All-Ireland SHC Semi final: Match Analysis Cork are going to pay the ultimate price unless they take a long, hard look at their short game. Okay, it won them an All-Ireland last year but it is patently not working this time around and if, as I expect, Kilkenny beat Galway it will be ruthlessly exposed.

Yet again though, their character was phenomenal. It was only when John Allen made those brave tactical switches that things started to work out. Pulling off leaders like Ronan Curran and Brian Corcoran proved to be the right option simply because they were not going well.

But I cannot understand this over-elaborate hand passing just for the sake of it. It is ridiculous hurling; actually it has more in common with football. One of the fundamental principles of the game is to get the ball downfield as quickly as possible.

Short passing in defence - at one stage the ball went from one wing to the other before going up the park - is like manna from heaven to a forward. It meant Clare were able to put the Cork backs under tremendous pressure. And Clare have big, big men at their disposal. Tony Griffin, Niall Gilligan and Diarmuid McMahon are all six foot-plus.

I have never been a fan of Clare's style but Cork's approach yesterday was ideally suited to their reliance on physicality. They got in among them and you knew when they racked up three or four early wides to just one from Cork that they were up for the challenge. And why not? They have proven winners on their team and were a mere 70 minutes away from an All-Ireland final.

Cork are by far the better team but they were blitzed for 50 minutes. What really impressed me was Clare showed people what can be achieved with a well organised, expertly prepared and focused team.

I genuinely believed there was no way back for Cork when they went six points behind. They were being beaten in most departments with only the full-back line holding some sort of parity throughout as Pat Mulcahy and Diarmuid O'Sullivan dropped ball after ball into the forwards.

Their main saviour was John Gardiner, as it was his inspirational move to centre back that allowed momentum to build. This year he has really fulfilled all that underage promise. He is so comfortable in the air. The first ball in he caught cleanly and sent it up to Neil Ronan, who took a score. Then he caught a second one and side-stepped his man before firing over his second point. He could have done his job and sent it into the forwards but he didn't hesitate in taking on the responsibility.

It was important that Gardiner took over because the peerless Seán Óg Ó hAilpín wasn't his usual self. He played well but not to his highest standard.

Of all the defeated Clare players, I really felt for Brian Lohan and Colin Lynch as they rolled back the years yesterday to produce performances of the highest possible levels. Even Lohan's old mentor Ger Loughnane was among those who questioned whether he was up to the championship pace this year. Brian Corcoran was taken off. Enough said.

When Lohan clears ball out of defence it gets the Clare team's gander up. Lynch did everything right but score. He hurled so well but finished with six wides, three of which were in the first 10 minutes, but it was the last one would have secured a replay. Still, his work rate was awesome.

Clare failed because they never troubled Donal Óg Cusack's goal. Cork never saw the whites of Davy Fitzgerald's eyes but they didn't need to.

Cork must realise things will have to change. Tipperary showed it in the second half of the Munster final, Waterford were unlucky in the All-Ireland quarter-finals while Clare did everything but win this latest test.

Yet, they are 70 minutes from retaining their title, but if they do not become more direct, their next opponents will not be so forgiving.