Cork Hurler Drags Football Team To Historic County Final Win With Ridiculous Display

St Finbarr's have regained the Cork senior football title, overcoming old rivals Nemo Rangers on a scoreline of 1-14 to 1-13 at SuperValue Páirc Uí Chaoimh this afternoon.

Two of the most dominant clubs in Cork football, this game was always likely to be a hugely entertaining clash. That proved to be the case, with the contest coming right down to the wire.

With the Barrs leading by one point in injury time, Nemo Rangers would strike the post in the dying seconds of the game as they attempted to rescue a late result.

However, it was to be St Finbarr's day. This win would have been a bit extra special for the club as it ended a long winless run against Nemo in county finals, having previously lost all four meetings between the clubs at this stage of the competition.

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While there is no shortage of talent in the St Finbarr's team, it was a player that is more known for his ability in another code that stood out in this final.

Cork hurling star Brian Hayes would be named man-of-the-match for his performance, scoring 1-2 to lead his club to a historic victory.

His goal in the second half would prove to be the key moment in the game.

Brian Hayes starts and finishes and brilliant goal for @the_Barrs 🤯

Incredible catch and finish from the @OfficialCorkGAA Senior hurler👏

📺https://t.co/QU7uPhpQ4u | #ClubberTV pic.twitter.com/YX90DdxvWK

— Clubber (@clubber) October 26, 2025

Brian Hayes would also kick a two-pointer in the opening half of the final. Despite this, his side found themselves trailing by two points at the interval despite playing with the aid of a considerable breeze.

Speaking to Clubber after the game, Hayes revealed that some words of encouragement from the legendary Jimmy Barry-Murphy played a role in what was a brilliant second half display.

We definitely weren't happy with our first half performance, even though we probably played well at times. I think we started the game very well, but towards the end of the first half we were kind of taking pot shots because we had that breeze behind us.

We just said at halftime 'look if we can get an early start and get ourselves back into the game, it was only a one score game' and there was a long second half there.

To be fair, I think the win died down so it probably was more even in the second half. I thought we dug really deep there and I'm so proud of all the lads to be honest with you...

Brian (manager) gave a few tactical elements that could improve on, then Jimmy [Barry-Murphy] gave us the classic 'we're not working hard enough' and gave us a bit of a boost before we came out.

To be honest with you, I'm so happy that we didn't panic at halftime. It's easy when you're losing at halftime in a final to throw your toys out of the pram, but I think we stuck together.

This win has secured a first Cork county title since 2021 for St Finbarr's, their 11th title overall.

Their focus will now quickly shift to a provincial campaign over the coming weeks, with Hayes set to be key to their chances of winning a sixth Munster title.