Cork SFC final: Castlehaven turn the screw on Nemo Rangers for back-to-back titles

About 10 minutes after the cup was presented to Mark Collins, they started dimming the floodlights in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Over the public address they pleaded for obedience from the hordes of Castlehaven supporters, who had already ignored a stern order to stay off the pitch; cheekily; irresistibly.
With Castlehaven, these pop-up post-match gatherings always feel like the top and tail of them, as if nobody is missing. It might be a thousand people, or fewer than a thousand, but they are united by their passion for this more than anything else they share. The lights flashed. They took their time.
It was another red-letter day. Their team has been part of the elite in Cork for the last quarter of a century, but this was just the second time in their history that they had won back-to-back titles. A game that had been hard to call at half-time was drained of mystery by the final 10 minutes.
In an authoritative second half, Castlehaven turned the screw on Nemo Rangers, raising the volume of everything. It was as if they had decided at the break that the first half been too nice: a bit like tag rugby. Plenty of pretty running but only accidental hitting.
Castlehaven had executed just one turnover in the first half and that was the most telling measure of what changed. The champions hunted Nemo in their own half and tackled in twos and threes, with guerrilla precision. The lead had changed hands six times in the first half, but when Brian Hurley put Castlehaven in front two minutes after half time they never trailed again.
“Finals are strange,” said Collins. “Everyone is afraid to make a mistake. It’s nervy. No matter how many times you’ve played in them, there’s a lot of pressure and no one wants to lose. In the first half, we played a bit like that – whereas in the second half, we threw the shackles off and had a go.
“We just didn’t get enough contact on [in the first half]. We were very standoffish and didn’t put Nemo under enough pressure. That was something we targeted, to get in their face, more contact, and drive on from there.”
Eamon Fitzmaurice, a prominent member of Jim Gavin’s FRC, was in the crowd as a member of the UCC team being honoured at half-time for the county they won 25 years ago. For a game that is under siege and undergoing surgery, it was a pleasing spectacle.
Both teams were programmed to attack, within recognised limits, and both teams pushed up on the opposition’s kickouts, which led to some contests for the ball and some spills. Frees were scarce in the first half, and 10 points had been scored before either team had a shot for a point from a dead ball. In the second half, 10 points were kicked before either team committed a wide.
It felt vibrant, and if neither team tested positive for risk, at least they exhibited some symptoms.
Nemo played with the breeze in the first half, although it only amounted to air conditioning in comparison to the gale that disfigured the hurling final a week earlier. The city team had less of the ball, but they were cute in possession and explosive at times.
Young Bryan Hayes was lively and kicked a towering first half point. Alongside him, Ronan Dalton kicked three beautiful first half points and Paul Kerrigan, chasing his 11th county medal, kicked a sweet point from the wing. Nemo, though, never led by more than two points and failed to turn a good first half into a commanding position on the scoreboard. They led by just one at the break, 0-8 to 0-7.
Damien Cahalane, with his left calf wrapped tightly, like contraband, played a libero role in the first half, spraying kick passes to the flanks without breaking out of a trot. He didn’t come out for the second half, though, replaced by his brother Conor, who had broken his wrist a week after the All-Ireland hurling final.
He injected pace and directness to Castlehaven’s attacks and kicked a terrific point to put them two clear, 10 minutes into the second half. Both teams emptied their benches as the second half wore on, but the champions harvested three points from their replacements and that made a significant difference.
Michael Hurley, who had been man of the match in the final a year ago with five points, kicked just one point less this time, while his brother Brian finally kicked into gear in the second half.
Nemo bombarded the Castlehaven goal in the closing stages, and forced one smart save from Darragh Cahalane, but Castlehaven scored the last four points of the game and Nemo had no answer.
Castlehaven: Darragh Cahalane, J O’Regan, Damien Cahalane, T O’Mahony, J O’Neill, R Maguire (0-1), M Collins, A Whelton, R Minihane, J O’Driscoll, B Hurley (0-4, three frees), S Browne (0-1), C Maguire, J Cahalane (0-3), M Hurley (0-4). Subs: C Cahalane (0-1) for Damien Cahalane h-t; C O’Driscoll (0-1) for Minihane 46 mins; M Maguire (0-1) for Brown 52 mins; J Walsh for O’Neill 60; R Whelton for M Hurley 60+3 mins
Nemo Rangers: M Martin, E Nation, B Murphy, C Molloy, S Cronin, K Fulignati (0-1), K O’Donovan, A O’Donovan, B Cripps, J Horgan, R Dalton (0-3), C Horgan (0-1), B Hayes (0-2), M Cronin (0-2, one free), P Kerrigan (0-2, one free). Subs: R Corkery for Hayes 45 mins; L Horgan for J Horgan 45 mins; C McCartan for O’Donovan 54 mins; A Cronin for Murphy 60 mins
Referee: James Regan