Galway 5-34 Westmeath 1-16
There will be plenty of bigger challenges for Galway’s hurlers in the weeks ahead, but they started the League campaign by destroying Westmeath in an entertaining but one-sided encounter in Mullingar this afternoon (Saturday ).
Limerick, Tipp and Cork lie ahead for Shane O’Neill’s side in the coming weekends, so he was able to rest some of his established players for this opener which still had to be won.
He resisted the temptation to make wholesale changes in the starting line0-up, but he must have been impressed what he saw in the first half when Galway picked up pace after a slow start.
O’Neill said afterwards that it was an ideal opportunity for the lads to shake off the cobwebs off the long lay-off when training was restricted to the odd small bubble or ball-wall work.
“You could see we were very rusty in the first quarter and probably lacked a but of composure, but we came into it then and started making some good decisions.
He said he was impressed by the ruthlessness of their play which he said was down to a desire to get back into action after the layoff.
“The guys just wanted to come out and play to the best of their ability. I thought right to the end they worked extremely hard, right to the end where we saw some great tracking back by the forwards.
He said the absence of some of the more established players from the line-up was down to squad management.
“We have five league games in six weeks so we just want to be able to manage the game time where guys are fitness wise and we just have to be very conscious of that.
“They were in great form coming back and they are in extremely good condition as you can see. Any guys who were on their own were using a ball wall. Others in twos and three worked depending who was in the house. It was really just to get the expansive long-striking into it. We are relatively happy.
He said the team were looking forward to the big games in the weeks ahead.
“We are delighted to have gotten rid of the cobwebs and have a crack at Limerick next week.
The damage was done in the first half, by the end of which they led their housesits by 17 points. At times, Galway were scoring at will, with Whelan prowling and ably assisted by Ja Mannion.
For Westmeath, former Galway player Davy Glennon was central to all their play and they have to thank Niall O’Brien whose expertise from the placed ball kept their scoreboard ticking over during what must have been a demoralising first half.
Whelan ghosted in for the first goal when he read a long ball over the top, ran onto it, went around the keeper and scored. The second goal came when Burke was first to react to a smart save by the Westmeath keeper. The third resulted from a fine shot by the impressive Ja Mannion.
Within seconds of the restart, a superb ball from Cathal Mannion was grabbed by the in running Brian Concannon and he found the top corner. Mitchell goad fior Westmeath soon afterwards, but Galway found the net again when Conor Cooney’s shot flew past the keeper.
Cooney blasted a late penalty over while an even later Westmeath penalty was missed by the otherwise impressive O’Brien.
If there was to be any criticism in that first half, it was that Galway conceded a lot of needless frees which gave O’Brien the chance to keep Westmeath in it in the opening exchanges, but overall it was a satisfactory opening day for the Tribesmen who now look forward to next weekend’s home clash with standard-setters Limerick.
Galway: E Murphy; S Loftus, G McInerney, J Fitzpatrick; A Harte (0-01 ), S Cooney (0-02 ), F Burke (0-02, 0-01 lineball ); J Coen (0-01 ), C Mannion (0-03 ); C Cooney (1-05, 0-01pen ), E Niland (0-12, 0-10f ), B Concannon (1-00 ); J Mannion (1-03 ), N Burke (1-05 ), C Whelan (1-00 ).
Subs: D Morrissey for Fitzpatrick (22 ), TJ Brennan for Harte (44 ), J Cooney for Concannon (44 ), D Kilcommins for C Mannion (52 ), K Cooney for Whelan (52 ), J Flynn for Niland (56 ), D Cronin for Loftus (56 ).
Westmeath: E Skelly; D Egerton, T Doyle, C Shaw; A Cox, A Craig, D McNicholas; R Greville, D Glennon (0-01 ); J Boyle (0-01 ), C Doyle (0-02 ), J Galvin; N O’Brien (0-11, 0-10f ), D Clinton, S Williams (0-01 ).
Subs: N Mitchell (1-00 ) for Galvin (21 ), T Gallagher for Cox (half-time ), J Coll for Clinton (42 ), K Regan for McNicholas (50 ), S Clavin for Greville (62 ).
Referee: S Stack (Dublin ).
