Sports
Healy hits stunning winner as Craughwell celebrate
CRAUGHWELL 1-20
St. THOMAS’ 0-22
A GREY day in fading October this might have been, but for the village of Craughwell it gushed with colour as their senior hurlers battled their way to a first county final appearance since 1932 after an epic semi-final victory over St. Thomas’ at Kenny Park on Sunday.
This was a high tempo clash between two teams hitting the peak of their seasonal endeavours but just when it seemed that another gallant Craughwell effort was about to fall short, from somewhere, they tapped into a well of spirit and heart that just saw them over the line.
The tone for the match was set in the opening three minutes of frenetic action that produced five points from play as both sides displayed an admirable crispness of stickwork and a lightning pace off the mark.
Three minutes prior to referee Christy Browne sounding the interval whistle, when Niall Healy took a ball from Gerard Halloran before knifing his way through the St. Thomas’ defence to fire home the only goal of the match, many surmised that this would be the deciding score of the day.
Maybe in the end it was, but a lot of water had to flow under the bridge before that score was to eventually separate the sides, and as the third quarter of the game came to an end, St. Thomas’ looked to have the door well ajar on their way to a county final appearance.
John Burke’s side had put together a real productive period of hurling in first half injury time and in the opening 10 minutes of the second half — this was St. Thomas’ at their best: powerful on the ball and unerringly accurate at the scoring end of the pitch.
As the game ticked into first half injury time, they trailed Craughwell by 1-9 to 0-9 but five minutes into the second half, the outcome had been transformed inexorably . . . or so it seemed . . . as St. Thomas’ led by 0-17 to 1-9.
In first half injury time, St. Thomas’ centre back Darragh Burke converted a mammoth free while just before the interval whistle sounded, Richie Murray improvised quite smartly in a tight space to scoop the sliotar over the bar.
Those scores left the losers trailing by just one point at the break on a 1-9 to 0-11 scoreline but what followed in the opening minutes of the second half must have left Craughwell in something of a daze.
Within 30 seconds of the restart, Conor Cooney — coming back to his best form after an awful run of injuries — whipped over a 60 yard point and then landed a free with radar precision
The barrage on the Craughwell goal remained incessant for the following 10 minutes. The lively Bernard Burke pointed from play as did Kenneth Burke and sub Anthony Kelly while Cooney chipped in with another neat effort from play. At 0-17 to 1-9 for St. Thomas’, this looked like a done deal.
For more, read 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
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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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