Out of sorts Galway fall to shock defeat

TIPPERARY 3-13

GALWAY 1-10

A SEASON that had taken on an optimistic hue for Galway after the midsummer defeat of Mayo came to a calamitous conclusion at Croke Park on Sunday when Tipperary tore the Connacht champions to shreds in a one sided All-Ireland quarter-final.

For the second occasion this season it was one that we didn’t see coming, but this time around Galway were on the receiving end of the missile rather than delivering it — the prospect of a first All-Ireland semi-final appearance since 2001 lay in tatters long before referee Conor Lane sounded the final whistle.

The Galway post mortem will be a long and painful one with only a few players offering anything by way of a concerted resistance although it would be mean spirited not to acknowledge, that on Sunday, Tipperary looked a serious footballing side.

An early window of Galway dominance that scarcely lasted 15 minutes, and a wonder goal strike from Damien Comer just before half-time, provided the only times of respite for the big maroon following that travelled to the Jones’ Road venue on Sunday.

Galway were there to book their All-Ireland semi-final ticket for a showdown against either Tyrone and Mayo but Tipperary and Liam Kearns had no intention of adhering to that script — the Division 3 side looked fitter, faster and far more focused on their game plan than Kevin Walsh’s side.

True if Galway had converted a couple of early goal chances it could be argued that this might have changed the course of the match, but from minute 16 — when Tipperary’s Michael Quinlivan flicked home their first goal from close range — to the last kick of the game, this was all one way traffic.

Maybe Galway do need to have a bit more tactical flexibility when ‘Plan A’ is not working out. Was it really a wise move to concede possession to Tipperary from their short kick-outs  — should Galway have pushed put up on them and tried to unsettle them.

Too often the Galway attacks lacked speed and direction. By the time pass four or five was reached across midfield, Tipperary had a blanket of players pulled back behind the ball. The Tipp defence needed to be ran at with pace or peppered with quick ball before they could call the extra men back.

Galway were in trouble in almost every sector of the pitch. In the full backline they struggled to cope with the power play of Quinlivan while further out through the half backline, and especially midfield, Tipperary were winning the vast majority of the 50-50 balls.

Up front only Damien Comer and Danny Cummins — when they could get him on the ball — posed any serious threat, but Tipperary came at Galway in waves, winning kick-outs long and short, and creating a bagful of goal chances into the bargain.

The truth of the matter is that Tipperary could quite easily have amassed a tally of around 6-15, denied on a few occasions by the brilliant saves of Bernard Power, while on a couple of other instances, a tad more composure in front of goal would have yielded major scores.

So how could this have happened against a Galway team that had earned respect for the tightness of their defensive system so far this season in the championship?

The answers probably lie somewhere in the tactical astuteness of Tipperary manager Liam Kearns allied to the genuine footballing skills and athleticism of a side that hasn’t been given due credit for their progress over recent years.

Full coverage in this week’s Connacht Tribune.