declared champions but would also cast doubt over the value of their victory. An outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the midlands forced Tipperary and Kilkenny to withdraw from the competition. As a result, Cork faced Limerick in the Munster final, and defeated them, before hammering Dublin in the All-Ireland decider for one of the handiest championships ever won. Following the All-Ireland final Cork played Tipperary in the delayed Munster final and lost, thus becoming the very first All-Ireland champions but provincial runners-up. For these reasons Cork's first win of four in-a-row is often dismissed by their opponents. In 1942 Jim Barry and his Cork team set out to prove that their victory had not been a fluke caused by outside events. They defeated Tipperary in the Munster final and silenced their critics, before going on to claim their second consecutive All-Ireland title by defeating Dublin again. In 1943 Cork were again Munster champions and qualified for the All-Ireland final where their opponents were expected to be Kilkenny. The "cats", however, were surprisingly defeated by Antrim, a junior team, in the All-Ireland semi-final. Cork went on to record a comprehensive victory over the Ulstermen in the final and claim a third consecutive All-Ireland victory. In 1944 Cork were again Munster champions, defeating Mick Mackey's Limerick side in the decider. They just about prevented an upset in the All-Ireland semi-final, squeezing past Galway before walloping their old enemy Dublin in the final. Cork were on their best form in that final, and set a record of four All-Ireland titles in-a-row that has never been equalled. Five consecutive All-Ireland titles were beyond this Cork team as they were defeated in the 1945 Munster final. They returned in 1946, however, winning back their Munster crown and defeating Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final. It was one of the great one-man shows by Christy Ring who, at the age of 25, collected his fifth All-Ireland winner medal. The story of this Cork team's success was bookended by defeat the classic 1947 All-Ireland final. This match has come to be known as the "thunder and lightning final." On the day before World War II broke out, Cork faced a Kilkenny side who were playing in their fourth final in five years. The game was played at a frantic pace with both sides remaining level for much of the game. Just as the game reached its climax a