Taylor knows how tough Galway will be
SLIGO U21 manager Paul Taylor said his side were delighted with the win against Roscommon to reach this Saturday’s Connacht final in Markievicz Park. “It’s never easy going to Kiltoom and we had prepared for that. Thankfully we came away with the win,” he said. His side had a good Northwest Cup campaign prior to the Championship. “We didn’t win it, but we played Donegal and Mayo and it was great to get the experience of playing teams like those. At the end of the day though, the Championship is all that really matters,” the Eastern Harps man said. The Sligo U21s comprise many players who have progressed through the minor panel and Taylor admits this is about pushing them on to senior grade. “A lot of them were involved with the minor panel and this is about growing Sligo football and trying to get them onto the senior panels. I suppose it’s great for the county but having said that we haven’t won anything yet. Our opponents Galway on Saturday are one of the favourites for the All- Ireland, not just Connacht.
“They are definitely in the top three to win the All- Ireland and they’ve won Minor championships and have some really good players there.
“We know we’re up against it.” Having home advantage isn’t that big of a deal, he added. “It’s great for Sligo to be in a Connacht final at home. But having said that, Galway won’t be phased by coming to Markievicz, many Galway teams have won there.” As Sligo are yet to win a Connacht title, the manager says it could be seen as an added pressure for the Yeats men. “The U21 Championship has been running for 53 years, it would be nice to win it, but we are looking on Saturday as just another game.”