Galway 1-24

Dublin 0-17

GALWAY’S hassle-free passage through the Walsh Cup continued at Parnell Park on Saturday when they cantered to victory over a flattering Dublin outfit.

The Tribesmen have won their three matches in the tournament so far by an average of 15 points which has set them up for a final date with Wexford in Dr Cullen Park, Carlow on Sunday (1:30pm).

In a contest which gradually lost its edge before a modest crowd, Galway’s mix of the old and new proved significantly superior to their hosts who were inclined to overdo the short passing and failed to convert several goal chances.

Repeat fouling is a risky business at the best of times, but when you have a free-taker of Evan Niland’s quality in the opposition ranks, Dublin were made to pay a heavy price.

Niland landed all 12 of his placed balls and threw in five points from play for good measure in a Man of the Match display. His accuracy was phenomenal on a day Declan McLoughlin also showed up well in attack.

With Padraic Mannion handed a surprising starting slot in midfield, Galway have hit the ground running in 2024 although none of the teams encountered to date are among the sport’s elite.

Though there is an increasing amount of cross-border traffic in relation to the constitution of team managements, it was still strange to see more Galway men – including former All-Ireland winning manager Micheal Donoghue – on the Dublin sideline than on their own.

In truth, not much notice is taken of such scenarios given that virtually every county in hurling and football is relying on some outside influence, but Donoghue, Noel Larkin and Franny Forde look to have their hands full in trying to take Dublin to the next level.

Pictured: Galway attacker Evan Niland who scored an impressive haul of 17 points in their Walsh Cup semi-final win over Dublin at Parnell Park on Saturday.