Munster SFC Final – Kerry 2-15 Cork 3-12

Kerry and Cork finished level in the Munster Senior Football Championship Final on Sunday July 5th at Fitzgerald Stadium Killarney – Kerry 2-15 Cork 3-12 in front of an attendance of 35,651. The replay will take place on Saturday July 18th at 7pm in Fitzgerald Stadium Killarney.

Munster SFC Final: Kerry rescue draw in thriller against Cork

GAA Munster Senior Football Championship Final: Kerry 2-15 Cork 3-12

By Éamonn Murphy at Fitzgerald Stadium, Killarney for GAA.ie

Kerry survived a storming second-half performance from Cork to snatch a draw in the Munster football final in Killarney. Corner-back Fionn Fitzgerald curled over a booming equaliser deep into stoppage time after Colm O’Neill missed a 45 which would have given the Rebels their first victory in Fitzgerald Stadium in 20 years.

A brilliantly cool finish from raiding wing-back Barry O’Driscoll had put Brian Cuthbert’s side ahead after 62 minutes, 3-12 to 2-14. And after Cork survived a missed goal chance from sub Paul Geaney – with the subsequent 45 sent astray by James O’Donoghue – they looked on the verge of regaining the Munster crown for the first time since 2012.

Cork were superb for much of the second half, though a James O’Donoghue penalty after 53 minutes kept Kerry in contention. The Kingdom lost David Moran to a black card as the Rebels gained a firm grip in midfield where Alan O’Connor justified his recent comeback from retirement by lording midfield. A clever flicked goal from Donncha O’Connor sparked a run of scores as Cork raced into a lead 2-10 to 1-10 lead. Colm O’Neill (2), Barry O’Driscoll and Kevin O’Driscoll fired four points in a row.

Kingdom manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice introduced a raft of subs including Colm Cooper – to a predictably rapturous reception from the home faithful at a packed Fitzgerald Stadium – who curled a lovely point, but even when Kerry regained the advantage, 2-14 to 2-12 after scores from subs Geaney and Anthony Maher, Cork refused to wilt.

Then came Barry O’Driscoll’s goal and the late drama in what had been an enthralling joust. Brian Cuthbert’s charges were well set up from the off, and with the wind to their backs led 1-1 to no score after nine minutes. O’Neill’s goal was a superb team move, initiated by Eoin Cadogan’s interception. Mark Collins found Donncha O’Connor with a neat kick-pass and he teed up O’Neill to palm home.

However, Kerry’s first goal was a cruel blow to the Rebels, who had looked in control at that early stage with Paul Kerrigan operating efficiently as a sweeper. Rookie Stephen Cronin put Michael Shields under pressure with a risky handpass and the Cork captain was stripped of the ball, with Kieran Donaghy gleefully burying the chance.

It was nip and tuck across the first 25 minutes with the sides level 1-4 apiece but then Kerry switched to a man-to-man system they gained the upper hand, while the loss of Paul Kerrigan to a black card was keenly felt. Barry John Keane was tormenting Cork with his movement and neat shooting, while O’Donoghue became more prominent too.

Kerry struck five points in-a-row, though Barry O’Driscoll was denied a goal by a smart stop from Brendan Kealy in the middle of this sequence. Donncha O’Connor did clip over a point to make it 1-9 to 1-5 at half-time, and given Kerry would have the breeze and their bench was loaded with talent, it looked grim for Cork at that juncture. However, the Rebels refused to give up and ended up departing Killarney filled with regret at their fifth draw on enemy soil since 2002.

Scorers for Kerry: J O’Donoghue 1-2 (1-0 pen), B Sheehan 0-4 (0-3 f), BJ Keane 0-3 (0-1 f), K Donaghy 1-0, D Walsh, F Fitzgerald, P Geaney, A Maher, J Buckley, C Cooper 0-1 each.

Scorers for Cork: C O’Neill 1-6 (0-2 f, 0-1 45), D O’Connor 1-3 (0-2 f), Barry O’Driscoll 1-1, K O’Driscoll, P Kerrigan 0-1 each.

