IN THE END Cork returned to basics. Coach Conor Counihan tore up plan A at half-time, his side eight points down and seemingly heading for another humiliation at Kerry's hands.

In its place came a simple, straight-forward strategy. Plant giant Michael Cussen on the edge of the square and pump the ball in high. It worked brilliantly, Cork scoring 1-13 in the second half, having been limp in the extreme in the opener.

Naturally Counihan, in his first year in charge, was delighted with the remarkable transformation. "That was some turnaround by this group of players. This Cork team and panel has heart and determination. It's been proved in the past by getting to All-Ireland finals and semi-finals.

"I knew that wasn't going to be lacking. We were disappointed with the first half, being eight points down, but we still created 11 scoring chances, the same as Kerry. We just didn't take ours," he said.

Sometimes half-time orations are given too much significance for changing games and Counihan excused himself from any such notoriety. "I didn't say a whole pile at half-time. This group are mostly self-motivated. We changed our tactics, going 15 v 15 and throwing caution to the wind.

"We were very confident in the strength of our panel and knew the substitutions would do a job for us. That was borne out."

Cussen's 51st-minute goal had a major bearing on the outcome and Counihan summed up its importance. "Goals win matches and you need a big psychological boost like that. It came at the right time for us.

"The game is never up with this side. They're a very genuine and honest bunch of players."

Cork are through to an All-Ireland quarter-final next month, yet Counihan is under no illusions about the next challenge. "There's still a lot of hard work to be done ahead. Our first-half display wouldn't suffice at that level."

Experienced defender Anthony Lynch turned back the clock with a brilliant display, restricting Colm Cooper to just one point from play. He, though, was more than happy to praise his colleagues at the other end.

"The forwards really turned it on in the second half. They contested every ball and began taking their points.

"In the first half we felt we hadn't played, hadn't done ourselves justice. We started getting lucky breaks and drove on from that, picking off our points. The whole team lifted itself.

"This is just one game. We're happy to be Munster champions. There's another to be played. We're not getting carried away. We're under no illusions. We will have to improve on our first-half display."

Meanwhile, disappointed Kerry manager Pat O'Shea apologised for the team's collapse.

"Our second-half performance wasn't good enough. It's time for us to stand up right now as a team. We're going to face plenty of criticism. That's part and parcel of it. It's something we're going to have put up with.

"There's some soul-searching to be done now on the part of the team. The reality is we are still in the championship, but were well beaten in the second half and we've no complaints from that point of view. Cork deserved to win. They showed far more hunger," he said.

O'Shea dismissed overconfidence as a factor in his side's unexpected fall.

"There was no complacency at half-time. We came out in the wrong frame of mind. It's hard to pinpoint where it went wrong because it was all over the place.

"We struggled to retain the ball and we defended very poorly in the second half, having defended very well in the first.

"Cork made it almost impossible for us to mount a challenge in the second half. They were kicking scores from all angles."

And O'Shea, too, signalled Cussen's goal as the game's most decisive incident.

"I think Cork's goal was a major turning point, though their first two points after half-time were crucial, too. The goal brought them very much into the game," concluded the disappointed Kerry manager.