Inside Track with John McIntyre

YOU have got to hand it to St Thomas’; they always find a way. Eight county finals – nine if you include last year’s drawn decider with Loughrea – and they have yet to lose one. It’s a phenomenal record by any standards, but in a championship that’s supposed to be as competitive as Galway’s, their unblemished big-day achievement is the stuff of sporting legends.

Chasing a record-equalling six-in-a row against the only club to have pulled off that extraordinary feat in the past, the champions again came up with the answers in front of a 7,148 crowd. There was no drop in intensity or their hunger levels as St Thomas’ flew out of the blocks in a manner Turloughmore would have been hoping to do so at Pearse Stadium last Sunday.

In a nutshell, the 2023 county final was won in the opening quarter. The challengers found themselves six points adrift in what would prove a relatively low-scoring contest. That’s the period in which Turloughmore would have been hoping to make a big statement. Instead, they were the ones on the ropes.

It was to their credit, however, that they battled back bravely from that 1-4 to 0-1 deficit and actually took the lead early in the second-half, but it took a huge effort on their behalf and St Thomas’ were always going to get their second wind on a day Fintan Burke and Eanna Burke starred at opposite ends of the pitch.

Turlough would have been desperate to throw down the gauntlet to the title holders in the early exchanges, but they failed to score until the 12th minute as Shane Cooney, Darragh Burke (twice) and Conor Cooney (free) jumped St Thomas’ into an early lead and when Eanna Burke expertly finished a delivery from Damien Finnerty to the net, the team in black and white were in dire trouble.

Pictured: St Thomas’ players show their delight after retaining the Tom Callanan Cup by overcoming Turloughmore at Pearse Stadium on Sunday.  Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.