{"id":510624,"date":"2026-06-21T05:03:28","date_gmt":"2026-06-21T05:03:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/510624\/"},"modified":"2026-06-21T05:03:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-21T05:03:28","slug":"i-love-the-bones-of-these-fellas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/510624\/","title":{"rendered":"‘I love the bones of these fellas’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Cork minors are back on the biggest stage.<\/p>\n

For the first time since 2019, the Rebels will contest the Electric Ireland All-Ireland MFC final after an outstanding 2-19 to 2-8 victory over Derry at Parnell Park on Saturday evening.<\/p>\n

It was a performance built on composure, character and a superb second-half surge \u2014 one that left manager Keith Ricken both proud and deeply impressed with the maturity of his group.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Once they settled, they controlled the middle third, dominated the breaks and played with a clarity that Derry simply couldn\u2019t match.<\/p>\n

Ricken, speaking afterwards, said the victory came from within the dressing room as much as from the sideline.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were delighted with the second-half performance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I was delighted with their attitude in the first half too. They did a lot of good things, but there were certain things we said we wouldn\u2019t do \u2014 and for 15 or 20 minutes we almost did the opposite. We left them right down the middle like Moses going across the sea.<\/p>\n

\"CorkCork minor football manager Keith Ricken. Picture: Laszlo Geczo\/INPHO<\/p>\n

\u201cWe gave them the kick-outs and we shouldn\u2019t have been giving them the kick-outs. We always have a chat before we go off the field. There\u2019s no need for me to give a big team talk. They know themselves. They had a chat among themselves. We had a small chat, but there was no shouting or roaring. Nothing like that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ricken\u2019s affection for this group is very obvious indeed. He had so much praise for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love the bones of these fellas,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot because they\u2019re winning matches, but because they go to solve their problems and they want to take ownership of it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“People talk about the snowflake generation \u2014 these fellas aren\u2019t that. In 15 or 20 years\u2019 time I\u2019d love to see what they\u2019re doing. They\u2019ll be good leaders in whatever they go into.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cork\u2019s depth was tested again with another defensive injury, as Aaron O\u2019Sullivan limped off \u2014 their fourth in recent weeks \u2014 but the adaptability of the squad shone through, and substitutes made a real impact, including Alex O’Herlihy, who netted a goal, and Kevin O\u2019Donovan, who hit 0-2.<\/p>\n

Tom Whooley\u2019s explosive second-half goal was a turning point, arriving at a moment when Cork were beginning to squeeze the life out of the contest.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was absolutely crucial,\u201d Ricken states.<\/p>\n

\"DerryDerry goalkeeper Michael Doherty makes a save against Cork. Picture: Sam Barnes\/Sportsfile<\/p>\n

\u201cThat explosive nature of Tom \u2014 it\u2019s vital to have a player like that. It was another strong collective display by us.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve put in some great performances this year against Clare, Waterford, Kerry, Meath \u2014 flashes all the time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“But when the reverberation hits the fan and you\u2019re in an All-Ireland semi-final, that\u2019s the one people remember. In the final you have to try to do it all again. It starts afresh.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The win also continues a remarkable week for Cork football, following the seniors\u2019 superb All-Ireland Round 2A victory over Donegal seven days earlier. Ricken sees the momentum as part of a wider story of commitment across all county squads.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe amount of work that goes into Cork football is second to none. I\u2019m very proud to be involved in it, and to work alongside guys who give their heart and soul to it \u2014 seniors, U20s, minors, U16s, all of them. The commitment is unquestionable.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we don\u2019t win the All-Ireland, if the seniors don\u2019t win the All-Ireland, we\u2019re getting an awful lot out of this year anyway because of the work that\u2019s going in. Days like this make it enjoyable.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cork now turn their attention to Tyrone, who await in the decider in two weeks. The last time Cork won the All-Ireland minor football title was back in 2019.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Cork minors are back on the biggest stage. For the first time since 2019, the Rebels will…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":510625,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[169823,1964,42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-510624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-echo-instagram","tag-cork-gaa","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/510624","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=510624"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/510624\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/510625"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=510624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=510624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=510624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}