CORK selector Brendan Coleman knew they would be able to mind the gap at the second time of asking — after tripping up first time around.
The Rebels stormed to Munster SHC glory against Limerick on penalties on June 7 — but had to wait until July 5 for their All-Ireland semi-final against Dublin.
Pat Ryan’s men had previously been undone when a three-week wait between games saw Limerick torch them 3-26 to 1-16 in the fourth round of the provincial series on May 18.
But there would be no rust showing after their second lengthy lay-off — as they annihilated the Sky Blues 7-26 to 2-21 to romp into Sunday’s final against Tipperary.
Coleman said: “We were expecting it. The four weeks was excellent. We referenced May 18 and how bad it was.
“There was learnings in the three-week gap in terms of what we could do better so we had that as a reference point really and we took that on.
“Week one after the Munster final was low-key and you could see that there was a significant effect on their energy levels, so we kind of came down for a week — and the three weeks from there were excellent.
“The first week, we were back in for a gym session and some guys were released to play with their clubs.
“We had reduced numbers and it was very little contact — just skills work, short and snappy — with the aim of getting the bodies right for the following week with a full panel. Then we went hammer and tongs for three weeks.”
And Coleman admits competition for places has never been higher as the Rebels chase their first title since 2005.
Robbie O’Flynn, Shane Kingston, Conor Lehane, Tommy O’Connell and Jack O’Connor were hungry when they came off the bench against the Dubs. No jersey is safe ahead of the showpiece.
He said: “Yes. It’s going to be tasty this week. I suppose we have plenty of internal games.
“The panel this year of 26 to 38, we must be highly complimentary of them.
“Their age profile, No 1, is fantastic. They’re really going at it and they’re biting.
“There are players biting that have got a look-in in the league and it’s a tough place to be and players can go both ways.
“You can go the other way and swing the lead a little bit and drag the mood down — but they’ve been fantastic.”
