Galway 4-25
Clare 0-20
On the face of it, the scoreline reflected a near carnival and an intravenous injection of good vibes for Galway after their meek performance against Dublin. The scoreline though, really was an imposter because Clare were unbelievably naïve and Galway did as they pleased with them. There was no real structure or pattern to the second half but the game had assumed the temperature and tempo of an exhibition match by then.
It was a very positive performance from Galway because they improved dramatically in the areas they needed to. After suffering a meltdown up front against Dublin, when seven of the eight forwards they used managed to strike the ball out of their hand on a combined total of just 14 occasions, all their starting attack had scored from play by the 48th minute, while 4-20 of their final tally came from play.
After losing the puckout battle 31-15 against Dublin, Galway won that statistical category here 33-29, showcasing their intent by winning the first six Clare puckouts. Galway have been hammered for not winning more aerial possession but the reality at this level is that most possession is won on the break and they competed manfully on the breakdown.
Advertisement
Clare trailed by 10 points at the break and while they had the assistance of the strong breeze to come, whatever chance they had of remaining competitive disappeared they were reduced to 14 men after 40 minutes when James McInerney recklessly pulled across Joe Canning.
It was Clare’s third year in succession to bomb in the qualifiers but the most frustrating aspect of their performance was their naivety. Similar to the Division Two League final against Limerick, you could have driven a bus through the centre of the Clare defence early in the game.
Clare eventually responded by playing Nicky O’Connell as a sweeper but the damage was done by then, with Galway ahead by 2-4 to 0-1 by the end of the first quarter.
For the fifth time in big games in the last two seasons, Clare completely faded away in the last quarter. They had 0-17 on the board by the 45th minute and while they created plenty of point-scoring chances for the remainder of the game, the intensity had inevitably bled out of the match by then. Even then Clare still hit 10 second half wides.
Goals always gave Galway breathing space before the match descended into a rout but Clare didn’t create a single goalscoring chance throughout the 70 minutes. Although they were getting scores out the field in the opening half, their full-forward line completely played into Galway’s hands by largely playing inside their own 20m line. And Galway just swallowed them up.
Advertisement
Clare’s defence was continually at sea. After making just eight plays against Dublin, Galway started Joe Canning at wing-forward with Iarla Tannian taking up station at number 14. Canning signalled his intent from his first possession after only two minutes when he ran 30 yards before crashing the ball off the crossbar.
Canning immediately switched back into full-forward as Galway began alternating him with Tannian as they tried to isolate either player with Damien Hayes inside. The ploy worked on seven minutes when a long ball into space by David Burke was latched onto by Hayes who hammered it to the roof of the net.
Hayes was on fire in the first half with 1-3 from play and he made the opening for Galway’s second goal in the 11th minute when he threaded the ball through to Iarla Tannian. After his shot came off the post, Ger Farragher reacted quickest to slip the rebound neatly to the net.
Galway had some big performances up front. Canning made 15 plays and ended with 1-9, 1-4 from play. Farragher nailed 1-4 from play, while Tannian’s physicality always gave Galway a ball-winning option up front in the first half when the game was a contest.
Their changes at the back also worked. Donal Barry had a good first half at wing-back while Shane Kavanagh had a steadying influence throughout at full-back.
Advertisement
Clare’s best spell arrived midway through the first half when they changed their puckout tactic and Philip Brennan began picking out isolated Clare players in the middle third. They trailed by seven points in the 29th minute when Canning exposed Clare’s defence again and showcased his class.
After winning a ball in the corner, he went around Nicky O’Connnell before feigning to shoot and then dinked the ball over Cian Dillon’s hurley before driving it to the net from close range.
Galway should have had a fourth goal on the stroke of half time when Brennan made a superb block from Gantley from just five metres. That fourth goal eventually arrived in the 53rd minute when another ball in over the full-back line was pounced on by Alan Kerins, who slammed it to the net.
Galway will be pleased to have got back on track but they won’t have learned a whole lot from this mismatch.
Star man: Damien Hayes (Galway)
Advertisement
Referee: D Kirwan (Cork)
Attendance: 13,011
Galway: J Skehill; F Moore, S Kavanagh, D Collins; D Barry, T Óg Regan, A Cullinane (K Hynes 71min); A Smith (0-1), D Burke (0-1) (B Daly 64min); J Gantley (0-2, J Regan 0-1- 64min), G Farragher (1-4) (A Harte — 65min), J Canning (1-9, 3f, sline, '65); D Hayes (1-3), I Tannian (0-2, C Donnellan 56min), A Kerins (1-2).
Clare: P Brennan; P Vaughan (B Bugler ht), C Dillon, C Cooney; P O'Connor, P Donnellan (G Quinn 63min), J McInerney; N O'Connell (0-6, 5fs, 65), J Clancy (0-1) (L Markham 44min); J Conlon (0-2), F Lynch (0-1) (S Collins — 50min), D McMahon (C O'Donovan 56min); C McInerney (0-1), C Morey (0-4), C McGrath (0-5, 3fs).