Cork believe goals win games but Limerick's sharpshooting can get the job done

Irish Times

2 days ago

The
Cork
hurlers have scored 19 more goals than their
Limerick
counterparts so far this year – proof if needed that not all journeys towards silverware follow the same route.
Pat Ryan's Rebels enter Saturday's
Munster SHC
final having bagged 27 goals over the course of the season – league and championship – while Limerick have managed just eight.
The Rebels have scored at least one goal in all 11 of their competitive outings in 2025, while Limerick have raised green flags in just five of their 10 outings.
Yet 50 per cent of Limerick's eight-goal haul was scored against Cork – one in the league and three in the group stages of the provincial championship.
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But if Cork have been dealing largely in the currency of goals, Limerick continue to profit from their long-range shooting, the Treaty County proving to be masters of outpointing the opposition.
John Kiely's men were the only one of the five teams in the Munster SHC to break the 100-point mark this term, raising 101 white flags.
Given their contrasting attacking weaponry, the defensive shapes of both teams will be telling on Saturday as to how each intend on stemming the other's scoring threat.
'From my experience, you'd always set up differently regarding playing a team that you know are predominantly goalscorers. You'd set up a different way if you know that they're going to be an outside and shooting team,' explains former Tipperary hurler Patrick 'Bonner' Maher.
'Your tactics would be justified by the team you're playing, generally. That's how we would have always approached it.
'I'm looking forward to both Cork and Limerick coming up against each other and just seeing those two different styles.'
Limerick's Shane O'Brien scores a goal against Galway in the NHL Division 1A game at the Gaelic Grounds. Photograph: James Lawlor/Inpho
Cork have had 10 different goalscorers with Brian Hayes topping the list on eight goals – five in the league and three in the championship. Hayes has also been directly involved in setting up as many goals as he has scored.
Limerick's goalscoring has been shared by four players in 2025 – Shane O'Brien (three), Aaron Gillane (two), Adam English (two) and Will O'Donoghue (one).
Cork really hit a goalscoring streak at the latter end of the league – netting 13 goals in their last three games, including the league final win over Tipp. That green-flag frenzy helped the Leesiders win a first Division One league title since 1998.
Goal-scoring is a factor Cork coach Donal O'Rourke spoke about at the launch of this year's Munster Championship.
'We'd done a lot of work on it. It's a big thing with us because we know with the style of player we have that we're going to create goal chances,' he stated.
'Pat really made it a priority. We did zone in on it and we've kind of borne the fruits a little bit over the last couple of games. But it's not something we want to take our eye off. We just need to keep being very clinical and execute the chances when they're presented to us.'
Generally, they have continued to do so in the games since – scoring two against Clare, four against Tipperary, one against Limerick and a brace against Waterford.
However, if Cork's inside line has been wreaking havoc this season then Limerick's much vaunted middle eight has continued to break the spirit of opponents with accurate long-range attacks.
Limerick had 11 different scorers when they beat Cork in the group stages last month. The midfield and half-forward line axis contributed 1-11 with Adam English, Gearóid Hegarty, Cian Lynch and Tom Morrissey all getting on the scoreboard.
Limerick's approach seems to be based on a target of manufacturing around 40 shots per game – confident that with such a number of efforts their long-range shooters can afford to drop some wide but still outscore the opposition. Results in recent years would suggest that's pretty sound logic.
Kilkenny's Martin Keoghan scores a goal against Offaly in the Leinster Championship third round fixture at Nowlan Park. Photograph: Ken Sutton/Inpho
When the sides met at the Gaelic Grounds last month, Limerick had 39 shots and Cork had 31. Limerick won that fixture pulling up.
That also just happens to be Limerick's most productive day this season in terms of goalscoring – Gillane netting two and English with the other.
'You can't take it away from Limerick either, if Limerick want to score goals they're well able to score goals too,' adds Maher.
'They can mix it both ways. As can Cork. Both teams have varying styles, that's a great thing to have in your armour when you're a team that can mix it.'
And the same is true of Sunday's Leinster SHC final. No team has scored more goals than Kilkenny during this year's provincial championships – Derek Lyng's side amassing 15 goals over the course of the round-robin stages.
Galway scored nine goals, with six of those coming against Antrim. Kilkenny scored at least one goal in all of their group games, while Galway failed to raise green flags in two matches.
However, Galway were the highest point-scoring team across the two provincial championships, the Tribesmen scoring 131 points. Kilkenny hit 113 points.
The four respective Munster and Leinster finalists have carved different scoring pathways to this stage of the season.
And provincial hurling final weekend is once again likely to demonstrate there remains more than one way to skin a cat.
Cork's goals in 2025
League
2 v Wexford; 1 v Limerick; 1 v Tipperary; 1 v Kilkenny; 6 v Clare; 4 v Galway; 3 v Tipp.
Total:
18
Championship
2 v Clare; 4 v Tipperary; 1 v Limerick; 2 v Waterford
Total:
9
Overall:
27
Limerick's goals in 2025
League
1 v Cork; 1 v Galway; 1 v Wexford
Total:
3
Championship
2 v Tipperary; 3 v Cork
Total:
5
Overall:
8