Walsh the conductor in chief as Galway eventually hit right note

Inside Track with John McIntyre

You’d want to have been some prophet to have forecast the sensational second-half turnaround in Sunday’s Connacht football final at Dr Hyde Park midway through the match. A Galway team which was backed by the strong wind found themselves three points down at the interval after a shockingly inept tactical and error-prone display. They were barely hanging on and appeared destined for defeat.

Less than an hour later, however, the Tribesmen were celebrating a 46th provincial title after a terrific second-half performance which bore no resemblance to the conservative, defensive orientated and mistake-ridden effort of a forgettable opening 35 minutes. Galway were in a major hole at half-time, but it is the hallmarks of a good team which can heed the lessons of what had gone wrong and possess the ability to turn their tactical approach on its head.

In a nutshell, this could be the makings of Galway. Not alone did they cast off the shackles and go for broke on the resumption, but the impressive manner in which they subsequently outscored Roscommon by 0-11 to 1-1 was also testimony to the character and spirit in the squad. The Tribesmen no longer have a soft centre when the heat comes on and they are now probably the most progressive footballing force in the country.

Taking the direct route to the new Super 8s is another big bonus from Sunday’s four-point triumph and the fact that Galway had to win the match twice in the second half will also stand them in good stead. Roscommon converted a badly needed penalty to regain the lead at a critical stage of the game in the 64th minute, but Kevin Walsh’s charges never blinked, rattling off five unanswered points from there to the finish.

It was also the day when Shane Walsh finally delivered the complete performance he has been threatening in the maroon jersey for the past five years. During a first-half when the vast majority of his team-mates were on the margins – the lively Ian Burke being a notable exception – Walsh was almost single-handily keeping Galway in the hunt. He picked off two magnificent points from play and Roscommon couldn’t manage him at all.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.