Sports
Corofin’s All-Ireland hopes come unstuck in semi-final
Dr. Crokes 2-11
Corofin 0-8
THE concession of goals to a lively Dr. Crokes outfit at two pivotal moments in this All-Ireland senior club football semi-final put paid to Corofin’s ambitions of a second national title in three years at the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick on Saturday evening.
That may be an over simplification of where it went wrong for Corofin, but the impact of those majors from Gavin O’Shea and substitute Jordan Kiely cannot be understated as they all but ripped shards off Corofin’s soul at times when it looked as if the Galway champions might just be getting a handle on the contest.
Undoubtedly, Dr. Crokes were the better team throughout but, by the same token, Corofin never truly got into their stride and, overall, the 2015 All-Ireland champions lacked a certain amount of zest, enthusiasm and energy.
In this respect, they were not unlike St. Thomas’ in their hurling semi-final the week previous. They, too, could not get to the pitch of the game quickly enough and, by the time they did, it was all but gone from them.
In both cases, it was an inability to secure possession from their own restarts in the early stages which put them on the back-foot – Corofin experiencing the very same problem in the opening quarter on Saturday.
Playing against the wind, goalkeeper Bernard Power strained to get any purchase on his kick-outs and in the strong gale blowing down Corofin’s throats, the ball hung in the air much to the delight of Dr. Crokes pillars Johnny Buckley and Alan O’Sullivan.
In all, Corofin lost eight of their 12 kick-outs to Dr. Crokes in the opening period, ensuring the Munster holders had a generous supply of possession to feed into an inside line which was simply buzzing. Suffice to say, it put Corofin’s defence under enormous pressure.
As it was, the Corofin backs had already their hands full. Colm ‘The Gooch’ Cooper thought he was in the playground, pinging ball around for fun, while the impish Kieran O’Leary, who would score five points in the opening 30 minutes, was having the game of his life.
And yet, having gone two points down after 59 seconds and finding themselves three points in arrears after four minutes, Corofin somehow managed to reduce this gap to just a point, 0-5 to 0-4, six minutes before the break.
Ian Burke had kicked their opener on 10 minutes before Michael Farragher, Jason Leonard (free) and Gary Sice (free) added further scores to narrow the gap to the minimum. It appeared, Corofin had survived the Crokes tempest.
Whatever momentum Kevin O’Brien’s charges had generated though was broken on 26 minutes. Again, Corofin failed to secure their own kick-out, resulting in Cooper and O’Leary combining to set O’Shea up for an opportunity to point.
Full coverage in this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GALWAY United need to guard against any kind of complacency when they make the short hop down the M18 this Friday to take on Treaty United at the Markets Field (7.45pm).
The game is a meeting of the two form teams in the division, and as in previous meetings between the sides, will have an additional edge given the number of former United players in the home side’s ranks, and the pair of Limerick lads playing for United.
There might have been just the eight meetings between the sides since Treaty became the latest iteration to represent Limerick in the League of Ireland in 2021, and while United have yet to lose to the men in the candy-cane strips, there has never been more than a goal in four of their eight wins.
The most recent of those was back in February, when Rob Slevin scored the only goal of the game in Eamonn Deacy Park after a tough battle against a side who made a slow start to the season, before finally finding their groove in the past month.
Having taken just three points from their first six games before finally getting a win against Longford Town, they reverted to type with just one point from their next three games, but are now on a run of four wins on the spin, scoring 12 goals and conceding just one.
Their most recent win was a 3-0 victory away to Longford Town last Saturday, and they could have won by double that against the only side to have beaten United this season. That in itself is a warning.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.
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Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Soccer Wrap with Mike Rafferty
While the Salthill Devon men’s team might have lost their grip on the Connacht Junior Cup that they held for two seasons, the club’s women’s side have picked up the mantle and on Sunday last in Headford were crowned provincial champions with a 4-3 win over Manulla.
Following midweek wins for Maree/Oranmore and Knocknacarra, the stage is now almost set for the semi-finals of the Michael Byrne Cup with Salthill Devon meeting St Bernard’s on Sunday in an outstanding quarter-final, with the winners advancing to a semi-final against Maree/Oranmore, while Colga will face Knocknacarra in the other last four contest.
Just one league issue remains to be decided, with the Championship runners-up position up for grabs, as Dynamo Blues have to win their two remaining games in order to overtake Colemanstown United who have finished their programme.
WOMEN’S CONNACHT CUP FINAL
Salthill Devon 4
Manulla 3
Ellerose O’Flaherty scored twice as Salthill Devon were crowned provincial champions with a win over a Mayo side who were losing in the final for the second year in succession.
Backboned by a number of players who previously had League of Ireland experience with Galway WFC, Devon suffered an early set back when Jess Nolan put Manulla ahead, before O’Flaherty levelled matters with a cracking finish on 20 minutes, which was quickly followed by a long-range free-kick from Aoife Walsh.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
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