Sports
Exhausted Connacht left to rue a series of poor calls
Gloucester 40
Connacht 32
(After Extra-Time)
EXHAUSTION was the only word for it as the full time whistle went on the 100 minute mark in Sunday’s never to be forgotten play off. The Connacht team broke from their post game huddle, crestfallen and shattered having expended every last drop of energy in a gallant bid to defy the inevitable.
They had fallen to two late tries in the second half of extra time and the dream was over. All this after leading by seven points at the end of normal time. At that point, the major powers in European rugby – now run at the whim of the English and French clubs after their successful 2014 coup – were bracing themselves for a major upset but this storyline was not for changing.
As John Muldoon led his side towards the dressing room, awaiting them were a very relieved and visibly drained home side. The Kingsholm crowd made themselves heard and underlined why underneath it all, rugby remains a sport that is unique in this way.
Supporters and players gave the west of Ireland team a hairs on youR neck type of ovation. It was straight out of a Hollywood movie but it was a heartfelt and honest reaction from the famous west country rugby supporters. Coin tosses behind closed doors, mid season rule changes to the competition and poor officiating all to one side, this was a fitting end to a great game.
Impossible is sometimes undeniable when you’re involved with the sport of rugby. Upon reflection this applies here. You could try and focus on the Connacht mistakes for answers as to why they lost this or you could just honestly say that the team as a whole did all that they could to win this game, but circumstances beyond their control intervened.
Had Connacht won, there was no guarantee that they would be in next season Champions Cup. A play off with Bordeaux-Begles in Galway would have been next on the cards and this game had taken a fair toll in terms of injuries to an already patched up squad. History will probably forget that there was still another game to play and who knows, Gloucester might yet fall short too.
In the end however, the task was largely taken out of Connacht hands. Leading international referee Romain Poite took centre stage in the closing stages of this one. The rugby media throughout England and Ireland have spent a lot of the last few days chastising the French official for a succession of dreadful decisions in the final minutes of this contest. It adds credence to Connacht grievances, but must also feel like scant consolation for Pat Lam and his assistant coach Dan McFarland.
Rehashing the calls in great detail is a futile process at this stage. The evidence is compelling, the penalty with 40 seconds left was the most glaringly obvious example of an official who simply performed at a level well below the standard he should be at. Poite was clearly caught up in the pre game narrative of English power towering over a plucky Pro12 opponent.
For more, read this week’s Galway City 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.
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.
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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