Connacht Tribune
Odds stacked against Galway U-21 footballers
GALWAY football is on a high following the senior squad’s National League title victory at Croke Park on Sunday, and the U21s will look to ride the crest of that wave as they embark on an All-Ireland semi-final at Cusack Park, Ennis on Easter Saturday (4.30pm).
Their opponents, Kerry, aren’t lacking in confidence either. The senior team’s triumph over Dublin at GAA HQ Sunday, as well as the U21s’ facile Munster final win over Cork, will only add to their innate winning mentality that footballers from the Kingdom already possess.
Kerry’s provincial success a fortnight ago ended an eight-year barren spell without a trophy at U21, and the traditional aristocrats of Gaelic football are unbackable favourites to advance to a final against either Dublin or Donegal.
But Galway are primed to give them a right good crack, having refocused after the high of beating Sligo, after extra-time, to claim the Connacht title in dramatic style at Markievicz Park two weeks ago.
“This particular group of players, when they were minor, would have always felt that they didn’t justify themselves. They were probably a bit unlucky and things like small breaks went against them. And I think they probably fancied themselves that time to be real contenders, so for that reason alone, they would feel that they belong, at least, to be very competitive in Connacht, which we proved to be,” said manager Gerry Fahy ahead of the semi-final showdown.
“It’s a huge task. There’s no doubt about that. At the same time, we are where we want to be. It’s a great opportunity for young Galway players in their development to get experience at this level of competition. Kerry are a good side but we always thought that last year’s Galway minor team were very close to them. If you’re looking at that, we’re not that far off the mark. On the day, we can give it a right shot.”
Galway U21 captain Michael Daly looked like he was made for Croke Park when he came off the bench and kicked two massive points for the seniors when the game was still in the melting pot against Kildare.
It was Daly’s first appearance at Croke Park, and not only did the Mountbellew/Moylough man enhance his reputation, he came through unscathed, meaning Fahy and his backroom team of Tim Rabbitte, Barry Cullinane, Tomas Mannion and Ciarán Ó Fatharta have no injury concerns and a full squad to pick from. The team will be announced after training on Thursday.
Meanwhile, there is a doubt over the availability of Kerry talisman and captain, corner-back Brian Sugrue, who has dislocated his kneecap.
The Tribesmen familiarised themselves with Cusack Park during a run-out on Monday evening, and they have already played Kerry in a challenge match last October.
That Limerick clash will have little bearing on Saturday’s result but it was perhaps an indication that the Kingdom had early-on identified Galway as the force to be reckoned with out west.
Full preview in this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
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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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht 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.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
