Galway fail to answer old questions

National Hurling League Divisions One A and B/Kilkenny 1-19 Galway 0-18:None of the 10,000 spectators at Nowlan Park yesterday were fooled into thinking this was a routine league match - which effectively it was, given Kilkenny and Galway were already through to the play-offs. Both teams badly wanted the win.

Galway won't be fooled by the result either, and despite falling just four points short, they were gradually outclassed in most areas of play. Kilkenny were typically stubborn and in the end eased into the semi-finals, leaving Galway to face Wexford in next Sunday's quarter-finals.

It remained exciting throughout, with Galway three points up at half-time, and a chance to go six points clear early in the second half when Eugene Cloonan was handed a penalty. Surprisingly, he was content with the point. Minutes later Kilkenny were in front after a sweet goal finished by Eoin McCormack, and they coolly held the fort after that.

"The weather was top class, the pitch was excellent, and a good crowd as well," remarked Kilkenny manager Brian Cody afterwards. "So the year must be moving on."

Moving on it definitely is, and several hours after the game, when Galway manager Ger Loughnane stopped into the lobby of the Newpark hotel with warm sunshine still beaming in the windows, that realisation must really have hit home. He'd made no secret of his desire to do well in this league, and yet several old question marks over Galway's form remain.

Clearly there is some settling down to do. Loughnane made three personnel changes before the start and five further positional switches, and this trend continued throughout the game. The Damien Hayes midfield experiment didn't last long, and David Collins and Fergal Healy took charge there before half-time, albeit to reasonably good effect.

Galway's forwards did pick off some fine scores, with seven different players contributing in the first half, allowing them to build a slight advantage. In the end, though, few players, with the exceptions of Cloonan and John Lee, ended up where they started, and that ultimately weakened their tactic of upsetting Kilkenny's game.

"I don't think we'll be fooled by the scoreline at the end," admitted Loughnane, maintaining the theme of the day. "Maybe there were only four points in it at the end, but they showed up a lot of weaknesses in our team.

"But at the same time we were very competitive, scoring 18 points. Still the old fault of not even threatening to score a goal. But we were much better defensively today than we have been so far, against a really class Kilkenny forward line. So overall, I'd be satisfied with the effort we made, because beating Kilkenny down in Nowlan Park on a day like this is very, very difficult."

Loughnane also admitted it was his call for Cloonan to send the penalty over the bar. That came seven minutes after the restart, with Galway leading 0-13 to 0-10. Had Cloonan converted it the other way the pressure on Kilkenny would have been significant, but instead they appeared to take heart from Galway's softer option. "If they'd saved it they were probably still going to win," suggested Loughnane, "because it would have really lifted them. So extending our lead to four points wasn't bad at that stage."

Kilkenny promptly replied with a point from Michael Rice, before the goal that levelled it: Richie Power started the move, passing to Eddie Brennan, who short-passed to Fogarty. His brilliant finish had a huge impact on the tempo of the game, practically the same effect as waving a red cloth in front of a bull. The whole atmosphere of Nowlan Park was raised several decibels, and Kilkenny revelled in it.

They hit a further three points without reply, moving into a 1-14 to 0-14 lead. Brennan hit top gear, Derek Lyng and Rice dominated midfield, while behind them Tommy Walsh reminded us why he's known as the Tullaroan wizard. It was impossible to see a way back for Galway without a goal, and although they came back to within two points thanks to impressive points from Alan Kerins and Iarla Tannion, Kilkenny had the lost word with two superb points for Lyng, and one each for Power and McCormack.

"Obviously I'd be happy with the result," added Cody, "but I don't think either team thought of anything but victory. Both teams wanted to win. Real players will always do that. But this puts us into the semi-finals, which means we have a week's rest."

Galway used all five substitutes, with David Tierney and Kevin Broderick doing well, yet Loughnane didn't appear concerned about any lack of stability: "We don't play in the championship until June 30th: I think we're getting closer to the people we know will fill certain positions. But to see Kilkenny's work-rate was unbelievable . . ."

KILKENNY: PJ Ryan; N Hickey, B Hogan, JJ Delaney; J Tyrell, J Tennyson (0-1), T Walsh (0-1); D Lyng (0-2), M Rice (0-2); E Brennan (0-3), M Comerford (0-1), R Power (0-7, five frees); E McCormack (1-1), E Larkin (0-1), A Fogarty. Subs: P Cleere for Larkin (61 mins), W O'Dwyer for Fogarty (67 mins).

GALWAY: A Ryan; F Moore, D Hardiman, S Kavanagh; D Collins (0-2), J Lee, D Forde; T Óg Regan (0-1), D Hayes; A Kerins (0-2), I Tannian (0-1), R Murray (0-2); N Healy, E Cloonan (0-7, five frees, one penalty), F Healy (0-1). Subs: G Mahon for Regan (21 mins), K Broderick (0-1) for N Healy (half time), M Kerins for F Healy (47 mins), D Tierney (0-1) for Hardiman (55 mins), G Farragher for Murray (67 mins).

Referee: B Gavin (Offaly).