Sports
Flynn leads demolition as Galway put Offaly to the sword
Galway 6-23
Offaly 1-12
YOU could sense the local trepidation in Tullamore on Sunday ahead of the opening round of the Division 1B National Hurling League campaign. Offaly supporters were resigned to being well beaten by Galway, but were hoping it wouldn’t turn ugly. They didn’t get what they wished for.
Instead, it was another distressing day for Offaly hurling as their team of largely novices was simply wiped out by Galway on a bitterly cold day in front of a small crowd at O’Connor Park. Leaking a half dozen goals and falling to a 26-point thrashing sums up the Faithful county’s woes at present.
It made for sad viewing. Offaly’s decline in recent seasons has been alarming and on Sunday’s evidence, their predicament is now at a modern-day low. Their priority will be avoiding relegation to the backwoods of Division Two and new manager, Kevin Ryan, may have his work cut out to avoid that indignity.
Anything other than a clear-cut Galway win would have been a surprise, but even their camp must have been taken aback by the poverty of the home team’s challenge. The Offaly defence, in particular, was out of its depth and naive, while their attack possessed little or no thrust.
In those circumstances, Galway were always going to make hay. They went about their business in a professional manner and when they led by 4-9 to 1-8 at the break having faced the strong wind, the prospect of an embarrassing defeat for Offaly was already a reality.
Mind you, not everything the Tribesmen attempted to do was perfect. The defence conceded a few needless frees; they weren’t direct enough out the field at times and also lost possession in the tackle, but it seems churlish to be quibbling with a team which was utterly dominant.
David Burke and his St Thomas’ clubmate Conor Cooney were late additions to the Galway line up and their promotion only added to the sense of gloom among the local faithful about what lay ahead. As it transpired, the pair were in excellent form – Burke notching a goal and a point in a typically classy midfield display, while the lively Cooney hit five points from play.
It was also a very productive day for Jason Flynn, who had 2-10 to his credit, including 2-2 from play, before he was replaced in the 60th minute. The Galway full forward took his two goals excellently and there was a welcome bounce in his step after a subdued campaign in the maroon jersey in 2016.
Conor Whelan, who showed a lot more variety in his game compared to the previous weekend against Kilkenny in the Walsh Cup, was also influential, rifling home a brace of goals in a match which again showed full back John Hanbury in a good light and highlighted the value of Gearoid McInerney’s physicality in the half-back line.
Yet, the reality is that this league tie was of little value to Galway. Their players could almost do what they liked and was miles removed from the type of intensity they will experience against the sport’s elite teams. None of this is their fault, but they have to keep a sense of perspective.
Full report 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.
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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