Time to get behind Galway and cut them some slack

Inside Track with John McIntyre

WHEN a team is struggling and the critics are on its back, any vestiges of hope are clung to. The Galway hurlers had no involvement in last Sunday’s National League semi-finals at Nowlan Park, but what unfolded at the Kilkenny venue will, perhaps, have put their admittedly very disappointing quarter-final loss in the competition in a more positive perspective.

At the time, losing by eight points to a largely young Waterford outfit, which is still in the midst of a major rebuilding programme under the management of Derek McGrath, was perceived as a disaster. The fact that Walsh Park has rarely been a happy hunting ground for Galway was largely ignored, together with the absence of a number of influential regulars who had been sidelined by injury.

Of course, the Tribesmen hadn’t helped themselves on the day by electing to face the elements, with the result that the damage was done by half-time. Overall, Galway struggled to cope with Waterford’s defensive strategy in limping out of the league. With an unsettled team having also lost three of their five Division 1A group games, that quarter-final exit only served to fuel the flames of discontent in the county.

One of Galway hurling’s most strident critics down through the years has been Ballinasloe’s John Molloy. His latest damning assessment of the men in maroon and their management was carried in last week’s sports pages – he called for the immediate removal of Anthony Cunningham and, no doubt, many supporters would be willing to testify for the prosecution. Sure, the Galway boss has presided over a bad series of results over the past two years, but removing him now would smack of panic and cause untimely disruption.

Even if that scenario unfolded, who would be foolish enough to step in and try to pick up the pieces in such a short period of time? Molloy, as usual, doesn’t pull any punches and he is reflecting the level of disillusionment out there, but as one observer said to me over the weekend, the letter would have carried more weight if it had been penned by somebody else who isn’t so regularly prone to public condemnation of Galway.

Reverting to the events in Nowlan Park, Galway should draw some encouragement from Waterford’s display against a Tipperary team which were hot favourites to carry the day despite the absence of Cathal Barrett and Kieran Bergin, along with the hospitalised Noel McGrath. Early goals from Patrick Maher and John O’Dwyer suggested the game was going to script as Eamon O’Shea’s side opened a seven point lead.

Yet despite the use of the strong wind, Tipperary’s hurling was rarely fluent and they struggled to create the necessary space to pick off enough long range points. Once again, Waterford set up defensively and though everyone will tell you that such tactics are not set up to chase down a deficit, the underdogs managed it on Sunday. With Pauric Mahony missing nothing from frees, Kevin Moran again excelling in his deep role; and Maurice Shanahan and goal scorer Colin Dunford proving a big handful up front, Waterford eventually overhauled Tipperary in the second half and then had the mental toughness to last it out despite the opposition’s desperate late surge.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune