Noel O'Leary urges Cork to focus fully on Limerick encounter 

FORMER Cork All-Ireland winning footballer Noel O’Leary says the Rebels will need to be tuned in this weekend as they open their championship campaign.

John Cleary’s side are heavy favourites to defeat Limerick on Sunday in the Munster SFC quarter-final at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh with throw-in at 2pm. The Leesiders have a spring in their step after a strong finish to the Allianz Division 2 football league after picking up seven points from the last four games after suffering defeats in the first three games.

“You wouldn’t have to be a rocket scientist to see that Cork have real momentum coming into this Limerick match,” says O’Leary.

“But, the way I would look at it, is that you would obviously have a lot of talk about Kerry on the horizon in the semi-final and I think that’s dangerous talk If I am being honest with you. I think Cork just need to focus on a performance against Limerick at the weekend. They need to build on the momentum that they have because they are playing great football at the moment. It’s all about a performance, a good consistent one against Limerick and the result will take care of itself.

“Cork have momentum, but you can’t have a false sense of security around that either. That’s why I am saying I genuinely feel that the full focus needs to be on this Limerick match. They are playing well, but there is still a bit of tweaking required and tidying up to do. Looking at the last league match against Armagh, they would have been disappointed with the two goals they conceded and they missed scores then at the other end of the pitch. There is room for improvement, but they have definitely upped the gears. But, one swallow doesn’t make a summer. They have to be careful regarding their focus ahead of the weekend.” 

The Cill na Martra club man has been impressed by the Leesiders bouncebackability after getting off to the worst possible start to the league with those defeats to Donegal, Louth and Cavan. They haven’t looked back since though, with the graph going up and up.

“It was the first win of the season against Fermanagh which has been the kickstart really,” O’Leary said.

“Any day you go up the north and come away with a win is a big achievement, it doesn’t matter if you're Cork, Kerry or Dublin. Going up north is always a very tough task. That was the catalyst for them to drive on. Confidence is everything, since that Fermanagh win. They have been really good in the wins over Kildare and Meath and the draw with Armagh. Defensively, Cork were being questioned prior to the Fermanagh match, but that confidence which comes with a victory is after solidifying the team.

“Just to touch on the Armagh game again the last day, I thought it was an ensured enough display against a very good opponent. A few things to work on, but certainly they have improved game on game.” 

It’s 12 years since Cork last won the provincial championship, and O’Leary, who won three Munster medals, hopes that long wait will come to an end sooner rather than later.

“I fully expect Cork to win on Sunday, but that’s based on a focused Cork performance. I think you have to be a bit tough on this Cork team in that regard. I expect them to put in a performance now. They were in transition with the last couple of years, but now I expect them to put in a strong display against Limerick.

“For the genuine Cork football fan, the Munster championship still has a huge bearing on people. It would be a huge achievement for the players to win a Munster medal. I know the structures have changed and you have certain people saying the provincial championships don’t matter anymore, I think they do. We would love to win a provincial title, it would mean a lot, and I hope it’s not too far away. 12 years is too long for Cork to be without a Munster championship.” O’Leary concluded.