Galway minors are blown away by Limerick

Limerick  1-27

Galway 2-9

It was every bit as comprehensive as the scoreline suggests. In fact, Limerick were so superior in all facets of the game, they could have won this All-Ireland minor semi-final by more. Miles more.

There’s no escaping it: it was a massacre of Mattie Murphy’s minors.

And to think these two counties played out a draw at the same stage of the championship last year, with Galway going on to win extra-time by three points.

Fast forward 12 months and they were completely outclassed and hammered by 15 points. That’s some reversal.

Afterwards, the Galway boss picked at an old scab. Murphy, true to form and sticking to his guns, said Galway had no business in the Leinster championship at senior – it had done the county no good at adult level, he argued, so why repeat the mistake at minor?

And he refused to go down the road of blaming an ‘easy’ route to the penultimate stage of the competition as the reason for his side’s failure to show up at GAA headquarters on Sunday.

In fairness he was only responding honestly to reporter’s questions but it was a red herring.

Additional matches might not have won it for Galway, but surely more competitive games than the hammering of Antrim would have improved their sharpness and at least helped to partially bridge the gap.

This is a special Limerick outfit that the county board has invested heavily in since they turned teenagers. That nurturing of talent through the ranks for the past five and six years is now reaping dividends, as the Munster champions march on to meet Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final.

That’s the template to follow. Some will argue Galway is already doing that, investing in youth and underage coaches, but if we are, it’s not working judging on this performance.

It’s difficult to decipher whether this is just another blip in a bad year for hurling in the county, or whether it confirms a deeper malaise, and that Galway hurling is in freefall.

The U-21 semi-final against Wexford this weekend might give more clues.

But this must rank as the worst Galway minor performance of six-time All-Ireland winning manager Murphy’s reigns.

There are few crumbs of comfort. Conor Whelan’s two goals proved he’s a classy hurler with a bright future. The full-forward line of Jack Grealish, Brian Burke and Conor Shaughnessy made the best of a bad lot, living off scraps. Daniel Nevin never gave up the ghost at centre field and toiled tirelessly.

Full-back Oisín Coyle recovered to put in an industrious second-half and corner back Declan Cronin did okay while goalkeeper Gearóid Loughnane stopped a couple of goal-bound shots.

But really, that’s clutching at straws. Limerick outwitted a tactically naïve Galway outfit; they over-powered and out-muscled them, and just about beat them in every department imaginable.

The defence was run ragged. Implausible it may sound but the entire half-back line was substituted by half-time, and any number of the other Galway players couldn’t have complained had they got the ‘curly finger’.

The signs were ominous early. Limerick, as sharp as a razor, ripped Galway’s rearguard apart from the get-go. Seven minutes gone and they were 0-6 to 0-1 in front.

Grealish steadied the ship with a point and Whelan, with his first goal finished with a kick to the net, offered brief respite and some hope as Galway brought it back to a one-point game.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.