In Waterford they've adopted a line from Sun Tzu's timeless Art of War: "A victorious army first wins and then seeks battle. A defeated army first battles and then seeks victory."

Pinned to the wall above Donal Og Cusack's office desk is a similar quote from Muhammad Ali: "The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses . . .

behind the lines, in the gym, out there on the road . . . long before I dance under those lights." It was true again last Sunday. Championship matches are won and lost as much in November, January and February as July, August and September.

When Justin McCarthy accepted the position of Waterford manager for a sixth consecutive season, he did so on the proviso that he, and not the county champions, should choose the county captain. Three years ago Waterford had a season largely similar to the one they've enjoyed in 2007 . . . a run to a league final, a one-man goalscoring machine in Dan The Man, a Munster title after another glorious contest with Cork. In Ken McGrath, they had a natural and inspiring captain. But the momentum gathered in 2004 was derailed the night it emerged Mount Sion had appointed Eoin Kelly as county captain for 2005.

In 2006, Ballgunner's Shane O'Sullivan was burdened by the captaincy before being relieved of it and a starting 15 spot for the All-Ireland semifinal against Cork. McGrath was restored to the captaincy, just as Cork's Joe Deane would be handed the armband for this year's Croke Park celebrity death match. It was the band-aid solution . . . a measure to paper over cracks that had been there all year long.

There are many parallels between Cork 2007 and Waterford 2005 and 2006. The temptation is to zone in on the final match of the season, a great game and gallant defeat.

But as Liam Kearns said after the Laois footballers lost to Derry, the year must be reviewed in its entirety. And the reality is all year things weren't just quite right because all year things weren't done quite the right way.

This group of Cork players have prided themselves on their preparation more than the wins it facilitated. But even in the post-strike years, Cork's preparations have been compromised by the privileges bestowed upon its county champions. In recent years Cork have been lucky that way.

Blackrock's Alan Browne, a non-GPA member, was the perfect compromise candidate for 2003. In 2005 the players won the All Ireland for Sean Og O hAilpin as much as for themselves. In 2007 their luck expired.

When Brian Corcoran retired last winter he advocated that his club, Erins Own, offer the captaincy to Cusack.

Corcoran was speaking from his experience; in 1993 as a 20-year-old he'd felt a usurper in the role. He knew Kieran 'Hero' Murphy and Cian O'Connor could do without the burden and distraction until they were established first-team players. But burdened by that distraction they were, through a combination of the county board and the club's own intransigence.

The treatment of Wayne Sherlock this past 12 months was also an indictment of the bureaucratic order in Cork.

Pat Mulcahy deserved to start in last year's All Ireland final but hardly to finish its first half with a player of Sherlock's calibre on the line; John Allen and another selector were in favour of making that move but it was vetoed.

In this year's league Sherlock was similarly mistreated. Some supporters of management would say Sherlock was in decline but Sherlock's camp could claim he was merely rusty. In his book, Corcoran claims Sherlock's form on the eve of last year's championship was electrifying. The least Sherlock's service and patience merited was more game time this spring but when he wasn't selected for the team to start in Ennis, his patience snapped. Management made little effort to persuade him back.

Certainly Martin Bowen, Erins Own's representative on the selection committee, didn't, with his club providing three backs to the panel, and neither, to the chagrin of Sherlock and his former teammates, did Gerald McCarthy.

Either way, it was careless to pass on such an option and it's hard to think 20 minutes from Sherlock in Thurles wouldn't have swayed the outcome against either Waterford or Tipp.

Cork were still a credit to themselves this year, contributing handsomely to four of the best five games of the summer. In fact, it may be a wonder a team with so much mileage pushed as vibrant a team as Brick Walsh's Waterford to the brink. Pa Cronin has been blooded and the axing of Sherlock has accelerated the apprenticeship of Shane O'Neill. Only Timmy McCarthy is unlikely to return next year.

Yet, for all that, good isn't good enough. Last season this group of players recorded the second-highest number of consecutive victories in hurling history yet the county board's actions after the loss to Kilkenny suggested they were nearly waiting for the team to fail. A year and three defeats on and it's the board that must now change things.

That does not include the manager, even if Gerald McCarthy made too many substitutions too quickly last Sunday, especially replacing Jerry O'Connor. McCarthy, though, did the board the favour by returning and now the board should return the favour. Let him pick his own captain and let him pick his own non-voting selectors.

In 1993 McCarthy was the supporters' and players' choice to succeed Canon O'Brien as team coach but McCarthy declined as he wasn't given the power of being a selector. Fourteen years on, he needs to be just as assertive. For his own sake.

And for Cork's.

Last Wednesday, days after their ambitions of regaining Sam Maguire in 2007 were crushed by Meath, the Tyrone footballers and management met in a hotel to plan how to regain it in 2008. Wounds were still raw but from such rawness came honesty. It was accepted that while they made progress from 2006, the old bite of 2005 wasn't quite there.

Next year management would have to provide even more feedback and evaluation, and that players would have to be receptive and answerable to such scrutiny.

Mickey Harte will have to do even more than that though if his last year in the job is to go as well as his first. New faces are needed in the backroom team, especially young ones.

The empathy Paddy Tally offered in 2003 and 2004 has never quite been subsequently provided to players since.

Man-marking corner-backs have to be found. Strange as it is to say it, but Mickey McGee was missed as much last week as a fully-fit O'Neill. More though, Harte will have to nurture more leaders.

The lazy and easy answer is to say this team has never been the same since Peter Canavan's retirement but Canavan was always going to have to retire some day. The greatest loss for Harte this past two years has neither been Canavan, nor even the attacking talent of Stephen O'Neill or Brian McGuigan, but Cormac McAnallen. That is the challenge for Harte.

Conor Gormley has assumed more responsibility this past two years but he's a leader by example. You also need vocal leaders, those who'll inspire and challenge teammates and Tyrone have too few of them right now. Tyrone should still be a serious threat next year.

Raymond Mulgrew became a player this year. Stephen O'Neill now has a full nine months to get right. Brian McGuigan might be back too, while his brother Tommy will be the better for a full league campaign behind him.

But others, especially Owen Mulligan, need to step up too, otherwise they'll go down as merely a very good team instead of the great one they seemed destined to be.