Under no illusion about level of challenge

GAVIN CUMMISKEYtalks to Cork's Donal Óg Cusack, who is not indulging in gamesmanship as he talks up the quality and intensity of Kilkenny

THE STEPFORD wives are sharpening their blades. Donal Óg Cusack knows better than most that nothing can rustle the Kilkenny hurlers from their slumber better than the sight of his county’s red hue.

“People can be accused of talking up the opposition, but the facts speak for themselves – Kilkenny are going for five in a row, one of the greatest teams ever to play the game.

“This is our third competition – we lost the league final and the Munster final – and it’s a massive challenge, but as a sportsperson and a GAA player, where else would you want to be?”

With Cork’s off-field conflicts firmly settled, this was to be the season the old guard from 1999, like Cusack and Seán Óg Ó hAilpín, would return stronger by mixing with the next wave of talent, that includes the giants of the inside forward line, Aisake Ó hAilpín and Michael Cussen.

They seemed to be growing into Kilkenny’s main obstacle with an impressive defeat of Tipperary but that was as much down to Tipp’s poor, early-summer form than a Rebel revival.

Waterford eventually beat them in extra-time of the Munster final replay but there was no shame in losing to a moment of inspiration from Dan Shanahan.

It meant Antrim stood in their way of another shot at their greatest rivals – a rivalry Cusack admits has not really existed these past four years.

“We came in in ’99 and we beat Kilkenny. For the next few years, up to 2004, 2005, we were competing with them. Since ’05 they have blown us – and everyone else – away.

“Of course it’s only natural as a competitor that you don’t want to see your competitor move away from you as much as they have. You can’t debate the fact that they have blown us and blown everyone else away for the last five years.

“You have to give Kilkenny credit,” Cusack continues. “I think they have taken the game to a new level. They have become comfortable at playing the game of hurling at such an intensity that other teams aren’t able to match.

“We have seen in games against Kilkenny that teams are able to live with them for 20, 25 minutes because there’s a certain amount of adrenaline there, but they aren’t able to go toe-to-toe with them for 70 minutes. They have become very comfortable playing the game of hurling at that intensity.”

It is put to Cusack the Tipperary performance was the last sting of a dying wasp.

“Whenever anyone brings that up I always refer to my debut year in ’99. We beat Waterford in a (Munster) semi-final and people were saying we were going to get beaten the next day because we only peaked for one day.

“And then we won the Munster title – again, we were going into the All-Ireland series with people saying that we had to prove that what happened in Munster wasn’t a fluke. Then we went on to win the All-Ireland and people were telling us that we had to come back in 2000 and prove it again. That’s the reality, that’s a fact. Those things don’t enter into my head. I lost interest in those things a few years ago.”

His hunger for success remains untamed. Cusack candidly admits to the pain he feels with Cork’s stalled progress in recent times.

“We don’t want to go through another season without silverware, but all we can do is focus on Sunday. It’s a cliché to talk up the opposition, but the reality is they’ll be raging hot favourites going into the game. We’re under no illusion about the challenge that awaits us.”

The Cork hurlers went on strike because of the management their county board forced upon them. It makes their acceptance of current manager Denis Walsh all the more intriguing.

“Denis is obviously a hugely experienced guy. He played hurling and football at the highest of levels so that says a lot about the guy himself. I would say, from what I have seen of him over the last two years, that he spends a lot of time thinking about the game and spends a serious amount of time time preparing, be it for training or be it from a tactical point of view.

“I also think that he is a very open guy as well and it’s not a múinteoir-pupil type of situation or anything like that. He understands that we are all in it for the one goal.

“We do talk about the amount of effort people have put in and we are all aware as a group the amount of work and hours that he has put into us over the last 18 months to two years. It’s something we obviously appreciate.”