Courtesy of a spine-tingling second half recovery, and Stephen Sherlock’s match-transforming impact, Cork defeated Mayo by three points to finish second and earn a home knockout tie.

Mayo, table toppers at the start of play, scored early with Ryan O’Donoghue accurate off the mark. 

Their visitors, however, calmly came into the contest and showcased their ability with a trio of well-worked points, defender Rory Maguire, Brian Hurley, and late inclusion, Eoghan McSweeney with the scores that put 0-3 to 0-1 ahead eleven minutes in.

Colm Reape lashed over a piledriver to make it a one-point game, O’Donoghue’s side then mustering the Mayo men back on par.

There followed a seesaw end to the first half with a repeated exchanging of scores, Cork coughing up their slender lead twice.

Points by Colm O’Callaghan and Maguire’s brace cancelled out by Jordan Flynn and O’Donoghue’s third fine strike.

Yet the hosts finished stronger and when Tommy Walsh wellied one over, that restored the Cork lead, 0-6 to 0-5, how it stayed until half time.

It nearly wasn’t though when Cork’s Ian Maguire cantered through on goal but saw his shot repelled by Reape.

With their tails up, Mayo moved the score in their favour, first levelling through O’Donoghue before Flynn fired them into the lead.

Hurley heaved his second point over the bar but quickfire points from Flynn, replacement Tommy Conroy and O’Donoghue’s fifth put Cork under the cosh, suddenly behind by three points, 0-7 to 0-10.

Up stepped home replacement Stephen Sherlock who reduced the gap to two but Flynn’s fantastic fourth restored Mayo’s goal cushion.

A cushion which became comfier thanks to Conroy plundering a goal in the fifty-sixth minute, Mayo six points up and seemingly in control entering the final fifteen.

From there though, Cork and Sherlock shone to shift the tie on its head. 

Initially, Sherlock struck from close range to cancel out Conroy’s goal, restoring the home crowd’s hope.

He then miraculously and wondrously, pinged over four unanswered scores in four minutes of each other to transform the match, Cork now back in front, 1-12 to 1-11.

It was a siege that Mayo melted under, fellow replacements John O’Rourke and Chris Og Jones completing a cracking late turnaround with late points, as it finished 1-14 to 1-11.

All that toing and froing means that Mayo, despite falling from their first placed perch rather spectacularly, are still well set to qualify as one of the best third placed group teams whilst Kerry, after dismantling Louth, top the group with Cork content in second.

A home knockout tie now beckons for Cork, no doubt abounding with confidence now!