By DARREN KELLY

WITH direct involvement in eight scores each, Galway’s principal two forwards enjoyed the extra space to express themselves as the Tribeswomen put All-Ireland challengers on notice by overcoming Waterford in Saturday’s quarter-final.

Eva Noone scored two points while directly assisting six scores, including the penalty converted by Kate Slevin.  Olivia Divilly registered five from play, along with three assists and drove Galway towards their dominant start that gave them a match-winning seven point advantage.

“We’ve done a lot of work on our attacking play this year, bringing a new dimension to it,” said Divilly after the final whistle. “Up in the forwards, we get a lot of support from the midfield and the half backs as well.

“That’s great and it helps us out a lot that we try and attack as a team and defend as a team. It’s probably something that we’re going to continue to develop going forward.

“Definitely nicer when there’s a bit more space. Up to this point, our last few games were very defensive and it was hard to break down those mass defences. Waterford had a huge attacking threat but we probably had a little bit more space up our end for the forwards.”

“We did go in at half-time pretty happy with our performance,” said Noone. “But we knew it wasn’t over. There was still another half to go.

“We knew there would have been a lot of space. Waterford just go 15 on 15. Our league games, we were playing Division 2 teams. There was a lot of 15 behind the ball.

“That was probably the first time this year we actually got a lot of space. As a forward, that’s what you want.  You want space to get them scores off.”

The Kilkerrin-Clonberne duo acknowledged that the pace was certainly up on their previous sojourns through Division 2, the Connacht championship, and the All-Ireland group stage victories over Tipperary and Donegal.

“Honestly, I’m wrecked after that,” said Noone. “Definitely the toughest game all year and probably for me in a Galway jersey. They put it up to us right at the end there. They got a goal in the last few minutes but thank God it was disallowed because they would have been right back in it.

“We’ll probably have to look back on that second half performance and see where we went wrong, and rectify it against Dublin in two weeks time.

Pictured: Galway’s Eva Noone on the attack against Cora Murray of Waterford during the All-Ireland Ladies Football quarter-final at Tuam Stadium on Saturday. Photos: Joe O’Shaughnessy.