Cork salvaged their season and blew the 2024 Munster Hurling Championship wide open with a two point victory at a balmy Supervalu Páirc ui Chaoimh on Saturday evening.
It was a spectacular contest with more ebbs and flows than the nearby River Lee. Cork blasted into life and brought an eight point lead into the break.
Limerick made the usual adjustments as Cork started to flag and reeled the Rebels in. They built a four point lead of their own.
However Cork rose from the dead in injury time to stage the unlikeliest of comebacks to win by two points.
The deciding of the game was a wild passage in the 73rd minute of the game. Ballybrown's Aidan O'Connor had just given what felt like an unassailable two point lead with a beautiful score.
However a quick puckout from Patrick Collins found sub Shane Kingston all alone on the left wing, near half way.
Kingston embarked on a heroic run where he slalomed past Cathal O'Neill and soloed over Diarmaid Byrnes, before being wrestled to the ground by Kyle Hayes with the goal in sight.
Ref Sean Stack gave Hayes a black card and awarded a penalty to Cork, which Patrick Horgan dispatched to give Cork one-point lead. An insurance point gave Cork a two-point victory and a lifeline in the 2024 Championship.
Horgan finished with 1-11 and showed no signs of stress or anxiety as he buried the penalty in the bottom left hand corner.
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A dramatic finish in the Munster GAA Hurling Senior Championship!@OfficialCorkGAA 3-28@LimerickCLG 3-26#GAANOW pic.twitter.com/kHXE2wLF2q— The GAA (@officialgaa) May 11, 2024
Patrick Horgan praised for urgency with winning Cork penalty
Speaking on analysis duty after the game on GAA GO, former Tipp hurler John 'Bubbles' O'Dwyer noticed some quick thinking from Hoggy in converting the penalty.
"That's not pressure for Patrick Horgan. It wouldn't have made a difference if that was in back yard or here in front on 40,000 people. It doesn't make a difference.
What was key there was the speed in which he got the free taken. The free was given. Kyle Hayes was off the pitch, and he had the ball ready to go straight away. It maybe took Nickie Quaid a bit off guard
But Hoggy's been doing that for years.
Kingston was brought down at 72.36.
Hoggy took the penalty at 73.13.
In all, less than 40 seconds elapsed between when Kingston was fouled and when Horgan fired home his penalty.
Horgan's quickfire approach certainly caught the live broadcast slightly off guard - the camera had just panned from Kyle Hayes reaching the sideline when Horgan began his motion, with co-commentator Seamus Hickey mid-sentence.
Nickie Quaid guessed right but had no chance.
Up next for Cork is a meeting with Tipp in Thurles next Sunday. We can only hope for similar fireworks.
