Brilliant Corofin put outclassed Cork rivals to the sword in All-Ireland final

IRELAND rugby’s ‘Grand Slam’ victory over England was undoubtedly the focal point of international sporting headlines on St. Patrick’s Day but, back on home soil, Corofin were borrowing a phrase from another sport in their ‘Slam Dunk’ win over Cork’s Nemo Rangers in the All-Ireland senior club football final at Croke Park.

Corofin’s demolition of the Munster champions on a 2-19 to 0-10 scoreline was as emphatic a result as you could get and it was somewhat ironic that the last team to win by such a large margin was Nemo Rangers themselves back in 1982. On that day, they crushed Garrymore of Mayo 6-11 to 1-8 but the shoe was on the other foot last Saturday.

By half-time, Corofin had raced into a 2-9 to 0-5 lead playing football that was out of this world and, indeed, there were times when the transition from defence to attack was so swift, seamless and weightless, it did appear as if they were defying gravity.

Gary Sice cut loose for Corofin’s first goal as early as the seventh minute before Michael Farragher crowned off a glorious move with their second on 19 minutes. Creative, energetic, sublime, this was the Galway champions at their very, very best.

Martin Farragher, who was wrongly brandished with a red card in the opening minute of their semi-final victory over Kildare’s Moorefield, would kick six points from play throughout the afternoon and he was duly recompensed for that injustice with the man of the match accolade.

If the gong hadn’t gone to the full-forward, it would more than likely still have ended up in the Farragher house as his brother Michael kicked 1-1 and also gave an exhibition of fielding, particularly in the first half.

They weren’t the only ones to cause damage. The influential Sice hit Nemo for 1-4, 1-2 from play, while outstanding trio Dylan Wall, Daithí Burke and Ian Burke rowed in with a couple of points apiece. All over the park, though, Corofin had Nemo at sixes and sevens.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.