KERRY: B Kealy; F Fitzgerald, M Ó Sé, S Enright; K Young, P Crowley, J Lyne; D Moran, B Sheehan; S O’Brien, J Buckley, D Walsh; J O’Donoghue, K Donaghy (c), BJ Keane.
Subs: A Maher for Moran (black card 43), C Cooper for O’Brien (43), D O’Sullivan for Buckley (47), P Geaney for Keane (50), J Sherwood for Sheehan (60), P Murphy for Crowley (64).

CORK: K O’Halloran; S Cronin, E Cadogan, S Cronin; Brian O’Driscoll, M Shields, Barry O’Driscoll; A O’Connor, K O’Driscoll; P Kerrigan, M Collins, F Goold; C O’Neill, D O’Connor, B Hurley.
Subs: P Kelly for A O’Connor (temp 19-22), Kelly for Kerrigan (black card 23), Dorman for Cronin (58), R Deane for Goold (58), D Goulding for D O’Connor (61), C O’Driscoll for Hurley (66), J O’Sullivan for C O’Driscoll (70).

Referee: Padraig Hughes (Armagh)

Ticket Information

Adult Terrace: €25
Blue and Green Terrace: Adults Only
Red Terrace Family Area: Adults €25, Juveniles €5

Students & OAP’s can buy full price Adult tickets and receive concession of €10 at designated turnstiles on the day.

Stand tickets (€35) are being allocated to the three participating County Boards and Season Ticket holders

Click here to purchase tickets online

Visit the Munster GAA Ticketing Store Locator
to search for Centra / Supervalu outlets which will be selling tickets for this game.

Fitzgerald Stadium Match Day Information Entry to areas of the ground through assigned stiles only. #GAA pic.twitter.com/1ScgA4JmrC

— Fitzgerald Stadium (@fitzgeraldstad) June 26, 2015

Team News

The Kerry team for The Munster Final is announced: http://t.co/JiwxIVCw3F

— Kerry GAA (@Kerry_Official) July 2, 2015

The Kerry team, captained by Kieran Donaghy is as follows:
1. Brendan Kealy Kilcummin
2. Fionn Fitzgerald Dr Crokes
3. Marc Ó Sé An Ghaeltacht
4. Shane Enright Tarbert
5. Jonathan Lyne Killarney Legion
6. Peter Crowley Laune Rangers
7. Killian Young Renard
8. David Moran Kerins O’Rahillys
9. Bryan Sheehan St Marys
10. Stephen O’Brien Kenmare
11. Johnny Buckley Dr Crokes
12. Donnchadh Walsh Cromane
13. Barry John Keane Kerins O’Rahillys
14. Kieran Donaghy (C) Austin Stacks
15. James O’Donoghue Killarney Legion
Fir Ionaid
16. Brian Kelly Killarney Legion
17. Colm Cooper Dr Crokes
18. Anthony Maher Duagh
19. Paul Geaney Dingle
20. Mark Griffin St Michaels/Foilmore
21. Michael Geaney Dingle
22. Aidan O’Mahony Rathmore
23. Darran O’Sullivan Glenbeigh-Glencar
24. Tommy Walsh Kerins O’Rahillys
25. Jack Sherwood Firies
26. Paul Murphy Rathmore

@OfficialCorkGAA Senior Football Team v Kerry named http://t.co/qUDRex2Ncs pic.twitter.com/nWD3YNEn1a

— Cork GAA (@OfficialCorkGAA) July 2, 2015

Cork Senior Football

1. Ken O’Halloran (Bishopstown)
2. Michael Shields (St. Finbarr’s) Capt.
3. Eoin Cadogan (Douglas)
4. James Loughrey (Mallow)
5. Barry O’Driscoll (Nemo Rangers)
6. Brian O’Driscoll (Tadhg MacCarthaigh)
7. Stephen Cronin (Nemo Rangers)
8. Alan O’Connor (St. Colum’s)
9. Fintan Goold (Macroom)
10. Paul Kerrigan (Nemo Rangers)
11. Donncha O’Connor (Ballydesmond)
12. Kevin O’Driscoll (Tadhg MacCarthaigh)
13. Colm O’Neill (Ballyclough)
14. Mark Collins (Castlehaven)
15. Brian Hurley (Castlehaven)

