Joe Dooley thinks Cork's athleticism could see them through to the All-Ireland hurling final.

The Munster champions are in for a searching examination against Tipperary in Sunday's semi-final but former Offaly great Dooley reckons the more youthful Leesiders will progress:

"The one advantage that Cork have over the teams left in the championship is their natural speed and athleticism," he says on rte.ie. "It is extremely difficult for any side to live with them for a full 70 minutes if the game is played at a fast pace. Limerick found this out in the Munster final.

"As regards Sunday's meeting, I expect it may not be as open and free flowing as many are predicting. As the championship progresses, the stakes become higher and I can see this being a tense affair with both teams aiming to close down the opposition with a big emphasis on preventing goals.

"Their league semi-final meeting produced seven goals and I do not see a repeat of that goalfest.

"When you match up the players on both teams what transpires is that they are very evenly balanced and this is why the bookies cannot separate them.

"However, I am going to plug for a Cork win on the basis that they have shown the more consistent form all year and the recent memory of last year's All-Ireland defeat might just make the difference to drive them on to victory." Tweet

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