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The cork launch panel will be radically reorganized for 2021.
Anthony Nash’s retirement announcement on Sunday was followed by news that Conor Lehane, Aidan Walsh and Christopher Joyce will not be on the team next season.
Lehane and Joyce, both 28, started Munster’s semi-final loss to Waterford but were knocked out for the playoffs against Dublin and Tipp, while Walsh, 31, in January, only made fleeting appearances from the bench this winter. .
Tough decisions were inevitable on the part of Kieran Kingston and his selectors, entering the second season of his three-year tenure. Bill Cooper and Eoin Cadogan are in their 30s, but they could stay on board to offer experience and leadership to the team alongside front-unit mainstays Patrick Horgan and Seamus Harnedy.
Still, there will be a youthful glow in the 2021 group. Sean O’Leary Hayes (21) and Daire Connery (20) received their championship debut recently, with Shane Barrett and Brian Turnbull, 19, making cameos from the Bank.
Declan Dalton and Jack O’Connor were relied on to lead the charge in the backdoor games in November, while Seán Twomey and Ger Millerick are poised for more chances, having been auditioned by former manager John Meyler, but suffered injuries this year.
Blackrock’s Alan Connolly, still under 20, Tadhg Deasy and Daniel Meaney were added to Cork’s extended panel after the county’s final success, but they didn’t get a chance to make a good impression in such a short time.
The Cork minors and U-20s have Munster semi-finals against Limerick this Saturday, where a pair of victories would be a tonic for hurling Leeside after such a disappointing senior campaign.
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