Subs:

16. Paddy O’Shea (St. Vincent’s)
17. Jamie O’Sullivan (Bishopstown)
18. Noel Galvin (Ballincollig)
19. Conor Dorman (Bishopstown)
20. Tomás Clancy (Fermoy)
21. Ruairi Deane (Bantry Blues)
22. Patrick Kelly (Ballincollig)
23. John Hayes (Carbery Rangers)
24. Colm O’Driscoll (Tadhg MacCarthaigh)
25. Daniel Goulding (Éire Óg)
26. Donal Óg Hodnett (O’Donovan Rossa)

Kerry v Cork
Past Munster Senior Football Championship Meetings

Munster Senior Football Championship
Kerry vs. Cork Past Meetings Breakdown

Note – All-Ireland Championship matches between Kerry and Cork are not included
These are Munster Championship stats only

Useful Information

In the last 3 Munster championship meetings between Cork and Kerry at Fitzgerald Stadium, Kerry won the 2011 and 2013 finals and drew the 2010 semi-final.

Cork’s last championship victory over Kerry in Killarney was the 1995 Munster Final on a scoreline of Cork 0-15 Kerry 1-9.

Kerry have never beaten Cork in the Munster Senior Football Championship at a neutral venue (it happened 3 times!). Cork have never beaten Kerry in the All-Ireland Championship at Croke Park.

“Points win games”!! – Or so you would think looking at the recent record of Cork and Kerry. Neither County has recorded more than 1 goal in Munster Senior Football Championship meetings since the 2000 Munster Semi-Final which Kerry won by 2-15 to 1-13. During the 16 subsequent Munster Championship matches between the counties, they have combined to score a total of just 14 goals between them.

The highest score by an individual team in a Cork vs. Kerry Munster Senior Football Championship match was the 1976 Munster Final replay at Pairc Ui Chaoimh which Kerry won by 3-20 to 2-19.

The highest margin of victory between the teams was in the first round match in 1937 played at Killarney with Kerry winning by 6-7 to 0-4 – a margin of 21 points.

In the 1890 Munster Senior Football Final, Laune Rangers (Kerry) and Midleton (Cork) were the finalists.   The game was 57 minutes old, with the sides scoreless, when the ball burst and as there was no replacement ball the game could not continue and was abandoned.

In the 1893 Final, Laune Rangers (Kerry) and Dromtarriffe (Cork) were fixed on two occasions to play this final in Millstreet but the Kerry side did not travel. The game was fixed for a third time in Mallow but there was still no show from the Kerry side and Cork received a walkover.

Since 2000, Kerry have drawn as many matches in the Munster Senior Football Championship than they have lost, 5 draws (4 v Cork & 1 v Limerick) as compared to 5 defeats (all v Cork) in 41 matches played.

The average number of scores per game in the Munster Senior Football championship since 2008:

2008 – 21 scores per game; 2009 – 24; 2010 – 28; 2011 – 33; 2012 – 27; 2013 – 30.8, 2014 – 28.6; 2015 so far: 29.

The referee for the final is Pádraig Hughes from Armagh. Both semi-final referees also came from Ulster – Joe McQuillan (Cavan) for Clare v Cork and Ciaran Branagan (Down) for Kerry v Tipperary. Two Munster referees were in charge of the Ulster semi-finals – Páraig O’Sullivan (Kerry) for Monaghan v Fermanagh and Rory Hickey (Clare) for Donegal v Derry.

