Two from two at a cold but sunny Páirc, Cork fans can't have too many complaints after the opening round of the league and the Echo Podcast crew review the action.

The Ben O’Connor era got off to an ideal start as the Cork hurlers eased to a 3-25 to 1-17 victory over Waterford.

In front of a bumper crowd of 20,464 at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, the Rebels were in clinical form against an inexperienced Déise in the opening quarter as they led 0-11 to 0-3.

Alan Connolly and Declan Dalton raised first-half green flags, and newcomer William Buckley added a third goal in the second half before picking up the TG4 Man of the Match. Buckley was a star underage attacker for Cork and showed his potential at the top level, as his touch, movement and accuracy stood out.

The more experienced crew of Seán O'Donoghue, Niall O'Leary and Mark Coleman didn't put a foot wrong while Rob Downey and Shane Barrett were terrific in the first half and Tommy O'Connell had a stormer in the second.

Still, it's only the league, Waterford were understrength and there's the matter of a free-taker, post-Patrick Horgan.

In the footballers’ league opener, they rallied from seven points down to squeeze out Cavan 0-24 to 2-17 with Steven Sherlock nailing the crucial injury-time two-pointer.

What a boost it is to have him back in situ.

Mark Cronin, Chris Óg Jones, and Seán McDonnell clipped the scores to set up the grandstand finish. There were a few standout performers, and with Derry losing and Tyrone drawing their opening league games, Cork are in a strong position heading to Louth.

However, questions will be asked about coughing up two goals on home turf even if it did set the stage for the comeback.

In ladies football, Katie Quirke’s late free gave Cork a 1-10 to 2-7 draw against Kildare at MTU, while Rochestown College made a disappointing exit in the Corn Uí Mhuirí semi-final.

At third level, UCC are in Fitzgibbon Cup and Sigerson action on the road while MTU Cork will be eager to make home advantage count in their Fitz quarter-final.

Now in its fourth season, every week Éamonn Murphy is joined by The Echo team, including Barry O’Mahony, Denis Hurley, Rory Noonan, Jack McKay, John Horgan and more to discuss all the latest Cork GAA news on and off the field.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Echo Podcast crew return just in time for the throw-in of the national hurling and football leagues.

Cork footballers take on Cavan before the hurlers host Waterford in an attractive double-header in SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, where both teams need a winning start to the campaign.

John Cleary's charges got a boost with a first competitive victory in Killarney since 1995 over Kerry, albeit in the McGrath Cup final, which won't be causing the old enemy to lose any sleep.

Still, late points from Brian Hurley and Chris Óg Jones gave the Rebels the narrowest of victories in a game where the contentious new rules that lead to frees being advanced 50 metres worked in their favour.

Cork have been in the lower leagues since 2016 and haven't really looked like returning, largely down to slow starts to the season. With four away games, they'll need to pick up points on home turf.

Clearly and his management team are vastly experienced at this stage but the vibes are more positive at this stage than they were last year, with a decent blend of youth and experience.

The hurlers won't be prioritising the secondary competition after ending a 27-year wait for silverware last term but Ben O'Connor will be eager to get wins on the board early to allow them to look at their options in the coming weeks. The new bainisteoir has already stated there won't be radical change but tactically there will be tweaks from the long-ball style of last year.

It's a hectic time of year, with UCC and MTU Cork, who have impressed to date, busy with the Fitzgibbon Cup.

There's a look at the form of both Cork teams in preseason, as well as a breakdown of the recent Fitzgibbon and Sigerson action and the Corn Uí Mhuirí and Harty matches.

There's a discussion of the appointment of Ian Maguire and Darragh Fitzgibbon as Cork captains, replacing Brian Hurley and Rob Downey. Plus they flag up the young players to watch in the coming weeks and examine the prospects of the rookies who are on the hurling and football squads.

Now in its fourth season, every week Éamonn Murphy is joined by The Echo team, including Barry O’Mahony, Denis Hurley, Rory Noonan, Jack McKay, John Horgan and more to discuss all the latest Cork GAA news on and off the field.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Echo Podcast crew wrap up on the Cork GAA season with a look back on the highs and lows of 2025.

The focus is on club action, with the Reardens All-Star teams announced in ladies football, camogie, hurling and football. They break down the 15 picks in each code and reveal some of the players who were very lucky not to make the cut.

The county champions, St Finbarr's, in camogie and football, Éire Óg in ladies football and Sarsfields in hurling, are understandably to the fore in the All-Star line-ups.

A big effort was made to take in those who performed impressively without lifting silverware as well, even if their teams didn't get past the quarter-final stages or even ended up in relegation battles.

As has been the case since the first Reardens All-Stars in 2012, there is a blend of marquee inter-county players and unsung club heroes in the teams.

A weekend washout impacted the local matches and saw the Tom Creedon Cup final and U21 games postponed but the All-Ireland camogie final double bill in Croke Park went ahead.

Ballincollig couldn't build on a strong run midway through the first half and a Leah Hannigan goal in their intermediate decider against Camross. The Laois said had that bit more in the second half to win by four points.

The Collig didn't have any major complaints after and while they missed out on an All-Ireland, they laid down a marker by being the first team in the club to reach that stage.

St Finbarr's were left more frustrated as, though they'll have another chance in the January replay, they were in a superb position coming down the stretch in the senior final against Athenry. After performing so well for so long, they conceded 1-3 without reply.

The Barrs had twice needed extra, extra time on their journey to Croker, so they appreciate the fine margins at this level.

They simply have to dust themselves down and go again after Christmas.

What was definitely a huge plus from the action on Jones Road was the quality of both finals, which reflected very well on Cork camogie

Now in its third season, every week Éamonn Murphy is joined by The Echo team, including Barry O’Mahony, Denis Hurley, Rory Noonan, Jack McKay, John Horgan and more to discuss all the latest Cork GAA news on and off the field.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.