Wayne Sherlock should’ve been lining up with Cork’s jubilee team at Croke Park on Sunday and sharing old memories of their 1999 All-Ireland breakthrough.
Instead, he’ll be in the dressing room preparing the current Rebel crop to make some new memories by creating their own slice of history.
The corner-back pocketed three Celtic crosses in his playing days, including the 2005 final which marked Cork’s last triumph.
For Sherlock, the length of the title drought never changed the county’s attitude.
“The reason anyone plays senior for Cork is to win an All-Ireland. Whether you haven’t won one in 19 years or two years, the ambition is to win an All-Ireland,” he says.
“It’s not about free gear or claps on the back. Winning the All-Ireland is the aim above all other aims. And I think this team is really starting to believe in their ability to do that.
“Hopefully, they’ll put in a performance against Clare that deserves an All-Ireland. But we’re all on the same wavelength.
“Pat (Ryan) has said from the start that this team needs to win something and we’re there to try and facilitate that.”
Sherlock reckons Clare will be happier to see Cork marching alongside them in the parade rather than a Limerick side chasing their fifth title in a row.
“Similar to Brian Lohan’s day, this is a Clare team that just keeps going and going. They’re the team that has come closest to Limerick, who are the best team ever to play the game.
“And I’d say he’s probably happy that Cork are in the final – let’s call a spade a spade.
“They’ve struggled to beat Limerick. We’ve beaten them and he probably feels that there’s a chance for them to go on and win it now.
“But if we bring our A game, we feel that we have a great chance as well.”
Clare’s recent record against Cork will give them little to fear, with four wins in their last five encounters.
It was a similar story in ‘99. Prior to that Munster final, Clare had knocked out Cork in their previous four meetings.
“I wasn’t involved in ‘98 but Cork got a fair hammering off Clare,” Sherlock recalls.
“I suppose it was similar to how it’s been with the present Cork team, with people questioning if we were able for it physically.
“We were a young team in ‘99 and (Mark) Landers called us in and showed us a few clips. The message was that we weren’t going to let it happen two years in a row.
“Even though I wasn’t there in ‘98, there was great motivation in seeing how Clare had bullied us and the way they took over that game.
“It definitely triggered something in that young group going into the game and we went out and won the Munster final after it.”
Clare have the Hurler of the Year front-runner in Shane O’Donnell for Cork to contend with. His rotation between the full- and half-forward lines is a complicating factor when assigning a marker.
How would Sherlock have handled the Banner star?
“I’d probably have to follow him to the toilet,” he chuckles. “I’d follow him everywhere. You can’t give him an inch. He’s definitely a fella who needs to be minded.
“But no matter who you’re playing against, there’s always somebody who needs minding. Limerick have a few of them and Clare have fellas like that too.
“The one thing we’ve done, even after losing to Waterford and Clare, is that we’ve stuck to what we believe in. We focus on our own strengths.
“Obviously, fellas like O’Donnell need minding but we’re going to play our game at the end of the day. If you go into a game worried about particular players, you’ll probably take your eye off the ball a bit. We’ll just do what we need to do.
“Personally, I wouldn’t have minded the job of minding him because it’s a compliment if you’re given that kind of a job on a fella as good as him in an All-Ireland final.”
As a young defender in the ‘90s, Clare were a team that Sherlock always admired. Many of their best qualities are still reflected through their iconic full-back-turned-manager Brian Lohan.
“Clare were a team we idolised because of the Lohans, (Seánie) McMahon, Davy Fitz. They were some team.
“Clare as a county has always had a great tradition of man-on-man hurling. Their forwards will take you on, their backs are hard and strong, and they want the ball.
“It’s black and white with a Clare team. There’s no big issues with tactics and stuff. They want to go in and see who wants it more, which is something I love about Clare.”
As for the jubilee team waving to the crowd before the match, Sherlock’s son and daughter are locked in negotiations over who will deputise. He agrees it’s no bad problem to have.
“It’s great. In fairness to the lads from ‘99, Mark Landers, Fergal Ryan, and the lads, the prep for this is going on for the last two months.
“When we were first contacted about it, we were in a different place then to where we are now. It’s something myself, Pat, and Brendan (Coleman) are going to miss but that’s a great complaint to have.
“If things go well, we’ll see the lads afterwards because we’re staying in the same hotel.
“It would be class to meet up afterwards and share memories in that case. But it would be great to make new some new memories too.”
