Clare boss Brian Lohan gets response he needed while Cork's defensive woes resurface

If he follows through on it, a dishevelled Cork defence won’t be sorry to see the back of him after this.

Man-of-the-match choices after this six-goal Munster SHC round-robin thriller ranged from Peter Duggan, for his fetching from puck-outs and general nuisance value in opposition to Tim O’Mahony, to Mark Rodgers’ sniping for 1-6.

But O’Donnell was the pulse, the ball of energy that struck fear into backpedalling Cork defenders so often.

Today's Sport News in 90 Seconds - 29th April

He scored 1-1 and he assisted directly, between frees won and last passes, for at least another 1-6. In the absence of Tony Kelly, withdrawn from the squad with injury beforehand, O’Donnell once again provided leadership and creativity as Clare got their championship campaign back on track.

Given where he was three years ago with severe concussion, his performances continue to amaze.

With games against Waterford and Tipperary to come, Clare will feel a lot better about themselves seven days on from their self-implosion against Limerick.

“When you lose a game, there’s no shame,” said Clare manager Brian Lohan, reflecting on the response to that opening-round defeat. “But it was the nature of the loss, the disappointment.

“Since you’re six years of age, you’re told to block the ball and mark your man – those are the things we didn’t do. That’s how we conceded those three goals late [against Limerick]. Very disappointing to be at that level of hurling, at that pitch, up against the opposition we were up against, and not to do the basics.”

In truth, they didn’t always do the basics well here either, and their defence was just as suspect. Cork scored three goals and could possibly have doubled that with opportunities falling for Darragh Fitzgibbon and Alan Connolly in the first half and Shane Barrett after half-time, two of which Éibhear Quilligan saved. Connolly’s effort went over via the crossbar.

​When Patrick Horgan, who scored 2-10, landed a ’65 to put Cork seven points clear four minutes into the second half, it felt like it was only going one way.

All the energy among the 36,814 attendance was with the home support and it should have swept Cork along.

But their defensive frailties were once again cruelly exposed. This was a fourth successive championship defeat. It also brought to 12 the number of goals they have conceded in their last five championship games. They cannot continue to defend like this and hope to challenge. They scored 3-24 and still didn’t win. Unforgivable really.

Admittedly, two of Clare’s three goals came when Seán O’Donoghue had been off the field for a second yellow card after barging O’Donnell off the ball in the 53rd minute. He had picked up his first yellow at the end of the first half, one of 10 referee James Owens showed to Cork players.

O’Donoghue had just executed a superb covering tackle on Rodgers when a goal had looked certain. The need to do what he did next as he picked himself off the floor baffled everyone.

Cork manager Pat Ryan didn’t seek to offer a defence. “Unfortunately, you’re not going to win games if you’re going to have 14 men against 15 against a top-class side,” he said. “Our discipline probably let us down a bit. I don’t think we’re the dirtiest team in the world. It wasn’t a dirty game today. I just thought there were too many yellow cards.”

With O’Donoghue missing, Clare revelled in the extra space, with O’Donnell, David Reidy and Rodgers all profiting.

Rodgers got the first goal in the 43rd minute to halve a six-point gap after an O’Donnell pass not too dissimilar to what he laid on for Aidan McCarthy in Ennis.

For the second goal on 57 minutes, he took it on himself this time, swivelling on to his left to crash a shot past Patrick Collins after Diarmuid Ryan’s lung-bursting run up the left flank. Cork defenders were adrift and Clare were back in front, 2-20 to 1-20.

They built on it. David Fitzgerald had been subdued through the first half but came alive, burning Luke Meade before stepping inside Eoin Downey for a third goal on 63 minutes that he quickly followed up with a point to stretch the lead out to six points, 3-23 to 1-23.

To Cork’s credit, they scrambled well. Any doubt about Horgan’s value to this team was erased with his clever flick over Quilligan for his first goal just after half-time when Adam Hogan misjudged the flight of a delivery.

The power he generated for his second goal from a 20-metre free accentuated that value, closing the gap to three again.

But Ryan, who grew through the second half, and Rodgers nudged Clare further ahead, insulating them when Rob Downey struck a third Cork goal after Fitzgibbon had been blocked.

​Damien Cahalane had a late chance but didn’t hit it crisply and Rodgers, back defending, cleared Clare’s lines, with Aron Shanagher having a goal ruled out at the other end as they countered.

Cork had made six changes in personnel midweek in response to the Waterford defeat, but it was an attitude adjustment that brought the most obvious improvement, Ryan suggested.

“We didn’t win. That is the bottom line,” he said when asked if the overhaul had paid a dividend. “It was more the attitude of the players in the way we went out. We were more up to it. We took the game to Clare from day one.

“Down in Walsh Park last week, we let Waterford dictate the game. I thought we were dictating for an awful lot today.

“I thought the lads represented the Cork jersey way better than we did last week,” added Ryan.

They led by 0-14 to 0-12 at half-time, having been three down early on. When they ran at Cork, they hurt them.

Twice in the third quarter, Ciarán Joyce, much improved from the Waterford game, made significant ground with pace and control to tee up Shane Barrett, moves that led to scores.

The red card didn’t change it, but it was a catalyst for more Clare comfort down the home straight.

Clare have a three-week break and are back on track. Cork have Limerick next, no place to be when they’re defending as they are.

SCORERS – Clare: A McCarthy 0-10 (8f); M Rodgers 1-6 (0-1f, 0-1sl); D Fitzgerald, S O’Donnell 1-1 each; D Reidy 0-3; P Duggan, D Ryan 0-2 each; D McInerney 0-1. Cork: P Horgan 2-10 (1-7f, 2 ’65s); D Dalton 0-4 (3f); R Downey 1-0; S Harnedy 0-3; A Connolly, D Fitzgibbon 0-2 each; T O’Mahony, C Joyce, S Kingston 0-1 each.

CLARE: E Quilligan 7; R Hayes 6, C Cleary 7, A Hogan 8; D Ryan 8, J Conlon 7, D McInerney 6; C Malone 7, C Galvin 5; D Fitzgerald 7, D Reidy 8, P Duggan 8; A McCarthy 7, S O’Donnell 8, M Rodgers 9. Subs: S Morey 6 for Galvin (52), C Leen for McInerney (62), P Flanagan for Conlon (70), A Shanagher for McCarthy (70+4).

CORK: P Collins 5; N O’Leary 6, S O’Donoghue 6, E Downey 6; T O’Mahony 7, C Joyce 8, R Downey 7; E Twomey 5, D Fitzgibbon 7; D Dalton 7, S Barrett 6, S Harnedy 7; B Hayes 5, A Connolly 7, P Horgan 8. Subs: M Coleman 6 for Twomey (49), R O’Flynn 6 for Dalton (51), L Meade 6 for Harnedy (54), S Kingston 6 for Hayes (59), D Cahalane for O’Mahony (inj, 65).

REF: J Owens (Wexford).