Polished Galway survive late scare

Galway1-12 Kildare 2-8:Already this appears to be the league of the last-minute goal, especially for Kildare.

They hit one against Tyrone in the first round to force a draw, and hit another one here - but still came up one point short. Galway survived, deservedly so, and are now two from two and looking good.

The finish at least made for an exciting climax to a game that had earlier looked doomed to mediocrity. Galway played the better football throughout, and while Kildare's comeback was admirable, it wasn't quite match-winning material. Their inconsistency was their ultimate downfall.

The winter sunshine drew a good crowd to St Conleth's Park but they hadn't much to cheer about early on as Kildare fell worryingly into arrears. When Kildare went 1-7 to 0-3 behind just before half-time it seemed to set the alarm bells ringing.

With that they scored 1-2 without replay in the opening minutes of the second half, and entering the last 10 minutes the sides were level again at 1-8 apiece. This was Kildare's chance to snatch it, but instead they allowed Galway to score four unanswered points at the game's most crucial period.

So, when a hectic goalmouth scramble in injury time eventually led to a Kildare penalty, deftly converted by Michael Conway, it was a simple case of too little, too late. There was time for one more swift passage of play and that was it. Kildare had fallen just short, yet couldn't have any great complaints.

"Well, it's hard for me to say we didn't deserve the draw," said Kildare manager Kieran McGeeney. "We worked hard to come back, but just missed those few easy chances, the difference between winning and losing. In fairness, the lads stood up again in the second half, and showed they can live with anybody. But against good teams like Galway, all the simple chances have to be taken, and we didn't do that."

Galway manager Liam Sammon has quickly identified a style of play after just a few months in charge, with Micheál Meehan and Seán Armstrong the key target men up front, while the likes of Mathew Clancy, Pádraic Joyce and Cormac Bane swarm around just behind them.

When it works, this style works well and Meehan, just like in Galway's first round win over Laois, was never far from a score, and ended with a tally of 1-5.

Joe Bergin and Paul Geraghty (a late replacement for Niall Coleman) worked well at midfield, and Sammon has also identified an exciting new wing back in Darren Mullahy. Joyce showed some flashes of his old best and is still a valuable presence on the field. Armstrong, however, retired early through injury and that took from the Galway attack.

Both teams also played a large chunk of the game with 14 men, with Kildare wing back Gary White gone after just 25 minutes, for a second yellow-card offence. There was definitely some noticeable aggression to Kildare's game, and it wasn't all the commendable sort.

With White gone, Kildare started to panic, and that helped Galway post 1-4 without replay. Meehan's goal came bang on 30 minutes, and while the long ball appeared to slip through the hands of Kildare full back Andrew McLoughlin, Meehan was cool and calm with his finish. Clancy and Bergin promptly added scores and Galway went seven points clear.

However, whatever McGeeney said at half-time worked, because Kildare played with far greater urgency from the restart. James Kavanagh scored their second goal just 10 seconds in, following a long-range free from Killian Brennan, and Alan Smith - who replaced the injured John Doyle at half-time - was proving equally capable from the placed ball.

Then Galway lost their wing back Garry Sice, also for a second yellow, and the game was neck-and-neck until the final 10 minutes. Suddenly Galway dominated again, with a second point from Clancy, one from Joyce, and another free from Bane, followed by Geraghty's security point - which of course proved crucial.

Dermot Earley ended up around midfield again, despite his apparent new role at full forward, and still he was the only one of their full forward line to score. If they can get more consistency into their game Kildare can still survive in Division One.

"I just thought we panicked when we lost the man," added McGeeney, "after being on top for the first 20 minutes. Once we got our chance to regroup I think we put in a great display in the second half. There's much more in them, that they're not really showing their true potential. We've still a lot of work to do . . .

"They have plenty of steel, though. There aren't many that go seven points down against Galway, and come back to play the way we did."

GALWAY: A Flaherty; A Burke, F Hanley, D Burke; G Sice, N Coyne, D Mullahy; J Bergin (0-1), P Geraghty (0-1); C Bane (0-2, both frees), P Joyce (0-1), D Meehan; M Clancy (0-2), M Meehan (1-5, three frees), S Armstrong. Subs: M Gottsche for A Burke (25 mins), F Breathnach for Armstrong (35 mins, inj), D Finnegan for Hanley (55 mins, inj), B Cullinane for Gottsche (57 mins).

KILDARE: E Murphy; E Bolton, A McLoughlin, M O'Flaherty; A Rainbow, K O'Neill, G White; P Mullarkey, K Brennan; J Doyle (0-2, one free), M Conway (1-2, one free, one penalty), J Kavanagh (1-0); R Sweeney, D Earley (0-1), K Donnelly. Subs: A Smith (0-3, all frees), for Doyle (half time, inj), T Fennin for Sweeney (65 mins), N Browne for Brennan (66 mins).

Referee: M Hughes (Tyrone).