AS always, cards on the table first, I was not among the hardy few Corkonians that made the journey to Ballybofey on Saturday.

Having done the drive to Donegal Town not so long ago for my day job, I applaud those who did so to support the team last weekend. Before the footballers decided to charter a flight to the north, a few of us had jokingly suggested doing the same for supporters. What a flight home that would have been and how much did the squad enjoy their own trip home. They probably wished it went on a bit longer in the end!

Much has been said about the lack of TV coverage of this All-Ireland SFC Round 2A game. While I acknowledge that RTÉ can’t show everything, it was disappointing that this game was not covered either on RTÉ or GAA+. However that isn’t important for now, but what matters is that Cork have produced one of the great performances and results in our football history.

Having only the radio commentary, some highlights and match reports to go on, I’ll leave the detailed analysis of how Cork pulled off the improbable to others, but will instead look at the wider context of this win.

Many commentators have observed that it is Cork’s most important win since the All-Ireland in 2010, however I would just remind people that Cork claimed silverware in Munster in 2012, and silverware is the name of the game.

What I would say is that there have been few more impressive results in my lifetime supporting and being involved with Cork football teams. The new format now means that fixtures such as Cork v Donegal in Ballybofey, or Kerry v Armagh in Killarney next weekend are becoming a regular part of the GAA championship diet where they never used to be before.

Up to the introduction of the back-door qualifiers and subsequently the short-lived group phase, Cork had home and away games in Munster only and then it would be on to Croke Park if you claimed provincial success.

The back-door system was in operation in 2010, and while we did have to go away to Wexford and a strong Limerick team, neither of those contests could be classed as akin to travelling to Donegal and taking on the form team in the country right now.

Perhaps the only comparison from 2010 would be the semi-final against the Dubs in Croke Park, which was singularly the best atmosphere I ever experienced at a GAA game.

Cork's Dara Sheedy gets away from Donegal's Eoghan Bán Gallagher in Ballybofey. (Photo: Laszlo Geczo/INPHO)

The one-point win last Saturday is in that category when you consider the expectation that Cork were merely going to act as a nice tune-up game before a quarter-final for the home team.

As a very quick aside, what must the great players of yesteryear be thinking when they see these great games. How those players would have loved to have more games and to have tested themselves in championship against different opponents year after year. Take the great Cork team of the late 1980s and early 1990s, they would surely have relished more championship games against different opponents in different venues. There are people who still hark back to the old days, but there is no doubt this is progress. More games, and meaningful, exciting games at that.

Returning to the here and now, before the league game away to Tyrone earlier this year, we remarked that should Cork pull off a win in Omagh, then people outside our county might start to take some notice of this Cork team.

Safe to say the cat is out of the bag now, and Cork will be on everyone’s radar as serious contenders in the All-Ireland championship.

Outsiders still, sure, but odds of 33/1 in places have tumbled to 14/1 with one prominent bookmaker in just a couple of weeks. Donegal had gone to Killarney and punctured the Kerry aura of invincibility in Killarney. Now Cork have done the same to them on their own patch.

Cork, along with Louth, Galway and Tyrone, are into an All-Ireland quarter-final, which we suggest might have been a preliminary target before the season began. That box is now ticked but there is no question of this Cork squad being satisfied with their achievement.

The decision to fly up and down on Saturday was more than vindicated, and the extra recovery time will allow Cork to get more work done before a quarter-final against teams that will have to play again this weekend.

We won’t know until after this weekend who Cork will face, and much will depend on the results of the Round 3 games. It is entirely possible that Kerry, Donegal and Meath could beat Armagh, Dublin and Mayo respectively, which I understand would mean Cork would be guaranteed to play the winners of Monaghan v Westmeath. For the record, I expect Kerry, Donegal and Monaghan to prevail and I’m struggling to split Mayo and Meath.

Home advantage is big for Mayo, but Meath have the momentum after an impressive win away to Derry. I’ll back Meath by a hair based on that performance. While the new format isn’t quite perfect, I expect more people are coming around to it with the games that are being offered to us. I still firmly believe that we are taking too long to get to the serious stuff after lengthy league and provincial championships, however further discussions on formats can wait for another day; we are allowed to savour this one for a few moments.

John Cleary’s side are quietly putting together one of the most impressive – there’s that word again – seasons a Cork football team has ever produced.

Winning away to Louth, Tyrone and Donegal in one year doesn’t come easy, and Cork have earned their place in Croke Park and have done so the hard way. The team has adopted an attitude now that the bigger the challenge, the more they embrace it.

A new challenge will await in the quarter-final, and I don’t think teams will be queuing up to face Cork in their current form.

We will sound but one slight note of caution. We are in knockout territory from here on out for all involved, with no more lifelines left for anyone. The new format means it is probably harder than ever to win an All-Ireland, at least for any team outside of Ulster. Whoever prevails from here will have earned it. Kerry with their injured players returning and their habit of peaking when the time is right are still favourites, yet Kieran McGeeney is seeking to plot their downfall as we speak.

I was tempted to put in an application for a day trip to Killarney for Father’s Day, however I am probably better served holding my credits for Dublin the following weekend. Kudos again to everyone who made the journey to Donegal, and special mention to the mighty pair of Denis McSweeney and Mick Curtin, who drove the gear north in their vans on Friday and back again on Saturday evening. The pit stop in Knock worked the oracle for the team the following day!

The biggest congratulations, though, go to John Cleary, his management team and the entire squad of players. They have made us believe again as Cork football fans, but the show doesn’t end here.

Huge results have been achieved this year, but the biggest days are still to come.

For now, we can sit back and watch eight teams attempt to earn the same opportunity this weekend. John Cleary and co will be watching too, but I dare suggest they won’t have the feet up.

This group means business now, and will be considering every angle. Bring on Monday morning to find out the next challenge that lies in wait. This season has been a hell of a ride, Cork football is going back to the big stage, and we hope it’s the first of three visits. There aren't many who would have thought that likely before the season began, however even fewer thought Cork could go to Donegal and win.

The team will take it one step at a time, those of us on the outside can allow ourselves to wonder what could be possible.

Croke Park, here we come.