The booing of Tipperary player by a section of the Cork following is 'disgraceful'

It will hardly rate as atonement for July 20, but I’m sure Cork will take some mild satisfaction from their seven-up win over their All-Ireland tormentors. Winning, after all, was more of an imperative for the hosts.

For Tipperary the loss is bearable, though it does tighten requirements for the remaining fixtures with league positions at stake.

In advance of the game there were concerns about a Tipperary defence missing four of the All-Ireland starters. Could they cope with Cork’s pace and power and especially the goal threat that delivered such damage last year.

In the event the game went goal-less. The nearest Cork came to a major was the penalty, with Rhys Shelly easily batting away Declan Dalton’s effort. Johnny Ryan had tripped up Alan Connolly as he bore down on goal. Whether the trip was accidental or deliberate is irrelevant. A trip is always illegal and is covered by the cynical foul rule. No crib there.

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It was a let-off for Tipperary. We did start brightly but for most of the opening half we were hanging on. Cork looked sharper with Darragh Fitzgibbon and Alan Connolly already posing a major score threat. Tipperary’s error count was greater and we were struggling for any meaningful traction in attack.

There was a slightly testy edge to the game and things boiled over just before half-time with that all-in melee. It was the definition of handbags, with lots of jostling and wrestling but no straight-out striking that either eye or camera could detect.

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The incident began with Willie Connors and Alan Connolly in a tangle on the ground. Both were booked, which should have been the end of it. Instead, after a long consultation between officials, Jason Forde and Shane Barrett were red-carded. ‘For continuing a melee’ was the reported reason afterwards. You could have levelled that same charge at any number of players, so why single out this pair?

It was an over-reaction by the referee, no doubt influenced by some of the people he was consulting with. He also erred by calling half-time prematurely. A referee doesn’t have authority to play less than the regulation time, irrespective of his desire to let things cool off.

The second half lumbered along with Cork mostly having the better of it and Tipperary trying to stay in tow. We went six down but then staged something of a mini-revival. Eoghan Connolly’s four long-range points were a significant part of the push but it wasn’t sustained. In injury time Cork hit four unanswered points to put the seal on a deserved win.

Our six starting forwards scored 0-5 from play; Cork’s starting six scored 0-18 from play. That one stark statistic underlines the difference between the teams. Tipperary invested most energy in restricting Cork, which was successful to an extent. We conceded no goal, for instance, but defence is only half of the battle. You defend to limit the opposition but you attack to win the match.

We had 13 different scorers but that statistic tends to hide the fact that our forward line lacked threat. We scored a mere three points from second half play and two of those came from defenders, Cathal O’Reilly and Sam O’Frrell; the third came from substitute Noel McGrath. Even Eoghan Connolly’s pointed frees were from within our own half. It all amounts to a major forward failure. We did a holding job on Cork but never looked like pushing on to win.

Our cause wasn’t helped by some refereeing calls. Willie Connors might have had a penalty but just an ordinary free was the decision.

I was astonished afterwards to hear Liam Cahill state that the explanation given by the official was that Cork had enough defenders back to prevent a goal chance. That’s a nonsense explanation. If you’re within the zone it’s a goal chance – period; it’s a chance or opportunity, not a certainty.

Later in the game Paddy McCormack executed a great aerial fetch and laid off a pass (throw?) that might have created a goal. It was the only handpass penalised in the entire game despite endless throwing.

Former ‘Independent’ journalist, Vincent Hogan tweeted: "Incredible how a hurling referee penalises one thrown ball having just watched a whole hour of them". Thank you, Vincent, for repeating what this column has been saying for years now.

Then we had another handpass rant from Donal Og Cusack on The Saturday Game. He dug out a clip from last summer of Jason Forde delivering a pass over his shoulder while on the ground. This was extolled as great artistry by the Tipp man.
The handpass, he told us, is a tool of intelligence and this clip should be viewed a 100 and then a 1,000 times.

The only problem is that when you look closely at the clip it’s a straightforward throw with not even a hint of striking action or separation between hand and ball. Yet for Donal Og this is the perfect exemplar of the great skill of handpassing.

Furthermore, I’m told, Jason Forde has admitted that he threw the ball in that instant because from his prone position he had no other option. An embarrassing revelation surely for the Cork man who regularly gets away unchallenged for this denial of reality.

Anyway, it was a deserved win for Cork, who should have taken the game more comfortably. The saved penalty was one reason the game stayed so close, as well as their tally of wides, which was almost double Tipperary’s. They were sharper than Tipperary and finished stronger with the last four flags, which might suggest an imbalance in fitness levels.

Perhaps the game should serve as reminder for Tipperary that there’s much work to be done. We trail in third place behind Cork and Limerick in the betting odds for league and championship honours. The bookies aren’t infallible but they win much more than they lose.

A parting word on Saturday’s game: the pillorying of Darragh McCarthy by a section of the Cork following is disgraceful and needs to be called out. It began with the All-Ireland last July and went up several decibels on Saturday last at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Every time he steps up to take a free the booing and jeering rises to a deafening crescendo. And please don’t suggest that it’s just a few mindless louts; it involved a substantial section of the Cork following.

The traditional rivalry between Tipperary and Cork fans has always been intense but mutually respectful. We’ve suffered more defeats to Cork than to any other county over the decades, yet the banter between the fans has always been witty and light-hearted. It’s been something of a special relationship in the GAA world.

All that seems to be changing now with the treatment of one of the youngest inter-county players who sprung so spectacularly on the scene last year. It’s boorish and un-Corklike. Is it too much to ask that some Rebel voices would call it out?

Finally, an exciting initiative from the Newport GAA club sees the launch of a new hurling tournament. The Munster Intermediate Hurling Champions Challenge will be similar to the Junior B Hurling tournament run by the Killeedy club in Limerick. Only Premier Intermediate champions get to represent their county at present so this new creation will cater for Intermediate winners.

Due to scheduling difficulties some clubs are unable to participate this time but nonetheless two attractive semi-finals have been lined up.

This coming Saturday Murroe-Boher (Limerick) take on An Rinn (Waterford) and the following week it will be the turn of Smith O’Briens Killaloe (Clare) against Knockavilla Kickhams (Tipperary). The final will be staged on Saturday, February 28. The tournament is being sponsored by Safety Direct and is set to be an annual event to be staged in November in future.

Timmy Floyd may be retired but, as the tee-shirt slogan reads, he’s not expired!