Originally posted by Banner1995:
fairly honest from Ger and in the full interview he stressed that the bigger picture of hurling needs a strong Cork. I wasnt in ennis for the game, but by all accounts Cork were atrocious, which is sad to see. Far from me to tell Cork how to coach or promote hurling, but does appear that they have taken their eye off the ball. However, things can change quickly and there maybe a group of lads at 13/14 that could come thru very quickly. Clares underage scene was brutal for well over 15 years but suddenly we have had 2 groups of very talented hurlers, the 08-10 u21s and the last 2 minor teams so if clare can produce those types of teams, no reason Cork cant.

Originally posted by theface2010:
Lads have things really slipped that badly in Cork? I think it's over 10 years for a Minor or U-21 which is unheard of for Cork yet the senior team have won 3 AI's in that time so lack of underage success hasn't really hindered the senior team yet although the 98/99 teams backboned the 04/05 teams. There seems to be a decent amount of younger players coming through like Lehane and Cadogan who had no underage success. Is there going to be a shortage of quality senior players over the coming years or is just that the management of the underage teams is so poor? Some of the stories about the current minor manager would suggest that it is the latter.

Originally posted by tv1:
Loughnane going soft again,the last time he felt sorry for someone it cost Clare an all ireland.Can you imagine the langers feeling sorry for Clare after giving them a hiding?Get a grip Ger.

Originally posted by mochuda:
From today's Examiner...
Loughnane: Cork minor standard at very low ebb
By Ewan MacKenna On Thursday night, as Ger Loughnane left Cusack Park following Clare’s easy win over Cork in the Munster minor championship, one would presume the result would be a source of satisfaction. But Loughnane saw the bigger picture and it was the performance of the visitors that caused the overriding emotion and left him more worried about the state of the game than he has been for a long time. "The standard of the Cork minors, I couldn’t believe they would ever sink so low," Loughnane said. "I didn’t think it was possible for them to be as bad. Clare don’t propose to have a great minor team but they are honest. Cork were just deplorable and people coming out were just stunned Cork hurling could have descended to that level. "If Jimmy Barry-Murphy is to get more players into the panel, which he needs to do to make them a championship-winning team, where is he going to get them? And if Cork are not a force in hurling, then the sport really suffers. "Clare, Galway, Limerick and Waterford have done huge underage work, Wexford have started it too, and you have to do that. "You just wonder are Cork doing it at the same level. It’s worrying for them and the game." But as Loughnane looked ahead to the summer at the launch of The Sunday Game, where Eddie Brennan and Martin McHugh were announced as new analysts, it wasn’t just Cork that were a cause for concern, nor was last week’s league final the reason for his frank assessment of hurling right now. Instead Loughnane thought the long-term views taken by so many teams would make for a predictable and, by extension, a disappointing hurling championship. "I think the problem is that so many teams are just building for the future. They’ve given up on beating Kilkenny, especially this year and maybe even next year. You take Clare, Waterford, Wexford, Offaly, Galway, maybe even Cork. "They are all thinking down the line and there is always the danger that people will excuse performances. The future is now. "If you are playing a championship game, that’s what matters, you can’t look beyond that and you make the most of now." There were other concerns for Loughnane, not least refereeing. While he refuted the claim that referees favour any county, he highlighted the inconsistencies that exist, not just from referee to referee, but within the one game. He talked about Dickie Murphy being the best whistler he’d come across because he used common sense, but that is now lacking. And there was one final problem he wanted to address too. "I was always in favour of the provincial championship because it meant so much to me growing up, as a player and then as a manager. "The fact you win a provincial championship and are in an All-Ireland semi-final is a huge incentive but I’d love to see the provincial championships get stronger. I don’t see it though and as a result I see in a short time, certainly five years, it’ll be dismantled. When you see Kilkenny favouring a more open draw, and they are a traditional county, then that’s it." However, despite what some would describe as negativity and others might call realism, just seeing Loughnane on set in Donnybrook was the lasting image of the morning. Under a year ago, the Feakle native was having treatment for leukaemia, however the extent of his recovery was only truly visible when seeing Loughnane bound around the studio. "It’s great to be back," he enthused. "I followed the championship the whole time last year, really closely. When I was in hospital I watched all the games on television and read up on all the games in the papers. I just got on with it, took the treatment and even though you’d be weak, I found the GAA season was a great distraction. It’s great to be back."

Originally posted by carryharry:
Easy now Tomas, just cause Ger has taken your handy gig off ya!

Originally posted by theface2010:
Lads have things really slipped that badly in Cork? I think it's over 10 years for a Minor or U-21 which is unheard of for Cork yet the senior team have won 3 AI's in that time so lack of underage success hasn't really hindered the senior team yet although the 98/99 teams backboned the 04/05 teams. There seems to be a decent amount of younger players coming through like Lehane and Cadogan who had no underage success. Is there going to be a shortage of quality senior players over the coming years or is just that the management of the underage teams is so poor? Some of the stories about the current minor manager would suggest that it is the latter.

Originally posted by seanie:
the 1999 win was built on the u21 winners like cusack, sully, sherlock, sean og, timmy mac, mickey o connell, neil ronan, joe deane, ben o connor - so there is a huge link there.
the 04/05 winners had all these fellas plau minor winners in 2001 including tom kenny, ronan curran, niall maccarhty, brian murphy so again a huge correlation.
The set up in cork at underage is poisonous - fellas with no relation to underage hurling getting onto committees, money cutbacks for 'so called' development squads which have poor attendance levels as they are on when other sports are played such as soccer & rugby etc
Cadogan is a member of the last good u21 team we had in 2007, while lehane is simply a diamond and a credit to midleton gaa club.
The problem is huge, with many clubs struggling to field teams in the city as the same time as the local soccer leagues, while ask yourself when was the las t time a cork school did anything at harty level?