IN the wake of Limerick’s win over Galway to qualify for the Division 1A hurling league final, their manager John Kiely made a prediction.

BY JOHNNY CAROLAN

Having faced off against two different Cork sides in the Munster Hurling League and then the national league, Kiely reckoned that the Rebel 15 for Sunday’s league decider at TUS Gaelic Grounds may not be the same as that for the Munster SHC game at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh on April 26th.

For Cork boss Ben O’Connor, who has a chance to guide the team to silverware in his first campaign, the considerations are somewhat more straightforward.

‘Well, we'll be putting out our strongest team for that game,’ he said, ‘and three weeks after that, we'll have Limerick up here and we'll be putting out our strongest team for that as well. We're going out to win all games in front of us.’

That’s not to say that there is no consideration given to the championship opener against Tipperary a fortnight after the league final. But, in terms of a lead-in to that repeat of the All-Ireland final, O’Connor couldn’t think of a better option.

‘If we weren't playing the league final, we'd be looking for a challenge match,’ he said.

‘And challenge matches aren't played at the intensity that you want, so it's a great stepping stone for us.

‘But now that you've said it, Thurles two weeks later is the day. It's the championship we're preparing for, but that doesn't mean we're going down to Limerick to throw ourselves down and not perform.

‘We're going down to win the game, full stop.’

Victory would mean Cork retaining the title – the county has not claimed the league in consecutive years since 1980 and 1981.

Twelve months ago, ending a 27-year wait was the big narrative but that monkey is off the back. What would another victory do?

‘It justifies all the time you're putting in,’ O’Connor said.

‘A lot of fellas finish their careers and they had great times but no medals. Medals are what it's all about. It's proof that you were the best on the day in that competition.

‘It's just a confidence-booster to every fella then as well. I have no league medal and I'd love to have one. It's nice for fellas when they finish up that they're able to see a bunch of medals inside in the press.

‘If you go back over the league in the last 20 years, there haven't been too many counties that have won it. It's an honour and it's the second-biggest competition in our game.

‘We set out at the start of the year to get to the final and win it. That will tell you how important it is to us.’

It’s a group driven by a unity of purpose. While O’Connor is the CEO of what is not far off an SME, he knows the value of the support structure beneath him.

‘Again, you have to know who you're getting in,’ he said.

‘We have a great bunch, everyone gets on and my main job is to try and make sure that everyone's happy. You're not going to keep everyone happy but if there's a problem, deal with it, get it sorted, move on. Thankfully we don't have too many problems.

‘John (Coleman, who deals with logistics) is worth his weight in gold. The amount of stuff that he goes through there and you don't even know that he's doing it, he'll come back to you and the job is done.

‘Paul O'Sullivan, the nutritionist, he's on to all the fellas morning, noon and night. They have nothing to do for themselves because it's all done. Ian Jones, Cathal (O’Brien), Conor Clancy (who looks after strength and conditioning), all the backroom doing the video things, they just do their jobs.

‘They're given a job and you don't have to worry about them again because you'll know it's going to be done. If you give any of them a job to do, you don't have to be asking if it's done or when it's going to be sorted. They'll be back to you straight away and it's done.

‘That's the main thing about this gig. And we're only all playing a small part. The players are obviously the big thing in it. All of us have a small part to play. Everything we do has to be about the players because without the players, we're no good to anyone.

‘We're trying to keep the players out of that kind of stuff so that they have nothing to do except turn up and perform. We're lucky enough that the group is top-class.’