Cork 1-13 Clare 0-14:Cork travelled to Ennis yesterday knowing a draw would be enough to see them through to the last eight. Clare, for their part, had to win to be in with a chance of remaining in the competition.

Cork took the points and with results going their way in other venues, they are entitled to a semi-final place, whereas Clare will be without a competitive match until these sides face each other again in the first round of the championship at the end of May.

Clare raced into a deserved 0-7 to 0-2 lead by the 32nd minute. Cork's first score from play, a Patrick Cronin effort, sailed over just seconds earlier. Gerald McCarthy's side's only other score up to then came from a pointed free by Neil Ronan in the third minute. But then a mini-avalanche of scores before half-time saw Cork go in a point ahead at the whistle.

First, Ronan sliced through the Clare defence immediately after returning to the field having been treated for an injury. His final strike was poor but did enough to deceive an advancing Philip Brennan, the Clare goalkeeper, and trickle over the line.

Next, an up-to-then-quiet Joe Deane rifled over a point. Kieran Murphy added another on 35 minutes, with Deane converting a free in injury-time to claim the slenderest of leads at the break, 1-5 to 0-7.

In hindsight, this five-minute period before the interval could be termed the turning point. In the second half, Clare never allowed Cork to pull away completely as they so often threatened to do. It was nip and tuck and in the 56th minute, Clare did manage to regain the lead when free-taker Bernard Gaffney sent over a free to leave the home side 0-12 to 1-8 ahead.

But, as in the first half, Clare hit the self-destruct button and four successive wides helped them to lose their way. Cork, who were never rattled, showed their class during this barren Clare spell and hit three good scores to regain the advantage.

Deane grabbed two insurance points close to the end to put Cork three ahead before Clare substitute Tony Carmody spurned a goal chance in injury -time, when his shot sailed just over Donal Óg Cusack's crossbar, letting Cork off the hook.

CORK: D Óg Cusack; B Murphy, D O'Sullivan, C O'Connor; K Hartnett, R Curran, S Óg Ó hAilpín; K Murphy (0-2, capt), J Gardiner; T McCarthy, N McCarthy, P Cronin (0-2); C Naughton, N Ronan (1-2, one free), J Deane (0-5, two frees, one 65). Subs: J O'Connor for T McCarthy (14 mins), T Kenny (0-2) for Curran (46 mins), E Murphy for Naughton (46 mins), S O'Neill for C O'Connor (60 mins).

CLARE: P Brennan; G O'Grady, B O'Connell, F Lohan (capt); A Markham, C Plunkett, G Quinn, B Bugler (0-1), K Dilleen (0-1); N Gilligan (0-1), D McMahon, J Clancy; B Nugent (0-2); F Lynch (0-1), B Gaffney (0-6, frees). Subs: D O'Rourke (0-1) for Dilleen (10 mins), C Lynch for Markham (48 mins), T Kearse for McMahon (53 mins), T Carmody (0-1) for Nugent (65 mins).

Referee: D Richardson (Limerick).