Numerous precedents failed to prepare the faithful adequately for the sense of anti-climax in a FAI Cup final in which commitment was at all times king and sophistication a mere aspiration. Distance lends enchantment, and it's just possible that posterity will see in yesterday's plot the outline of a subliminal tactical duel in which Damien Richardson and Dave Barry knew occasional moments of gratification. The topline is still the most important in football, however, and this scoreless draw, the first since the meeting of Cork and Derry City nine years ago, will remind of a day when the only thing which threatened to disturb the netting at either end of the pitch was the wind.

Cup finals are won and lost in moments of ingenuity on the one hand and crass defensive error on the other. On this occasion, the only thing which approximated to unforced error was Stephen Napier's indiscreet back pass early in the second half. And when Declan Daly was eventually named Man of the Match, his closest challengers for the award were the two Shelbourne centre backs, Pat Scully and Tony McCarthy. And inspiration? That got a low priority rating even before the kick-off when Richardson bit the bullet and decreed that Tony Sheridan's wayward performance at Dundalk nine days earlier didn't merit retention in the team. In that, he was probably echoing the sentiments of the great majority of Shelbourne supporters. But the effect was to deny the game of the one player with the capacity to set it alight.

Deprived of Sheridan's eccentric skills, one looked to Pat Fenlon and Patsy Freyne to summon the creative skills to put defenders under pressure and restore a sense of equity to the forlorn efforts of Stephen Geoghegan and John Glynn to rediscover the glories of other Cup final days. The ball was too often in the air, however, to give Fenlon a realistic chance of imposing himself on the action around him, and Freyne, likewise, was merely on the periphery of a game which put a premium on expediency and, it seemed to many, conferred an unfair advantage on those filling size 12 boots. Yet, it would be grossly unfair to dismiss this as an occasion devoid of merit. The folklore of the competition has as much to do with big hearts as brash skills, and Daly made the point powerfully on occasions. After 12 years in senior football, he is still awaiting his first big honour. And the sense of urgency showed in an outstanding performance in which he was always available to make the forthright clearance and, on occasions, the last ditch tackle. Denied the balance which Colin O'Brien brings to the team, City depended to a large degree on Ollie Cahill's ability to get to the back line and deliver the crosses on schedule. Twice he succeeded in the first half and twice he may have silently cursed as the ball sped across the face of the goalmouth with not a red shirt in sight to apply the decisive finish.

Just as Cork look to Cahill to turn the screw, so Shelbourne were hoping for a big performance from Mark Rutherford. None was forthcoming, however, and in a situation in which conviction in the tackle was of prime importance, Dean Fitzgerald, at 20, one of the babes of the team, was their most influential midfielder.

For Stephen Geoghegan, hoping to embellish an enviable record on the biggest day of the year in domestic football, the early portents were not encouraging. And after failing to take advantage in the opening minutes when the ball bobbled on the edge of the six yards area, his achievement, if not his ambition, dwindled at a remarkable rate. Seven years ago, John Glynn took unto himself a special place in FAI Cup history when his goal gave Galway United a shock win over Shamrock Rovers and their only success to date in the competition. With time running out, he had the chance to write his name into folklore once more, after timing the run precisely, by making contact with the cross from the left. This time, however, the angle of the header wasn't sharp enough to take it away from the outstretched arm of Alan Gough, and the Cork contingent groaned yet again. It was that kind of day.