Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
FLYNN CREDIBLE
Jason’s double spells end of Tipp supremacy as Tribesmen whet appetite for a wide open Championship
IF there’s one positive for Tipperary after yesterday’s League final pummelling, it’s that it happened in April rather than August. After the last two All-ireland semifinals served up by these teams, it was the safest of assumptions to expect a tight encounter in the Gaelic Grounds but the modest crowd of 16,089 instead were served up a spectacle that was every bit as one-sided as the scoreline suggests. Galway weren’t flattered by their six-point half-time lead and when Jason Flynn goaled within seconds of the restart, it was difficult to see how Tipperary could mount a comeback, so poor had they been up to then. Their performance didn’t improve any as Galway continued to work the scoreboard to the extent that, at the end, they had inflicted the biggest defeat on Tipperary since ground zero - the 2012 All-ireland semi-final, when Kilkenny beat them by two points more. It was a complete systems failure from the All-ireland champions right throughout the field. Their full-back line was at sea as Conor Whelan and Flynn turned them inside out time and again, while Joe Canning chipped in with 0-4 from play from the halfforward line. Captain David Burke was the dominant midfielder on show and Tipp’s much vaunted attack made no meaningful impact. Noel Mcgrath was the only forward to score from play in the opening half and was only joined by Michael Breen and his brother John, in injury-time, in those stakes in the second half. Granted, their attack was minus its talisman with Seamus Callanan ruled out through injury but the talk right throughout the spring was how Tipp had assembled a formidable squad. The last time the reigning All-ireland champions took a pummelling like this in a League final was Kilkenny in 2011, when Dublin beat them by 12 points. They bounced back to win the Allireland so it’s not all doom and gloom for Tipp, but Kilkenny were able to welcome a host of stalwarts back into the side for the Championship that year. Michael Ryan doesn’t have that luxury, though Callanan will certainly return to the starting team and probably Donagh Maher and maybe Patrick ‘Bonner’ Maher. Galway did everything they needed to and more yesterday but
won’t need to be reminded that this performance will be used as a stick to beat them with if they fall short in the summer. In securing their 10th League title and first since 2010, they became the third successive Division 1B winner of the competition. Bizarrely, they’ll start the defence of their title in the lower division next year. In the early exchanges there was little indication they would be such handsome winners as both teams started poorly and had 20 wides between them by half-time. But when Micheal Donoghue’s side upped their game, they left Tipp trailing in their wake. Galway’s lead was just two points by the 25th minute but when they reeled off four successive points, they enjoyed a lead that their more assertive play merited. By half-time it was 0-11 to 0-5 and while Flynn had a frustrating first half, shooting three wides and seeing a goal chance saved, he made no mistake within a minute of the restart, firing past Darren Gleeson to put Galway effectively out of sight. Flynn exploited the space in style in the 57th minute, turning Michael Cahill and James Barry inside out before beating Gleeson again. Donoghue had the luxury of emptying the bench shortly afterwards, with Johnny Glynn making his first appearance since the 2015 All-ireland final after his spell in New York. The impressive Whelan topped up his tally to 0-5 from play while Cathal Mannion completed the rout with a late finish low to the net. Talk of Tipp’s supremacy has now quietened as one of the most open Championship campaigns in a number of years opens out before us.