Photo: Ray Ryan

Flying start gave Galway the platform to drive on - Fahy

KERRY may have the upper hand on Galway in senior championship football, but that tradition fails to hold true in the soon-to-be-discontinued U-21 competition.
Galway secured their first All-Ireland at the grade in 1972, famously turning over a team that included such household names like Paudie O’Mahony, Jimmy Deenihan, Paudie Lynch, Ger O’Keeffe, Mickey Ned O’Sullivan, Ger Power and John Egan — players that went on to win 27 Celtic Crosses between them.
More recently in 2002, the last U-21 meeting between the counties before Saturday, more celebrated footballers and serial All-Ireland winners in Colm 'Gooch’Cooper’, Declan O’Sullivan, Paul Galvin and Tadgh Kennelly came in as hot favourites only to be beaten by a superb Galway side in a semi-final at Cusack Park, Ennis.
It’s expected in local circles that many of Kerry’s current panel, regarded as a vintage crop, will go on to have stellar inter-county careers at senior level but Saturday was Galway’s day and another memorable win for manager Gerry Fahy, now in his second year at the helm and third overall when you include his one-year stint in 2012.

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