Date Published: 03-May-2011

FOR the neutrals at Croke Park on Sunday, it might have turned out to be something of an anti-climax with the game effectively over as a contest after 20 minutes but that didn’t take any sheen from the Galway dressing room under the Cusack Stand, shortly before 3.30pm.

There were the usual yelps of delight but there was a deeper satisfaction about going to Croke Park and delivering what must have come close to the complete team performance – a fourth under-21 title had been secured after a 2-16 to 1-9 win over Cavan.

Four years ago, Alan Mulholland led the Galway minors to All-Ireland success – a far tighter affair that day against Derry – May Day in Croke Park, 2011, had to be a more relaxed affair . . . well at least for the supporters.

“Our forwards did a lot of damage in the first half and I was delighted with their movement and pace. But I really wanted our lads to concentrate for the first ten minutes of the second half, not to give anything away soft and not to think that they had the game won,” said Mulholland.

Deep down though, the Galway manager was beaming, although his visit to the Cavan dressing room did bring home to him what the pain of defeat is about. Cavan brought about a completely new challenge to Galway as distinct from the Cork match.

“Against Cork we went into the match with nothing to lose. Cork came with the big reputation and very few outsiders gave us any chance but today we were going into the game as favourites and Cavan had fantastic support behind them. I’m delighted at the way the lads adapted to the challenge and I’m also glad at the turn-out of Galway supporters.

“We knew that Cavan would play a style of game where they would try and get a lot of bodies behind the ball. Our plan was to get quick ball into our forwards and to use the open spaces of Croke Park – it worked very well for us,” said Mulholland.

Penalty save hero Manus Breathnach said that ‘he had taken a guess’ about the side that Barry Reilly was going to send the penalty.

“A lot of right footed kickers will tend to hit the ball to the goalie’s left. I just took one look at him before he took the kick and made up my mind to go the left – it turned out to be a good guess,” said the An Spideál goalkeeper.

Galway captain Colin Forde said that after the first 10 minutes of the match, it was hard to see how there could be much between the teams.

“It really was end to end stuff for the first 10 minutes and the Cavan forwards looked quite dangerous. We were all set for a very tight battle but Patrick Sweeney’s first goal really made a big difference – our forwards really made use of the Croke Park pitch. I thought that they really played well,” said Forde.

Galway Football Board Chairman, John Joe Holleran, asked the Galway players to treat Sunday’s victory as a ‘stepping stone’ to greater things in the future.

“You have shown everyone how Galway can play football. It was a great exhibition of how the game should be played – this is truly a great lift for the game in the county,” said the Chairman.

Seconds later in the Croke Park dressing room when Cavan manager Terry Hyland addressed the Galway team, the pain of defeat was etched all over face, although he was gracious in his remarks.

“You are a remarkable young team but stay with it because those few years pass so quickly – the chance only lasts a very short while,” he said.

And maybe those sober few words, delivered through the pain barrier, might provide the most powerful message of all to the Galway players.

This week though, the taste of success is good and it’s one that Galway will want to hold onto.

For a complete match report see page 23 of this week’s Connacht Sentinel.

More reports and reaction in Thursday’s Connacht Tribune.