By Pádraic Ó Ciardha

FRESH off their straightforward yet impressive dismissal of Sligo in the Connacht final, the Galway senior footballers face an altogether different task as Tyrone come to town this Saturday for the first group stage round of this new-look All-Ireland format.

Pádraic Joyce’s men were ruthlessly efficient in Castlebar the weekend before last, seeing off their Division 4 opponents with the minimum of fuss, but a much tougher test should now await them in Pearse Stadium (5.15pm).

It remains to be seen how exactly teams and supporters take to this new round-robin stage. There’s no doubting that it will result in more games between the top teams in the country but, with three of the four counties in each group progressing, the whole thing also suffers from a severe lack of jeopardy. Tyrone coming to Salthill for a do-or-die clash is one thing, coming for a game where both teams know they have two more chances to get the one win they need to go through is another.

That hopefully won’t be the mindset at the weekend. Direct passage to the quarter-final stage for the group winners should be enough of a carrot  for teams to want to get off to a good start and there’s little doubt that Tyrone will be up for this one, coming into the game with a point to prove.

While the Ulster side endured a disappointing campaign last year, their 2021 All-Ireland success is still fresh in the mind and you only need to glance through the names on their panel to get a reminder of the quality they possess. They didn’t set the world alight during the league but they looked back to their best during the first half of their Ulster quarter-final clash with Monaghan.

That they failed to see that one out, Ryan O’Toole’s audacious goal in injury-time winning it for Monaghan, will have been eating at the Tyrone players over the last five weeks and they’ll be keen to get the chance to set things right against one of the favourites in this year’s All-Ireland race.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.

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