Galway primed to produce their best

Ian O'Riordantalks to the versatile David Tierney as Ger Loughnane's charges prepare for a season-defining game.

From the "savagery" of Kilkenny's tackling to the "fighting performance" of his own team there's not much else Galway manager Ger Loughnane could say to hype up Saturday's All-Ireland quarter-final at Croke Park. To cap it off, he told Enda McEvoy in the Sunday Tribune that if Galway "don't battle it out" against Kilkenny, "then definitely the management of the team would be for someone else".

It's hard to know what impact all of this is having on the Galway players, although according to midfielder David Tierney, they're not really listening to what Loughnane says once it's outside their own confines.

"Ah no, I wouldn't worry too much about them things," says Tierney. "I mean everyone was disappointed after losing the Clare game. But the focus is always on the players to go out and perform. Managers can only prepare us, but it's up to us to perform.

"And I don't actually know what he said about Kilkenny, to be honest. I wouldn't read too much into it anyway. We just concentrate on playing. As a group of players we're around long enough. Like there are 10 or 12 of us there with five or six years experience. So we're just looking forward to the challenge Kilkenny bring.

"And they do bring a great intensity. We've tried to emulate that in training, playing two or three games every week. And there is intense competition for places. I mean our training matches have been very good. High-scoring, and brilliant hurling, really. We just didn't perform in the Clare game. We've looked at that, and tried to rectify it. We've 30 lads raring to go. We've had the extra week's rest, and just looking forward to getting down to it on Saturday."

It has been suggested part of Galway's problem this summer has been Loughnane's inability to settle on a regular starting line-up. He would often announce dummy selections during his years with Clare, but the difference with Galway is some of the players have looked uncertain themselves about their exact role.

Tierney, for example, started at midfield against Clare, and then played at half back in the final qualifier round win over Antrim. But that, he says, is not Galway's problem at the moment.

"I'd be hoping I'd be midfield again, but Fergal Healy, David Collins, have all played there. It's possibly my best position, although I did have a stint at wing back. But we've a luxury in that we could pick from 20 or 25 players to go out and do the job. It's about trying to get the right blend for the team you're playing against, and that's really the manager's job. As players we're fine with that, and just get on with it."

Tierney agrees Galway have yet to get the best out of themselves. If they can manage that on Saturday there's no reason they can't repeat the 2005 win over Kilkenny, their 5-18 to 4-18 victory was one of the most entertaining games of the past decade.

"That was a great experience, even if the year ended on a low, losing to Cork. But we'd five championship games on the trot. We need to get that consistency back or else we'll be looking at the exit door. So we want to get that big performance out of ourselves. We've a lot put into this, time wise and everything else . . . But you don't go around fearing other teams. You concentrate on getting the best out of yourselves."