14-man Galway come to grief against the Dubs in Walsh Cup

Date Published: 06-Feb-2013

Dublin 2-19

Galway 1-21

Sean Walsh at Parnell Park

DUBLIN hurlers knocked Galway out of the Walsh Cup in Parnell Park on Saturday after this competitive and entertaining semi-final. It may only be early season opener, but this was an interesting tie between two sides who have built up a keen recent rivalry.

After a sluggish start, Galway – despite having to play three quarters of the game with 14 men after Andy Smith was sent off – remained very much in this semi-final and, ultimately, came up just short.

The Tribesmen responded well to actually outscore Dublin by 0-17 to 1-12 in the 52 minutes they played with a numerical disadvantage and, in reality, they could have forced at least extra time. However a late Paul Ryan free got a Dublin team, laced with a host of regulars, into the final and left Galway rueing a narrow defeat.

Lining out without Joe Canning, who picked up a rib injury in the quarter final win over Carlow, Galway started with eight of their All-Ireland Final starting 15, though this number was down five by the end of the game. And while the Galway management will be disappointed to lose to a side who failed to overcome the Tribesmen in three attempts in 2012, they will take satisfaction from certain aspects of the performance.

The character displayed by the Leinster champions during the game, particularly at stages when Dublin threatened to pull away, was commendable as was the displays of a number of players who enhanced their case for future selection. And while definitive judgements in February are difficult, the performances of Niall Healy, who excelled, and Davy Glennon in attack caught the eye.

Jonathon Glynn, who won a lot of ball, had a hand in a number of scores and generally built on his championship appearances last year in an attack that started with just one player (Damien Hayes) from the starting team last September.

Aidan Harte impressed when moved to midfield, while the deployment of David Collins to centre back and Iarla Tannian to wing back hinted at future possibilities. Debutant Paul Killeen’s 37 minutes at corner back augured well as did Padraig Brehony’s cameo in midfield.

Dublin began the game with greater movement and hunger and they were worth their 1-4 to 0-2 lead on six minutes with Paul Ryan getting the goal. Centre forward John McCaffrey had shot three points by the 14th minute by which stage they led by 1-7 to 1-2, with Glennon’s forceful run setting up Glynn for a well taken and needed Galway goal on 9 minutes.

By now Collins was at centre back, Iarla Tannian at wing back and Aidan Harte at midfield as Galway tried to get a grip on proceedings. Those switches worked, with the lively Harte beginning a scoring spree that saw Galway outscore Dublin by 0-9 to 0-2 by half time to build an interval lead of 1-11 to 1-9.

Damien Hayes, who was always involved in attack, Healy, sub Padraig Brehony and Tadhg Haran shot the pick of the scores and that Galway scoring sequence was all the more praiseworthy given the dismissal of midfielder Smith on a straight red card on 18 minutes following an off the ball incident with Conal Keaney who, himself, received a yellow from Wicklow referee John Keenan.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.