WHETHER it was by accident or by design, the Cork hurling management may have come up with the 15 players that they will start against Galway next Sunday week.
Prior to last Sunday’s character building and ultimately very good victory over Waterford the team did not have a settled look about it, quite a bit of chopping and changing taking place, four changes from the Offaly tie against Wexford and three more from that assignment against Waterford.
And be certain sure that the team that started against the Déise will not start next Sunday week against Galway in the All-Ireland semi-final and if there was competition for places before last Sunday it becomes even fiercer now.
Cork introduced five subs against Waterford and all of them yielded a dividend, two, in particular, a handsome one.
Darren Sweetnam made a substantial difference to midfield when he replaced Daniel Kearney and his workrate for the following 35 minutes was immense.
Kearney, to be fair, had run himself into the ground for his 35 minute stay and the fact that he had been booked didn’t help.
Sweetnam is still very much in the infancy of his inter-county career but in a game of such intensity and fraught with tension given how close things were on the board, he put himself  forward for serious consideration to start against Galway alongside Patrick Cronin.
Back in defence there was a bit of debate about the decision to bring back Stephen McDonnell and Sean Óg after the trials and tribulations of the league final but both were immense last Sunday.
McDonnell was one of the players that Jimmy Barry-Murphy referred to in his after match comments, stating that he had given the selectors his answer  after getting a bit of a hard time in the aftermath of the league final.
There is no doubt about his selection now for the next day.
And there won’t be either where the Na Piarsaigh player is concerned after his display, particularly in the second-half.
And his point to give Cork a two point advantage was a huge score at a time when the pendulum could have swung either way.
John Gardiner too has put forward a case for inclusion after he replaced Eoin Cadogan and he certainly steadied things down in the heart of the defence and with the Douglas man now heavily employed in both codes, Gardiner will surely come into the selectors’ deliberations.
However, to set the record straight, Cadogan was ill going into Sunday’s match and he was taking antibiotics for a flu virus which explained his off colour at times.
The Cork attack did not overly ignite, mainly because of  a very resolute Waterford defence which made it very difficult for the type of supply that the inside men needed.
However, Patrick Horgan, Paudie O’Sullivan and Luke O’Farrell still managed six points from play between them, not a bad return considering the amount of ball that they received.
Cian McCarthy was withdrawn after 44 minutes, maybe surprisingly because he had converted three fine points against one of the game’s best centre-backs.
But there won’t be any question about his starting place against the Tribesmen and the likelihood is that there will be only one change for that assignment, Conor Lehane coming back in for Jamie Coughlan.
Coughlan was withdrawn too last Sunday but his contribution of 1-1 was hugely significant, the goal, as events transpired, the difference in the end.
Niall McCarthy had  an off day while his replacement Cathal Naughton made an immediate impact upon his introduction and his tally of two points were very significant contributions too.
There is no doubt that he is a vital player in this Cork set up and, given the length of time he has had in the jersey now, he should probably be an automatic starter.
But that has not happened and he might be seen now as being better utilised as a substitute.
And bringing him into the fray in the latter sequences of a game gives the team a distinct advantage because of his tireless running.
That is a major factor in the progress of this team, their ability to finish so strongly in games and, whilst not having a clue about what goes on in the training ground, it’s obvious that trainer Dave Matthews has and is doing an excellent job.
Stephen Moylan provides another strong option off the bench as he showed that when he replaced Jamie Coughlan and his appetite to get stuck in was hugely encouraging.
If there was a fault to be found and this is something that Jimmy Barry Murphy hinted at last week, it was the failure to be more consistent over the seventy minutes.
A great opening quarter was not built upon and a one time six advantage became a three point deficit in the second-half, that’s a turn around of nine points.
And when that deficit occurred, 10 minutes or so from time it could have been curtains if Waterford had been more clinical with their finishing.
If Galway find themselves in that type of situation in the semi-final they might not be as accommodating with their misses.
This time 12 months ago Cork’s year had ended, now they are in an All-Ireland semi-final, probably the fourth rated team of the remaining  four players.
That’s a perfect position to be in and the progress to this juncture of the championship has to be acknowledged and the role of the management and the impetus that they have brought to the table has to be underlined as well.
Coming from a fairly low base,  the season is now a success whichever way the game against Galway on Sunday week pans out and the construction of a squad containing so many of the younger generation bodes well for the future of Cork hurling.
A few months ago the destination of the MacCarthy Cup seemed to be a done deal with Kilkenny the place to be again on the first Monday night in September .
They might still be the even money priced favourites but is it as clear cut as it was after the league final and the defeat of Dublin?
No it’s not.
Cork’s progress has now given them a fighting chance of a further extension to the championship year.
Their best performance of the year is still the Munster semi-final defeat by Tipperary and that will have to be replicated and built upon for Galway.
But right now nobody can criticise this bunch of players for what has been achieved thus far.