yogi Berra coined it in the 1970s. At the time his team was behind, but they came back to win. Like he said, it ain’t over til it’s over.
Cork minor footballers learned the cruellest of lessons in their All-Ireland quarter-final against Dublin at Nowlan Park in Kilkenny. Cork led by five at half time having played all the football. They still led by a point with time up in the second half, when the board went up saying six minutes of extra time which actually turned out to be eight. This game had flipped on its head with the Dubs now dominating and coming at Cork in waves. The drama that unfolded in those extra time minutes was exhilarating but gut-wrenching for these young Cork lads.
The Rebels headed into injury-time having not scored in 14 minutes and were being turned over repeatedly, allowing the Dubs to bite away at their lead. Point by point, they closed in.
Dangerous Dublin corner forward Lenny Cahill, who was well marshalled by Urhan’s Niall O’Shea, had a free on 64 minutes to equalise from about 35 metres out but dropped it short. The next play decided Cork’s fate. Denis O’Mullane won a ball way out on the left, turned and ran at the Dublin defence. A score or a free-in and Cork were two points up, and most probably in the All-Ireland semi-final.
As Dublin defenders converged it looked like O’Mullane was not alone fouled but also intentionally pulled down, which would have meant a free in and a black card. Monaghan referee Niall McKenna waved play on, the Dubs broke down the field, won a free and equalised. It was a huge moment in a tight contest.
The drama was far from over. Cork went short from the kickout with goalkeeper Billy Curtin finding his man. The next hand pass was a poor decision and went straight into the arms of Dublin’s Paddy Curry, who finished to the net seven minutes into injury-time. Game over or so we all thought.
Character and resilience were up front and centre all day from both sides. Cork worked the ball downfield to win a 45 that was floated into the square. The ball broke to midfielder Mark O’Brien, who shot low and goal-bound. The ball hit the heel of a Dublin defender, grazed the post and out wide. We talk about fine margins at the top level, but there is no finer small margin than that. The Cork players fell to the ground in despair at the final whistle. It was one of those victories for Dublin that they will look back on if they go on to win the All-Ireland and say the Gods were smiling on them that day.
Yes, mistakes were made but they will only be categorised as such if you don’t learn from them. When you learn from them they become lessons. And yes, it would be great for Cork football to win a minor All-Ireland but the bigger picture is a lot of these lads are 16 years old, not yet 17. It’s still all about development for these boys. If winning comes along as part of that, it’s a bonus.
I saw this group play a challenge against Dublin in MTU the morning that Cork played Dublin in the national league earlier this year. Dublin were far superior on that occasion so great credit must go to manager Ray O’Mahony, himself a Dublin native, and his coaching team which includes St Mary’s Daniel Cronin, for closing the gap to such a degree in the meantime. Having seen that game, to be honest my hopes were not high going into this tie.
In the opening half Cork outworked and outplayed Dublin to such a degree that after 27 minutes the scoreboard read 1-9 to 0-6. After the Kerry loss in the Munster final, concerns were expressed about poor kicking ability and the quality of tackling. Both of those issues were firmly put to bed in that first half. But crucially the Dubs got two vital points before the short whistle and the cold, hard fact of it was Dublin outscored Cork in the second half by 1-10 to 1-2. The Dubs rallied from six points down to eventually win by three.Cork still led by four after 50 minutes thanks in the main to a converted penalty by Douglas man Sean Coakley after Bantry’s Dara Sheedy was upended in the penalty area but then Cork seemed to sit back and protect what they had, which invited Dublin on to them. Brilliant, disciplined defending was followed by poor turnovers on the counter. The pressure built and the associated anxiety and poor decision-making began to come to the surface.
Extra time would have been fair for this talented group but there’s nothing fair about sport and it will give you nothing easy. A harsh, character-building experience that will make them better in the long run. As we were all told from a very young age, you’ve got to keep playing until the final whistle.
On a final note, and we are due a break from a referee, Cork to beat Mayo in the All-Ireland senior football championship Group 1 final round on Sunday.
