ONE SINGLE AND agonising point short.
That’s all it was, that slender margin casting Galway to defeat and ensuring their wait to land Sam Maguire again will drag into 2025.
They hoped to end a 23-year wait for the prize they so desperately craved, but instead were handed off by Armagh in a tension-filled finale.
This All-Ireland football decider loss is going to be an extremely painful one to absorb, as key topics emerge in the inquest into the defeat.
*****
1. The chances were there, Galway just couldn’t capitalise
Boil it down, and the lowest scoring tally of Galway’s ten championship games in 2024 arrived in their last and most critical game. Only managing to register 0-13 will nag at them. They only scored 13 points earlier in the season against Sligo and 12 against Westmeath, but in both those matches they struck a goal. Yesterday they never threatened to test Blaine Hughes.
The missed point opportunities will torment their minds over the winter. 13 scores from 25 shots on goal. Shane Walsh went from a virtuoso display in the 2022 final as he kicked nine points, to two scores from seven shots in the 2024 final. It felt that Connor Gleeson or Matthew Tierney should have been handed free-taking responsibilities, once it became evident that Walsh’s scoring touch had deserted him.
Paul Conroy and Céin Darcy were terrific in shooting 0-3 apiece, while Cillian McDaid also emerged strongly with two, but Damien Comer was scoreless and Walsh only hit one from play. Couple with Robert Finnerty’s early withdrawal and those hits were too great for Galway to absborb.
“We have to be realistic here, we didn’t play anywhere near to our potential in the second half,” remarked Padraic Joyce afterwards.
“We probably made more mistakes in the second half than we’ve made in all the games all year. It’s very hard to stomach it.”
*****
2. Joyce left bereft in defeat
Their playing exploits have long ensured both Padraic Joyce and Kieran McGeeney enjoy legendary status in their counties. Whoever won this game would further cement their legacy, but Joyce was forced to watch on as McGeeney got the chance to climb the Hogan Stand steps again, enjoying as a manager what he had experienced as a player.
In year five in charge of Galway, this would have been a huge achievement for Joyce. Over an hour after the game he fielded questions on the defeat and painted a picture of utter devastation in the Galway camp. He badly wanted to steer this Galway group over the line but that aim was not realised.
“The dressing room is in an awful state. No words can put down the way I feel. I’m heartbroken for the lads moreso. They’re devastated in there.
“Congratulations to Armagh and congratulations to Kieran McGeeney on the job he’s done with them. You can’t take that away from them.”
*****
3. Injury setbacks and the issue of panel depth
Joyce didn’t opt for the easy escape route that injuries cost Galway, a season marred by setbacks in that regard, eventually catching up on his players. The nagging suspicion that stars like Comer and Walsh have not been moving freely, does persist. Captain Seán Kelly couldn’t offer his usual leadership as he was unable to start.
They lost Robert Finnerty ten minutes in, a major blow as he looked sharp early on in turning over an Armagh kickout, drawing a foul and kicking the free. The hit he took in that challenge ended his direct influence on this final though. Galway will wonder the difference he could have made in taking frees ideally suited to a left-footer and getting on the end of the succession of scoring opportunities that presented themselves in the last quarter.
Cian Hernon, who broke his wrist before the Donegal game, was another missing option off the bench. The planned flow of Galway’s replacements was disrupted by the early loss of Finnerty. Their reserves didn’t impact like the trio of Campbell, Burns and O’Neill could have. Was the finale tailor made for the football skills of 2022 All-Star John Daly to be utilised in a more advanced position?
*****
4. A different feeling from 2022
Some All-Ireland final defeats cut deeper. The consensus in 2022 was that Galway, armed with a new and exciting team, entering a decider for the first time with this bunch of players, had given it their best shot.
They were still beaten. It happens. Kerry packed a stronger scoring punch when the game was up for grabs. Galway still bagged 0-16, and they had a couple of stellar showings from players like Walsh and McDaid, two years ago.
The sense of disappointment engulfs a team in a greater fashion when you lose a second final. The concern grows as to whether the chance has been missed. Galway can look at teams like Tyrone, Kerry and Cork who bounced back from All-Ireland final defeats over the past two decades to right that wrong. But they will know from near neighbours Mayo that the pursuit can also be fruitless and the nature of this performance will be hard to settle in their minds.
“In the last couple of minutes Kerry were the better team,” said Joyce, recalling the 2022 loss.
“But today we had chance after chance after chance. So it’s going to be hard to take. We’re going to regret it for a long time.”
*****
5. The hard work was done, but no prize at the end
Three years ago, Mayo celebrated wildly after toppling Dublin in a remarkable semi-final contest, but there was no tangible reward for them later on All-Ireland final day. Last month Galway repeated the trick of taking down a title-winning Dublin team, yet again no All-Ireland trophy has materialised at the end of the season.
Galway had performed excellently this summer, their route to the final was arduous but they beat in turn last year’s All-Ireland semi-finalists (Monaghan), the reigning Leinster and All-Ireland champions (Dublin), and the current Ulster kingpins (Donegal).
The scale of opportunity wasn’t lost on Galway entering this novel final, just like Armagh were aware of that after they had defeated Kerry.
“We had a great chance after a super year,”admitted Joyce.
“Both teams did. We knew coming into it that someone was going to be disappointed and someone was going to be elated.
“It’s going to haunt us for a while.”