Scorers Munster SFC 2015

Michael Quinlivan (Tipperary )         3-3 (0-1f)

Donncha O’Connor (Cork)               1-5 (1-0 penalty, 0-3f)

Cathal O’Connor (Clare)                  1-3 (0-2 45)

Gary Brennan (Clare)                       0-6 (0-2f)

Steven O’Brien (Tipperary)              0-6

Colm O’Nell (Cork)                           0-5

Paul Geaney (Kerry)                                    1-2

Bryan Sheehan (Kerry)                    0-5 (0-3f)

Conor Sweeney (Tipperary)             0-5 (0-4f)

Barry John Keane (Kerry)                1-1

Ian Ryan (Limerick)                          0-4 (0-2f)

Brian Fox (Tipperary)                       0-4

Brian Scanlan (Limerick)                  0-3 (0-1f, 0-2 45)

Colm Cooper (Kerry)                        0-3 (0-1f)

Philip Austin (Tipperary)                   0-3

Eoin Cleary (Clare)                           0-2

Rory Donnelly (Clare)                      0-2

Cathal McInerney (Clare)                 0-2 (0-1f)

Jamie Malone (Clare)                       0-2

Mark Collins (Cork)                          0-2

John Hayes (Cork)                           0-2 (0-1f)

Paul Kerrigan (Cork)                        0-2

Brian O’Driscoll (Cork)                     0-2

Peter Nash (Limerick)                      0-2

George Hannigan (Tipperary)          0-2

Ger Mulhaire (Tipperary)                  0-2

Jason Lonergan (Tipperary)             0-2

Michael O’Halloran (Waterford)       0-2

JJ Hutchinson (Waterford)               0-2 (0-2f)

Paraic Collins (Clare)                       0-1

Shane Brennan (Clare)                    0-1

Pat Burke (Clare)                             0-1

Sean Collins (Clare)                         0-1

Davy O’Halloran (Clare)                   0-1

Dean Ryan (Clare)                           0-1

Fintan Goold (Cork)                          0-1

Brian Hurley (Cork)                          0-1

Iain Corbett (Limerick)                      0-1

Robert Browne (Limerick)                0-1

Stephen Cahill (Limerick)                 0-1

Cian Sheehan (Limerick)                 0-1

Michael Geaney (Kerry)                   0-1

Anthony Maher (Kerry )                   0-1

Stephen O’Brien (Kerry)                   0-1

Peter Acheson (Tipperary)               0-1

Barry Grogan (Tipperary)                 0-1 (0-1f)

Seamus Kennedy (Tipperary)          0-1

Kevin O’Halloran (Tipperary)           0-1 (0-1 45)

Colin O’Riordan (Tipperary)             0-1

Shane Briggs (Waterford)                0-1

Munster GAA FOOTBALL Senior Championship Roll Of Honour

Kerry (76) – 1892, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1919, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1944, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1950, 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1991, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014

Cork (37) – 1890, 1891, 1893, 1894, 1897, 1899, 1901, 1906, 1907, 1911, 1916, 1928, 1943, 1945, 1949, 1952, 1956, 1957, 1966, 1967, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1983, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2012

Tipperary (9) – 1888, 1889, 1895, 1900, 1902, 1918, 1920, 1922, 1935

Clare (2) – 1917, 1992

Waterford (1) – 1898

Limerick (1) – 1896

Munster GAA FOOTBALL Senior Championship – List of Winning Teams

Visit the Munster GAA web site History section to view the complete list of each winning team since the competition began 1888 – https://munster.gaa.ie/history/sf_teams/

Munster Senior FOOTBALL Cup

No Name – Presented by Munster Council in 1928

All Ireland GAA FOOTBALL Senior Championship

In the Senior Football All Ireland Roll of Honour, Kerry are top with 37, 15 ahead of the next county – Dublin. Cork are 4^th in the roll of honour with 7 titles. Tipperary have won 4 All-Ireland’s, their last in 1920 while Limerick won the first ever All-Ireland Senior Football Championship played in 1887 and also won the All-Ireland in 1896.

Match Programme

Check out the 72 page souvenir match programme for Sunday’s Munster Senior and Minor Football Finals.