Cork 3-18 Limerick 0-6: Rebels hammer sorry Treaty to set up Munster final with Kerry

Cork are through to the Munster Football Championship final, beating Limerick 3-18 to 0-6.

Given Cork's recent struggles and the manner of Limerick's shock win over Tipperary, the neutrals tuning into Saturday's Munster semi-final were confident of a competitive contest. However, within minutes, it was clear that such confidence was badly misplaced.

Much like 12 months ago when Ronan McCarthy's charges won their provincial semi-final in Thurles, everything clicked for the men wearing the 'blood and bandages'.

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Within seconds of throw-in, Limerick worked their way up the field, with Sean McSweeney shooting on goal, but he was denied by the upright. His second attempt on the rebound hit the crossbar, and Cork survived.

While there were promising signs for the Treaty within the first minute, it soon turned south.

Within 13 minutes, the Rebels had amassed 3-4 without reply. Indeed, the Treaty did not register a score until the 27th minute, after Cork had built up an insurmountable 16-point lead.

Brian Hurley stole in for the first goal after four minutes, and the Castlehaven man repeated the trick just 60 seconds later.

When Ruairí Deane stormed through the defence unscathed in the 13th minute to place the Rebels' third goal, thoughts amongst the home contingent in Páirc Uí Rinn were already switching to a Munster final with Kerry.

Indeed, things could have gotten even worse for Limerick before half-time, but Hurley's penalty attempt bounced off the upright. Nonetheless, the 15-point margin at the break was more than satisfying from a Cork perspective.

As the skies opened after the break, the sting was gone out of the contest. However, nobody told Mark Collins. The Rebels forward kicked on, taking impressive scores from either wing to keep the scoreboard operators on their toes.

In truth, the second half was a mere formality as Cork proceeded to a 21-point victory.

As the crowd spilled out of the Ballintemple venue, with the silhouette of Páirc Uí Chaoimh still visible under the June sunset, there was brimming optimism amongst the Cork faithful.

Will they give a better account of themselves against their greatest rivals in the Munster final than they did last year?

On the evidence of Saturday evening alone, perhaps talk of a crisis is overstated. But ultimately, the Munster final will prove the barometer.

Referee: Brendan Cawley (Kildare)

Attendance: 3,128

Scorers for Cork: Mark Collins 0-9 (0-5 frees), Brian Hurley 2-0, Ruairí Deane 1-0, Eoghan McSweeney 0-3, Mattie Taylor 0-2, Ian Maguire 0-1, Paul Kerrigan 0-1, John O'Rourke 0-1, Stephen Sherlock 0-1.

Scorers for Limerick: Donal O'Sullivan 0-3 (0-2 '45s, 0-1 free), Seamus O'Carroll 0-2, Jamie Lee 0-1 (0-1 free).

Cork

1. Mark White

2. Nathan Walsh

3. James Loughrey

4. Kevin Flahive

5. Liam O'Donovan

6. Thomas Clancy

7. Mattie Taylor

8. Ian Maguire

9. Killian O'Hanlon

10. Eoghan McSweeney

11. Ruairí Deane

13. Paul Kerrigan

12. John O'Rourke

14. Brian Hurley

15. Mark Collins

Subs:

Adian Browne for James Loughrey (40th minute)

Stephen Sherlock for Brian Hurley (45th minute)

Luke Connolly for John O'Rourke (46th minute)

Kevin O'Driscoll for Ruairí Deane (51st minute)

Kevin O'Donovan for Thomas Clancy (57th minute)

Ronan O'Toole for Ian Maguire (61st minute)

Limerick

1. Donal O'Sullivan

2. Brian Fanning

3. Sean O'Dea

4. Paul Maher

5. Colm McSweeney

6. Iain Corbett

7. Gordon Brown

8. Darragh Treacy

9. Tommie Childs

10. Adrian Enright

11. Cillian Fahy

12. Michael Fitzgibbon

13. Sean McSweeney

14. Seamus O'Carroll

15. Jamie Lee

Subs:

Tony McCarthy for Gordon Brown (half-time)

Peter Nash for Adrian Enright (half-time)

James Naughton for Sean McSweeney (half-time)

Pádraig de Brún for Cillian Fahy (45th minute)

Gareth Noonan for Colm McSweeney (56th minute)

Ronan Lynch for Michael Fitzgibbon (56th minute)

Sky Sports' live GAA coverage continues on Saturday, June 8 as Cork host Waterford in the Munster Hurling Championship.

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