Cork and Mayo seek to break through quarter-final ceiling

For John Cleary's first two years in charge of the Cork footballers, the quarter-final stage was the end of the road.

In 2022 - Cleary was there in an interim basis after Keith Ricken stepped aside for health reasons before being appointed full-time later that year – the Rebels couldn’t handle Dublin’s pace and power and finished 11 points adrift.

Twelve month later and Derry’s stranglehold on the game was evident from the off. Cork, having squeezed past Roscommon by the bare minimum a week previous, never got to grips with the suffocating challenge from the Oak Leaf county.

The record books show a four-point defeat – back when a four-point lead was significant - but the reality was Derry never looked in danger of losing. The general consensus was that while the Rebels were a top-eight side, but there was some ground to be made up to reach a first semi-final since 2012.

Could they kick on and bridge the gap to the elite?

In that context, successive preliminary quarter-final losses – to Louth and Dublin respectively – reshaped expectations under Cleary’s watch.

A promising spring however – a return to the top-flight for the first time in a decade – was followed by a meek Munster final display in Killarney.

A barnstorming second-half against Meath was a welcome tonic, but few gave the Leesiders a real chance of turning over a Donegal side on their home patch, all the more so given how Jim McGuinness’ side went to Fitzgerald Stadium 13 days after Cork and simply demolished the hosts.

A forgettable first-half in Ballybofey sparked into life in the final 20 minutes with the Rebels sniffing a first win at the venue since 1998. Steven Sherlock has been shouldering scoring responsibility, particularly from outside the arc, but on the day was ably assisted by Luke Fahy and the increasingly prominent Tommy Walsh at centre-back.

The progress is along expected lines for some.

Back in March, 2010 All-Ireland winner Patrick Kelly, on the Cork side that last contested a semi-final 14 years ago, assessed the football landscape in his Irish Examiner column. The Ballincollig man had holders Kerry and league champions Donegal out in front, with Galway and Armagh just behind.

"For the first time in over a decade, I am confident to now place Cork on the next rung of the ladder; teams who are all capable of beating each other but unlikely to have enough to go all the way," he wrote.

Facing the experienced Cleary is Andy Moran, the Ballaghaderreen man navigating through some choppy Connacht waters to reach one of their pre-season targets; a return to Croke Park.

He too is looking to break through the quarter-final ceiling, with Mayo’s last appearance at the penultimate stage coming five years ago en route to an All-Ireland final defeat at the hands of Tyrone.

Kevin McStay couldn't advance the team any further despite early positive signs, and twice failed to reach the last eight. The enthusiasm for Moran’s appointment seemed to be borne out of as much frustration over the stagnation of Mayo’s All-Ireland credentials as the welcoming home of their famous son (below) after serving his time outside the county.

The league campaign, where a more fluent attack and a greater two-point scoring threat, increased hope, while Kobe McDonald has somehow managed to make the hype seem somewhat understated.

Mayo's bruising defeat at the hands of Roscommon forced Moran into something of a rethink, making five changes and handing out three championship debutants when they got back on the horse away to Monaghan.

Moran has not shied away from big calls, with former team-mates Rob Hennelly and Aidan O’Shea among those to fall out of the starting XV. When you contrast the side picked against Roscommon versus the one that started against Meath last time out, his ruthless streak is evident.

Jack Livingston is now firmly in control of the No 1 jersey. Rory Brickenden hasn’t featured since, Enda Hession has been pushed into the half-back line and Eoin McGreal has slotted in well at corner-back.

David McBrien looks more comfortable with six on his back rather than eight, while Conor Loftus’ natural attacking instincts have been accommodated further up the pitch.

Jordan Flynn has complemented Jack Carney well in the middle of the pitch while a full-forward line consisting of Darragh Beirne, Ryan O’Donoghue and Kobe McDonald – with 1-07 from play in his last two games - would test even the meanest of defences.

Cork will head for Jones Road with a pep in their step.

With the hurling bandwagon showing so signs of slowing down and the minor footballers into an All-Ireland final, Cleary has referenced this week that there is more of a buzz around the county, something the football fraternity have often struggled to tap into.

Midfielder Colm O’Callaghan returns having served his suspension, while livewire attacker Dara Sheedy "should be okay" according to his manager after returning to action against Donegal. Despite only making his debut in January, the Cork attacking unit has far greater potency when the Bantry Blues man is included.

Matty Taylor remains the only long-term absentee, though Fahy’s performances from wing-back have meant Cork are certainly not in a weaker position.

Cork have also changed their goalkeeper, with Patrick Doyle coming in between the sticks for the Munster final and keeping hold of the jersey. His pinpoint accuracy and ability to go short seems to have trumped Micheál Aodh Martin's shot-stopping and strength under the high ball.

Full-back Daniel O’Mahony is in the All-Star nomination conversations, while Cork’s half-back line has been an attacking weapon all season, with Brian O’Driscoll, Tommy Walsh and Luke Fahy keen to get forward at every opportunity.

Midfield has been a strong launchpad for some time, while Steven Sherlock is enjoying a new lease of life since his return to the fold.

Today marks the 14th occasion the sides have crossed paths in the championship, with Cork leading the head-to-head 8-5.

The Rebels emerged victorious in their first three championship meetings in the early part of the century, but after Mayo came good in the 1916 All-Ireland semi-final replay – they would lose the decider that December to Wexford, a game that got the go-ahead despite overnight frost at Croke Park – it would be 63 years before they met again.

Cork claimed Sam Maguire for just the fifth time in 1989 in what was considered one of the better games of its era. It was undoubtedly something of a sliding doors moment.

Billy Morgan’s side avoided the indignity of losing three finals on the spin and would successfully defend their title, while on the flip side, Mayo’s first final appearance since their 1951 victory would start the sequence of 11 All-Ireland final defeats.

Cork’s All-Ireland final defeats in 1993 and 1999 were preceded by downing the Green and Red at the penultimate stage, romping home 5-15 to 0-10 in the former.

Mayo’s victory in the 2011 All-Ireland quarter-final was a building block in the James Horan project, his side dumping out the All-Ireland champions while establishing themselves as a coming force.

In 2014 and 2017 they came out the right side of one-point games, with the most recent clash the 2023 round-robin clash where the Leesiders blitzed their opponents for 1-06 without reply to secure a home preliminary quarter-final.

The prize today is a place among the last four. Only one ceiling will be broken.

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