Cork have big defensive decisions to make before facing prolific Dublin
will need to make a case for the defence if they are to progress to consecutive All-Ireland senior
hurling
finals.
While Cork's attacking prowess has been well highlighted over the course of the season, their defence will be challenged on Saturday with stopping one of the most prolific goalscoring teams left in the competition.
Dublin
have scored 18 goals in this year's championship – and having played seven games they are averaging 2.57 goals per match. Fellow semi-finalists Kilkenny have also scored 18 goals but they amassed that in six games at an average of three goals per outing.
Cork have scored 10 goals in five championship games – an average of two goals per match while Tipperary have raised 11 green flags in six games, an average of 1.8 goals per game.
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The Cork defence has only managed one clean sheet in terms of shutting out goals in this year's championship – their Munster round two victory over Tipperary.
But the Dublin defence has kept three clean sheets – Antrim, Galway and Limerick all failed to force a goal against the Dubs.
At the other end of the field Dublin already have five players with multiple goals to their name in the championship – Seán Currie (4), Cian O'Sullivan (3), Ronan Hayes (3), John Hetherton (3) and Fergal Whitely (2).
Cian O'Sullivan has scored three goals for Dublin in the championship so far. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho
With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Cork manager Pat Ryan recalls centre back Robert Downey, who is also team captain, and corner back Niall O'Leary to his starting team.
Both suffered injuries during the Munster round-robin series and failed to start the provincial decider against Limerick. They are both expected to be available for selection this weekend. Séamus Harnedy has been ruled out with a hamstring injury.
O'Leary had been an ever-present in the Cork defence throughout the season until he suffered a groin injury during the round-robin loss to Limerick in May.
O'Leary subsequently missed Cork's win over Waterford but he did manage to come off the bench late in the Munster final victory last month. The Castlelyons man has praised the work of defensive coach Wayne Sherlock with the squad.
'We're very lucky in the group we have with the background team as well, Wayne was obviously a legend in Cork playing in the full-back line, so we're very lucky as a group to have him.
'We've learned a lot from him over the last three years and I think we've taken a lot of learnings from last year as well.'
Cork's joint leading championship goalscorers are Patrick Horgan and Brian Hayes – who have both netted on three occasions. Both Cork and Dublin have scored at least one goal in all of their championship outings.
Dublin's last championship win over Cork was in the 1927 All-Ireland final, but it is the lessons from last year's All-Ireland final defeat to Clare that the Rebels are looking to learn from this season.
'I know the end result didn't go our way, but I think that's a huge thing for us to get to an All-Ireland final and actually be competitive,' says O'Leary.
'This is my seventh year on the panel now, it's been a long enough seven years, not a whole pile of success in the seven years either so it's been great now the last two years to be competitive.
'I suppose the only thing we look at going forward is that we want to be remembered as a team in Cork and, to be honest with you, to be remembered you have to be winning All-Irelands.'
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