Sports
Killanin men floored by conceding early second half goals
St. Croan’s 2-10
Killanin 0-11
KILLANIN’S hopes of winning a sixth provincial club football title for Galway at intermediate level were dashed when they fell at the final hurdle in the Connacht Championship decider against St. Croan’s (Roscommon) last Sunday at Tuam Stadium.
Despite playing their hearts out from start to finish, they narrowly failed to secure provincial silverware which would have crowned a wonderful season. In front of a huge crowd, the Galway champions were well in contention until they conceded two second half goals in a six minute spell.
That formidable double blow proved too much to claw back and St. Croan’s were worthy winners in the end. After an evenly balanced opening period the sides were tied on 0-6 each and the stage was set for another exciting half-hour between two teams that matched each other kick for kick and score for score up to that.
It was 8/7 in Killanin’s favour when the first goal arrived, courtesy of Shane Smyth and when James Connaughton side-footed a second ‘major’ six minutes later it put the Roscommon champions into the driving seat. Try as they might, Killanin just could not make any real dent in the lead despite a huge physical effort and to make matters worse they were reduced to 14 men near the end when corner-forward Niall Walsh, one of their better players, was red-carded on the word of a linesman after getting entangled with an opponent.
Big Kevin Walsh was sent into the fray late on to try to provide some inspiration but after he moved into the full-forward position he was starved of possession and he had to be replaced after limping off with a leg injury. In fairness they lost to a fine team which had a huge win over Ballyhaunis in the semi-final and now meet John Mitchel’s, (Liverpool) next time out. It has, nevertheless, been a great year for Killanin.
A memorable victory over neighbours Moycullen in the county final and promotion to senior football have both been achieved with some style and although they may be down at the moment, they can now take a well earned break and prepare for next year on their own terms. By avoiding the long winter slog that would surely drain their energy, Killanin will be fresh and ready for action when they start next year as a senior club.
They were more than a match for their Ballymoe-Ballintubber opponents in the first half and they had edged into a narrow lead early in the second, only to be undone by those two goals. St. Croan’s had gone close to a sensational start and they might well have netted within seconds of the throw-in. Midfielder Ross Timothy raced away and got clean through the defence, but his shot was brilliantly smothered by Killanin goalkeeper Shane Sheridan.
Wing-back Daniel Malone did give Croan’s the lead with a point shortly afterwards but Cathal Sweeney soon levelled with a superb score and further points by Jonathan Heaney and Patrick Sweeney, following a great run by Ruairi Greene, made it 0-3 to 0-1. Niall Walsh also scored but Michael Holland and Shane Smyth (2) made it level pegging in a fine, sporting contest that was giving great entertainment to the 3,000 crowd.
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
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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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