All-Ireland SHC semi-final: Cork v Dublin, Croke Park, 5pm (Live, RTÉ & BBC NI)
Key Reads:
- Joe Canning: Most people think it’s Cork’s All-Ireland to lose and that suits Kilkenny just fine
- Nicky English: Faltering standard of this year’s championship brings Kilkenny into the frame
- Team focus: Niall Ó Ceallacháin has Dublin’s unlikely band of hurlers singing a fine tune
- Malachy Clerkin: It feels like a good time to point out that Cork might not win the All-Ireland
Don’t think the wind will be an issue. It seems to be blowing down towards the Hill but as Dublin goalie Seán Brennan practices his puck-outs in the warm-up, he’s easily landing them in the small arc in front of the Canal End goal.
Seán Moran sets the scene from the top floor of the Hogan Stand...
“Croke Park is filling up nicely before the first match of the All-Ireland hurling semi-finals weekend, bringing together favourites and Munster champions Cork and Dublin, who sensationally eliminated Limerick in the quarter-finals.
“The big question is whether Dublin can back up that extraordinary performance, achieved with only 14 men in the red-card absence of captain Chris Crummey, who is now suspended.
“The Cork crowd, a sizeable majority of an anticipated capacity attendance, erupts to welcome Pat Ryan’s team onto the field. There are no late changes.
“Dublin manager Niall Ó Ceallacháin makes one change to his team, bringing in quarter-final super sub, John Hetherton in place of Darragh Power. A goal and a goal assist in about 30 seconds, was the St Vincent’s full forward’s contribution two weeks ago.
“Ó Ceallacháin will be calculating that the potential impact off the bench will be outweighed by the trouble Hetherton might cause for Cork full back Eoin Downey.”
Both teams are out of the dressing rooms now and going through their warm-ups. Cork stayed inside a few minutes longer than Dublin. Huge roar for them. But the Dubs on the Hill are holding their own. Or making a decent fist of it anyway.
John Hetherton starts for Dublin instead of Darragh Power. Cork unchanged, as Pat Ryan said they’d be.
Cork: Patrick Collins; Niall O’Leary, Eoin Downey, Sean O’Donoghue; Ciarán Joyce, Rob Downey , Mark Coleman; Tim O’Mahony, Darragh Fitzgibbon; Diarmuid Healy, Shane Barrett, Declan Dalton; Patrick Horgan, Alan Connolly, Brian Hayes.
Subs: Brion Saunderson, Damien Cahalane, Ger Millerick, Tommy O’Connell, Ethan Twomey, Luke Meade, Brian Roche, Jack O’Connor, Shane Kingston, Robbie O’Flynn, Conor Lehane.
Dublin: Seán Brennan; John Bellew, Paddy Smyth, Conor McHugh; Paddy Doyle, Conor Burke, Andrew Dunphy; Conor Donohoe, Brian Hayes; Rian McBride, Fergal Whitely, John Hetherton; Seán Currie, Ronan Hayes, Cian O’Sullivan.
Subs: Eddie Gibbons, Donal Burke, Colin Currie, Paddy Dunleavy, Daire Gray, Darragh Power, AJ Murphy, David Lucey, Paul O’Dea, Diarmaid O’Dulaing, Conal Ó Riain.
Referee: Johnny Murphy (Limerick)
It’s fairly hot here today, so much so that there’s a member of the groundstaff with a hose spraying water along the sideline next to the Cusack Stand right now. Given the amount of players who were slipping and sliding all over the place during the football quarter-finals weekend, I’m not sure how wise that is. Amateur agronomist that I am...
The stadium is starting to fill up now. At a conservative guess, I’d say 80 per cent of the jerseys are red. This will surely be the biggest Cork crowd there has ever been at a match.
It’s a curious game to preview, this. On the face of it, Cork are worthy favourites and it will be a huge shock if there’s any result other than a win for Pat Ryan’s men. On the other, would it be as big a shock as the one Dublin have already pulled off against Limerick? Nowhere near. Dublin are fancied by no one but if they can reproduce the fight, skills and stickability they showed when they were down to 14 men against Limerick, they can make a real game of it.
Seán Moran’s big match preview is here.
[ Cork anxiously expectant as Dublin emerge from the shadowsOpens in new window ]
Welcome to the best weekend of the hurling year. Four teams left to decide the summer - Cork and Dublin today, Tipperary and Kilkenny tomorrow. We’ll keep you up to date with every puck, hit and miss right the way through it all.
Referee Johnny Murphy will throw the ball in for Dublin v Cork at five o’clock.
Here are the teams Dublin and Cork have announced for the game. They’re subject to change, obviously enough. that said, Pat Ryan made a point during the week of railing ever so slightly against the notion of dummy teams so we can be fairly sure that Cork will line out as is.
