Injuries hit Galway hard — they're out of the C'ship

By JIM CARNEY Mayo 1-14  Galway 0-15 (after extra-time) A COMBINATION of injuries and five wides in a long period of dominance from early in the second half cost Galway their Connacht and All-Ireland U-21 titles at Elverys McHale Park, Castlebar last Wednesday evening. It was a very disappointing outcome, especially as Galway had fought back magnificently from conceding a goal in only the sixth minute of the match. That score, brilliantly finished by Breaffy forward Conor O'Shea at the end of a powerful run from the left wing, served to bring out the best in Galway rather than galvanise the home team, and from there to the half-time whistle the visitors were 0-7 to 0-1 the better side, for an interval lead of 0-8 to 1-3. The Galway scores came from Peadar Ó Griofa and Eric Monahan with four pointed frees, two each; Pádraig Cunningham (two, from play), Patrick Sweeney and Conor Costello, one each, both from play. Galway continued to dominate into the third quarter but they shot a string of wides, including at least two left-footed from the left wing, which highlighted poor shot selection. At that stage Galway were also without two of their best performers in the first half: the Sweeney twins from Killanin, Cathal and Patrick, both off injured. After the game, all the talk among the large Galway support was about the loss of full-forward Patrick Sweeney who was the outstanding player on the field in the opening period but I thought his twin brother at centre half-back was as good as him, although it must be acknowledged that Mayo made Cathal's job easier by playing their centre half-forward, Aidan Walsh, in a strange kind of third midfielder-second centre half-back role. Not only was Galway team manager Gerry Fahy now deprived of the services of two players hitting top form, he was already reeling from the loss of midfielder Fionntán Ó Curraoin who couldn't start because of the ankle injury he sustained in giving a Man of the Match display for D.C.U. in the Sigerson Cup semi-finals. That was a huge blow to Galway's chances, compounded by the injuries which knocked out the Sweeney twins â€â€ and it got even worse before the game was over, with right full-back Gary Sweeney from the Mountbellew-Moylough club also having to be taken off injured; he was badly missed in the hectic closing minutes. All that was difficult for Galway to take but, beyond a shadow of a doubt, they were still good enough to have won this match if they'd driven on and taken their scoring chances in the third quarter. The door was left open to a Mayo team not playing well, in the middle third of the field in particular, as a result of which the threat of their county senior star Cillian O'Connor, switching in and out of full-forward, didn't really become a problem for the Galway full-back line â€â€ superbly marshalled by Jonathan Duane â€â€ until well into the second half. But the cream always rises to the top: O'Connor, from Ballintubber, is a prodigiously gifted young footballer, ice-cool on frees off his hands from any distance, and the feeling persisted that if Mayo could get the ball into him he'd single-handedly keep his team in contention. And that's what happened, despite Jonny Duane getting stronger and stronger at full-back for Galway with each passing minute. At the end of â€Ëœnormal' time it was level pegging, Mayo 1-10 Galway 0-13, after the visitors came from one point down to force extra-time. Mayo were one up at the end of the first 10-minute period of extra-time, 1-11 to 0-13, and they had two points to spare when it was all over, and by then it was half-past nine: time to go home and it was a sad journey for the luckless losers back down the N17. They all deserve huge sympathy, and understanding of their plight on the night. That includes the team management, for it must have been hugely disappointing for Gerry Fahy, Pat Fallon and Tomás Mannion to field without such an important player as Fionntán Ó Curraoin; to then lose three of the starting XV, and to see several other players not hit their best form. Jonathan Duane was Galway's top performer, with James Shaughnessy and Conor Costello also in very good form in defence. Neither side had a dominant midfielder on the night, while up front for Galway the star man was Patrick Sweeney but he wasn't there long enough to influence the outcome the way Cillian O'Connor shaped it for Mayo, along with their stylish left half-back Micheál Forde from Ballycastle; he looks a really bright prospect. Two of the Galway subs were played particularly well were Alan Molloy of Corofin and Adrian Varley of Cortoon Shamrocks. Scorers for Mayo: C O'Connor 0-9 (7f), C O'Shea 1-0, E Regan (2f), D Coen 0-2 each, M Forde 0-1. Scorers for Galway: P Ó Griofra (2f), E Monaghan (3f) 0-4 each; P Cunningham 0-2, C Rabbitte, P Sweeney, A Varley, N Walsh, C Costello 0-1 each. Mayo: P Mannion; M Walsh, N Freeman, D Gavin; C Crowe, S McDermott, M Forde; D Kirby, D Geraghty; A Farrell, A Walsh, C O'Shea; E Regan, C O'Connor, D Coen. Subs: J Shaughnessey for Farrell (39 mins), B Harrison for D Gavin (45), C McDonagh for G Sweeney (53), C Walsh for Coen (60), A O'Toole for Shaughnessey (77). Galway: M Breathnach; G Sweeney, J Duane, J Shaughnessy; C Costello C Sweeney, C Halloran; B Flaherty, P Cunningham; C Rabbitte, T Flynn, S Maughan; P Ó Griofra, P Sweeney, E Monahan. Subs: N Walsh for P Sweeney (inj, 22 mins), A Molly for C Sweeney (inj, h-t), A Varley for S Maughan (39), S Moran for Cunningham (51), S Maughan for McDonagh (75); G Armstrong. Referee: Michael Duffy (Sligo).