Walsh’s mean machine at a different level to the Rossies
FOR the two Kevins — Walsh and McStay — there is much more at stake in the Hyde tomorrow than just the destination of the Nestor Cup and bragging rights over the neighbours. This is the opportunity for both teams to make a statement and show that they are ready to take the mantle off Mayo as the standard-bearer in the west.
The Tribesmen need to win this Connacht final more than Roscommon. They have made genuine progress over the spring. Inconsistency has been the crux of many of their issues for the past 15 years, but they certainly appeared to have sorted that out during their National League campaign.
Their performances now display a level of consistency that hasn’t been seen in a Galway team for more than a decade and a half. In their first season back in Division 1, they were unbeaten in the group stages, conceded just one goal and had the best defensive record in the whole division.
It was the manner in which Roscommon exploited the space in front of the Galway defenders in last year’s Connacht final that sent Walsh back to the drawing board. He recruited Tyrone man Paddy Tally and it is clear that the players are now much more comfortable playing the defensive system — and all of their defenders, from goalkeeper Ruairi Lavelle up, have improved individually in the past six months.
Sean Andy Ó Ceallaigh and Sean Kelly have forced their way into the defence and they are at ease playing the system that Walsh and Tally have knitted together. And they have more options all over the field — Peter Cooke and Ciaran Duggan have emerged as real finds in midfield but such is Walsh’s wealth of options that Duggan didn’t play against Sligo even though he was man of the match against Mayo.
There have been plenty of false dawns in Galway in the past 10 years. On numerous occasions, they seem to take a step forward, only to follow it by staggering back two or three steps. Think of the classic 2008 All-Ireland quarter-final in the rain against Kerry. Galway looked like a team on the rise but they weren’t seen for a couple of years after that.
That’s why there is genuine pressure on Walsh and his players tomorrow. After the consistency of the spring and the third consecutive Championship win over Mayo, they have given themselves a platform for further glory. But if they were to come a cropper against Roscommon yet again, all that progress would be dismantled in one fell swoop.
This is a title that Galway need to win to confirm themselves as All-Ireland contenders. McStay would like his Rossies team to be the first in 27 years to win back-to-back provincial titles but even if they lose, they would still have last year’s Connacht medal in the bag and would still be hopeful of reaching the Super 8s.
Galway have already been stress-tested in this Championship, when they just got the better of an injury-ravaged Mayo with an ultra-defensive display. It was the sort of match where both teams were determined not to make mistakes, rather than go for the jugular.
In what almost felt like a response to their critics, Galous way brushed a weak Sligo aside with an awesome display of allout attack in the first 20 minutes of their semi-final. In Damien Comer, Shane Walsh, Eamonn Brannigan and Barry McHugh, they have a lethal attacking unit and also have finishing talent like Ian Burke and Michael Daly on the bench.
Walsh will have to find a balance between the caution of the Mayo performance and the abandon against Sligo. But I think he will. This is a much better Galway side than the one Roscommon beat last year.
The Rossies still pose a seri- threat up front. Donie Smith, the Murtagh brothers and Conor Devaney can all do serious damage if they are given the room and space to do so. They were given a bit of room in last year’s final, but they may find themselves suffocated in the Hyde tomorrow. They will discover this is a far meaner Galway machine.
And Roscommon’s defence and midfield still haven’t really proven that they can shut up shop to the same extent that Galway can when the pressure comes on.
They conceded 4-12 to Cavan in the Division 2 final when the Cavan players found plenty of space in the channels. Those will need to be closed off tomorrow.
While Galway have been bolstered by the addition of a couple of good defenders in the past 12 months, Roscommon have lost one of their most effective backs. Sean Mullooly, who was outstanding in last year’s final, opted to take a year away from the panel. They haven’t really replaced him.
The Rossies never give up anything easy in the Hyde and Galway will be made to work for their title. But Kevin Walsh’s side are far better than they were just a year ago. They are better organised, more at ease at playing their system and have some of the most devastating forwards in the game.
And they simply cannot afford to lose to Roscommon again, or else all the genuine progress of the past six months will mean nothing.
Galway have had plenty of false dawns