Cork u20 Hurling 2024

[Thanks]

Regardless of whether any of them make future senior team, I think it’s a great grade to watch in its own right

 

[omar]

I watched tha game back. Clare started very strongly. They forced turnovers and Cork weren't at the races in terms of intensity or physicality in the first 15 mins.

However Cork had 4 terrible wides by the 13th min...particularly from scoreable frees which really should have narrowed the gap much earlier.

The sending off was a headbutt. Helmet or no helmet it's a red card...there's going head to head and there's a headbutt and that was the later. The Clare manager started the initial flare up the gobshite.

Cork were back in the game at that stage and with the extra man had room to play their running game. Worryingly despite being well on top we hit a pile of wides and didn't run up a bigger score which we should have.

I think we need an extra target for puck outs at HF.

We need to adjust our approach to pot shots from out the pitch and use our FF line with a better more consistent supply of ball (see KK vs Limerick in the league semi)

I thought Tobin and Dywer were very strong at HB...O Regan struggled early but had a better second half. He's a good player but learning the ropes at CB at IC level is tough.

I'd be worried about out CB, puckouts and not utilising the FF line properly. Saying this there's bags of talent in the team and we improved last year game by game.

 

[DougMM]

It was noticeable that a lot of Clare's bigger and more physical guys were from their minor team last year. I know Walsh is in the squad, but have either of the other big lads from last year's minor half forward line been involved? Hallahan is another tall lad from that minor squad and will hopefully be involved in next year's 20s. He probably would have been starting for Cork at minor level the last two years if not for injury.

Haven't seen as much of Nyhan as others, but he looked good for Avondhu. Big, quick and accurate. I guess we need to trust O'Connor that he's not in great form at training, as Corkonian said. Are there any other big U20 forwards standing out at club level?

As great as it is to be winning at this level, it feels like it's almost as important to be producing players with the types of profiles we need at senior level. Leahy and Buckley are great players and I'm looking forward to seeing them play for the Cork seniors in a few years. Adding them alone however, isn't giving us any better chance of standing up to the physicality of the likes of Limerick at senior level.

 

[Blackajam]

4 players are not playing that were apart of the minor winning team . All 4 players were Corks most physical players. O Connor, Wilk, Nyhan, Walsh. There not the same team without the physicality.

 

[Hurlywurly]

Bar Ben O'C I wouldn't have thought that superior physicality to other teams in the grade was the one standout reason that they were beating all comers by double digits in that 2021 minor team.

More that they had hurlers who couldn't be contained, who were deadly accurate and could score for fun from all angles.

A few years down the road other teams do have players physically developed to a degree that they will do a much better job at containing this Cork team.
And without treading old ground losing BOC to Munster was definitely a blow for Cork at all levels.

 

[Reservedcitizen]

Walsh & Nyhan shared the 11 spot at minor with both playing a half, so 2 people but only 1 position.
Wilk is injured but was an U16 at that time.
Ben o connor is obviously a loss.

Dwyer, Tobin, Lyons would be regarded as extremely physical players

We've an obsession in Cork with "physical ball winners in the forward line". Seanie McGrath wouldn't get a look in with some of the lads here picking a team. Just pick the best players, they know how to get it done. Just because a lad isn't 6"2, doesn't mean he isn't able to win his own ball and vice versa.

4 players are not playing that were apart of the minor winning team . All 4 players were Corks most physical players. O Connor, Wilk, Nyhan, Walsh. There not the same team without the physicality.

 

[TheLoneRanger]

When this group was minor these was a fella Adam Walsn from Bride rovers . Remember he was a big lad . Didn’t look the part but had a serious hand and was strong . You need someone like him in the half forward line .

Saw Adam Walsh play with bride rovers last year. Brilliant hurler but is carrying far too much weight to be effective at ic level

 

[red&blue]

Walsh & Nyhan shared the 11 spot at minor with both playing a half, so 2 people but only 1 position.
Wilk is injured but was an U16 at that time.
Ben o connor is obviously a loss.

