ALL-IRELAND SFC QUARTER-FINAL Mayo 1-13 Cork 2-6:WELL, THAT made us jump. A big, unexpected crash at Croke Park yesterday saw the GAA All-Ireland champions Cork disintegrating into oblivion at the hands of an energetic and surprisingly purposeful Mayo.
Before the smallest crowd (22,732) to attend a quarter-final double bill at headquarters, one of the last eight’s biggest shocks played out primarily during a second half when the favourites had no response to the confidence and drive of the Connacht champions.
Cork had their alibis given the rate of injury amongst their forwards but the match wasn’t as easily explained as that and in fairness to the losing manager Conor Counihan he didn’t try to offload the blame or deflect from the largely unforeseen merit of the Mayo challenge.
The problem for the champions appeared to be the old one of getting lulled into a false sense of security at an early stage and not hearing the alarm bells until most of their belongings were being driven away into the summer evening.
Six points clear after 16 minutes and benefiting from their forwards’ apparent ‘access all areas’ privilege, Cork absorbed Mayo’s first comeback by following up Kevin McLoughlin’s goal with a similar response of their own within three minutes.
That was in the 25th minute for a lead of 2-4 to 1-3. What Cork couldn’t have realised then was that they had only two points left in the entire remainder of the match.
Mayo’s manager James Horan explained the statistical imperative of the first quarter: that they had been losing the breaking ball count by a multiple of eight. Thereafter they won the loose contests.
In that malfunctioning opening phase Cork ran riot. Donncha O’Connor converted a seventh-minute penalty with his usual precision after being brought down by Ger Cafferkey. He added a point and Mayo were ripped apart by a move that ended with Paul Kerrigan conservatively taking a further point before being blocked for a 45, converted by O’Connor.
The one-way traffic began to flow a little in the other direction, as Aidan O’Shea made some good catches at centrefield where Alan O’Connor and Aidan Walsh had been dominant and Cillian O’Connor’s flawless return from frees started to accumulate.
Deprived of the hugely disproportionate share of possession to which they have been accustomed, Cork’s difficulties up front became apparent but there still didn’t seem any reason for panic.
In the 22nd minute Fiachra Lynch, a late and widely expected replacement for Nicholas Murphy, got isolated on a kick-out and Mayo hounded the possession out to McLoughlin, whose largely unimpeded run through the Cork defence opened up a clear shot at goal, which he exuberantly planted past Alan Quirke. But Lynch was involved three minutes later, penetrating from the right and popping up a ball for Kerrigan to get the barest of touches and cancel out the goal concession.
But Mayo were making inroads. Cunniffe’s switch from corner back with Cafferkey gave the defence more solidity. In front of him, Donal Vaughan and his wing backs got to grips with the normally productive Cork half forward line and ended up subduing them with Patrick Kelly, so influential this season, having as quiet an afternoon as he’s had in a long time.
Aggressively contested at centrefield and marked tightly in attack, Cork’s momentum slowed. By half-time there was just a two-point margin, 2-5 to 1-6, but accompanied by a general expectation that Cork would crank it up again in the second half.
Momentum in matches isn’t however controlled by switches and the surge in Mayo’s self-belief was tangible in the third quarter as a free from Enda Varley, a 45 by goalkeeper Robert Hennelly and a point from captain Alan Dillon pushed Mayo ahead.
By now the changed fortunes at centrefield and in defence were complemented by the problems caused by Mayo’s two-man full-forward line with the repositioned Andy Moran exceptionally hard to contain and Varley and later Jason Doherty partnering him effectively.
The second-half introduction of Graham Canty, which had previously played such a major role in adding some composure to Cork’s build-up from the back, was unavailing, as Mayo’s defence didn’t allow any loose runners to get on easy ball.
Cork’s diminishing urgency levels were kept low, as John Miskella, spending increasing amounts of time breaking forward from centre back, fisted an equaliser off the cross bar for 2-6 to 1-9.
But Cork’s attacks were ponderous and runs were either not made at the right time or not picked up when they were. Even when it all came together in the 56th minute, Fintan Goold was sent clear on goal but tried to curl a shot around the ’keeper and instead bent it unproductively wide of the left-hand post.
That would have put Cork two ahead and back in control but it was Mayo who now knew that the tide had definitively turned. Doherty and two frees from O’Connor combined to put at least two scores between the teams, 1-13 to 2-6, and Cork’s composure was going up in smoke.
‘Dropping the ball in’ became the governing tactic of the closing minutes, leading to four successive 45s, none of which was deemed safe to point, and Mayo outmuscled their opponents to the dropping ball and one desperate attack was artfully intercepted by the vigilant Vaughan.
To compound Cork’s woes Miskella received a straight red card for an off-the-ball infraction in the dying minutes.
MAYO: 1 R Hennelly (0-1, 45); 4 T Cunniffe, 3 G Cafferkey, 2 K Higgins (0-1); 7 T Mortimer, 6 D Vaughan, 5 R Feeney; 9 S O'Shea, 8 A O'Shea; 10 K McLoughlin (1-1), 11 A Dillon (0-1), 12 A Moran (0-1); 13 E Varley (0-1, free), 14 A Freeman, 15 C O'Connor (0-6, 0-5 frees). Subs: 25 J Doherty (0-1) for Varley (48 mins), 23 P Gardiner for Freeman (58 mins), 22 R McGarrity for S O'Shea (59 mins), 24 A Campbell for McLoughlin (65 mins), 20 L Keegan for Feeney (71 mins). Yellow cards:Cafferkey (6 mins), A O'Shea (19 mins), Vaughan (24 mins), Freeman (29 mins).
CORK: 1 A Quirke; 3 M Shields, 4 E Cadogan, 2 E Cotter; 5 N O'Leary, 6 J Miskella (0-1), 7 P Kissane; 8 A O'Connor, 9 A Walsh; 10 F Goold (0-1, free), 12 P O'Neill, 11 P Kelly; 15 P Kerrigan (1-2), 13 D O'Connor (1-2, 1-0 penalty, 0-1 45), 25 F Lynch. Subs: 22 G Canty for O'Leary (38 mins), 21 M Collins for Lynch (48 mins), 14 N Murphy for A O'Connor (62 mins), 23 D O'Sullivan for Goold (64 mins). Yellow cards: O'Leary (8 mins), A O'Connor (33 mins), Shields (64 mins), O'Neill (73). Red card: Miskella (70 mins).
Referee: R Hickey(Clare).
