Cork v Limerick: Losing won't be terminal - but it will demand a response

Whoever wins this evening’s Munster SHC will naturally be installed as favourites for the All-Ireland but, of course, all will not be lost for the defeated side.

Clare showed last year that provincial final defeat is not necessarily a bar to going on to win the Liam MacCarthy Cup and it’s notable that, when asked what he has taken from Limerick, Cork manager Pat Ryan cited their ability to lose with dignity and bounce backs.

“I think what John [Kiely, Limerick manager] and Paul [Kinnerk, coach] have done is they’ve created a situation where their players play all the time,” he said.

“Their effort is brilliant, they represent the jersey fantastically all the time.

“I don’t know the Limerick lads that well, I wouldn’t know them at all, but what I will say is, after we beat them last year in the semi-final, how humble they were, how genuine they were on the field afterwards wishing us the best of luck.

“Sometimes, when a team are winning, you get jealous, but I didn’t get that feeling from those guys at the time.

“And even the last day, they were magnanimous, they don’t rub your noses in it, they’re not talking behind your back, not making comments. They’re really good winners and they’ve won an awful lot and that day they did lose, I thought they were brilliant and their character was excellent.

“You don’t win what they’ve won and not have pride in performance and not be disappointed in the fact that they were beaten. That would always be the case.

“We knew they would come back in 2025 with a revenge mission and that’s where they’re at. It’s up to ourselves and every other team to see if we can step forward and man up to it.”

Kiely struck a similar tone when he spoke to the media.

“There's no doubt that for us a big piece of this season has been about change,” he said. “

“We've had a lot of players come into the group, a lot of people in our backroom team have come into the group and they've added huge energy, huge drive and freshness into the group and we needed that.

“So we've embraced the change, we've embraced the energy, we've had our challenges, we keep responding and losing in sport is an intricate part of it.

“You have to be able to lose as well as to win and, in order to win, you need to probably be able to lose. Our response to anything that happens to us defines us.

“So far, I can only acknowledge the response the players have given and hope that we can them in carrying that forward, that's all.

“For us, the seventh of June really in our calendar year and our focus is most certainly on trying to be the best that we can be, because we know, if you're that bit off, it hurts terribly.”

Someone will be celebrating this evening and someone will be hurting – but it’s a hurt that can generate a response.”