Dwyer, Tobin, Lyons would be regarded as extremely physical players

We've an obsession in Cork with "physical ball winners in the forward line". Seanie McGrath wouldn't get a look in with some of the lads here picking a team. Just pick the best players, they know how to get it done. Just because a lad isn't 6"2, doesn't mean he isn't able to win his own ball and vice versa.

With respect it’s that attitude that has us fucked at senior level.

For instance Deccie Dakton was surplus to requirements with the last management because they were wedded to the “pick the best hurlers” mantra,

The current 20s look like going the same route with a definite lack of physicality in the foward line. God help us if Diarmuid Healy is ever missing.

Every successful team needs a few boyos who can mix it and win their own ball

 

[Twiceasnice97]

Call it as you see it but the red card was a crazy decision.
Buckley made a fool out of Keane and it was a deeply unpleasant incident.

Just to clarify for the experts.
1 Keane did not run at Buckley in open play. He was celebrating us winning a free that would have made it 12 to 5. Play was stopped

2 Buckley hit Keane because he was pissed off with his antics. No issue with that from my point of view. But equally for the simpletons, it might be offensive to some but its not an offence for a young lad to jump around like a lunatic.

3 Keane did exactly the same thing back to Buckley , there was no head butt. I presume next time round the recommendation here would be for Keane to hit the deck straight away?


4 Buckley going down was wrong. There is no place for it in hurling in my view, however , his action changed the game and more than likely the result. He was outstanding all night. Gunning tried very hard and did some great things but Buckley came out the best of it but that incident was not good.

5 the linesman, who got line balls wrong both directions, was out of his depth and lost his head I feel, it was not the refs fault

6 I have clare lads complaining about multiple frees not given to us. I think that's bollix. There were lots of frees we could have got but the same could be said for cork and frankly the ref letting the two sides go at each other physically really helped us to kill the running stone dead early on.

7 I have only 3 problems with the officials last night. Firstly the red card was a nonsense, secondly the Cork 7 should have got a yellow for hitting Fahy but I am not overly bothered by that and finally after we scored our goal to put 3 in it the free given to Cork to go back to 4 seemed really soft. Maybe I missed something there.


On the broader issue. I wouldn't be shouting the odds about winning Munster or anything. We do have 5 players returning. 3 of them, woods, Stritch and Dunford would be starting, treacy and Doherty might be starting but some of the lads who got in like moylan hegarty kilroy and Collins have been outstanding so far.

Even if we got them all back I wouldn't be making us favourites against this cork team. They are a good side with a lot of confidence

I can't help thinking that cork would be in a much better place today if we had been 5 or 6 up at half time and Ben O Connor had to adjust his style and team at half time to get back into it.

Leahy and Buckley are really good but the most important player for corks forwards is Healey and ye need someone bigger with him to balance out the side.

Serious work needs to go in from 2 to 9 under high ball.
You just can't allow a team to get clean runs to at puck outs time after time so they can be caught.

The extra man meant that they just knocked the ball down and the 4 swept it up.

Need to be way more physical.

 

[Hurlywurly]

TAN - still ignoring that there was no reason at all for Keane to go anywhere near Buckley.
- still not in possession of any facts or comment from the linesman to tell us how he saw it.
- still just assuming he'd have done nothing if Buckley hadn't hit the deck.

I've seen Clare senior players regularly being castigated for diving, don't think I ever called it out myself, not sure I ever would. Hypothetically- wouldn't be rocking up to some Clare forum after a loss to them to lecture em.

As for "can't help thinking that cork would be in a much better place today" if Clare "had been 5 or 6 up at half time and Ben O Connor had to adjust his style and team at half time to get back into it"
Cork are 2 out of 2 from games played so far, this better place would be where? Even more scored and less conceded? Having hammered 15 man Clare by 12 following some kind of half time epiphany from Ben O'Connor?

Watched this U20 in the Waterford game and in a challenge v Galway, was not struck by a distinct lack of physicality.

Clare were extremely physical, but they were also fouling all over the place, lacked discipline and control, and paid the price. Perhaps that's a takeaway for the Clare management.