New Galway manager Donoghue up for the battle as Rebels roll into town

GALWAY senior hurlers commence their National League Division 1 campaign with a home fixture against Cork at Pearse Stadium on Sunday (2pm) and, although Galway have had little time to prepare, boss Michéal Donoghue believes they will not be found wanting.

“We are going okay,” says the Clarinbridge man. “It has been well highlighted the amount of time we had in terms of our preparation but, look it, to date it has gone really well and anything we asked the lads to do, their attitude and application has been top class.

“It has been a short run-in but we are not losing sight of the fact that it is February and we are not getting carried away. We are working hard and would we be working any harder if we had (an extra) six or seven weeks before Christmas? Probably not. So, we are where we are.”

With Division 1 so competitive, Donoghue says every one of the top flight teams will looking to win their home games in a bid to retain their current status. “We are fortunate our first game is at home and we are not looking beyond that, be it setting targets or what we want to achieve out of it.

“Obviously, for the duration of the league we are just looking at getting a settled team and getting ready for the championship. That is what we are looking at. The Cork game is our immediate focus at this moment in time and we are not looking beyond that.”

Galway’s pre-season began in earnest with Walsh Cup victories over DCU and NUI Galway in mid-January before a 3-18 to 0-17 victory over Westmeath in Mullingar qualified them for the semi-finals. However, on that occasion, the reigning Walsh Cup holders found Dublin too hot to handle and bowed out on a 1-28 to 1-19 scoreline.

Over the four games, James Skehill spent the majority of time in the No. 1 jersey ahead of Portumna’s Joe Keane but with All-Star Colm Callanan having returned from his break in Australia, the Galway management now have a key decision to make.

In defence, Johnny Coen, Daithí Burke and Greg Lally all saw considerable action, although both Burke and Lally were forced to withdraw from the Dublin game through injury. Newcomers Paul Claffey, Sean Morrissey and Kevin Hussey also featured while Loughrea’s Paul Hoban, involved in the set-up previously, has shown great maturity upon his return to the inter-county action scene.

Midfield, as always, is a moveable feast, with captain David Burke, Aidan Harte, Hoban, Andy Smith and Padraig Breheny all spending time in this sector. With 1-3 against Dublin, Burke will claim one of the jerseys against Cork with either Harte or Smith the favourites to take the other.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.