In the preliminary quarter-finals of the All-Ireland SFC, Galway had to demonstrate grit and determination to secure a 0-14 to 0-11 victory over a resilient Monaghan. The win still wasn’t sufficient to keep the Galway team from feeling the pressure, but it earned them their spot in the All-Ireland quarter-finals scheduled for the following weekend.
Despite feeling as though they were playing under the weight of the wind throughout the first half, Monaghan only trailed by one point. However, their luck would run out soon after the game was restarted as they failed to take the lead against a Galway team admirably captained by seasoned players Paul Conroy and John Maher.
Choosing to take on the elements, Monaghan decided to play against the wind and rain in the first half. Although they had a strong defence, they found themselves slightly trailing at half time, 0-6 to Galway’s 0-5.
The first 13 minutes of play saw no points for Galway – their first score, a free point from the left wing by Shane Walsh, only equalised the score after Monaghan’s Jack McCarron marked his team’s first point. Although Galway had been struggling to penetrate Monaghan’s defensive line, another free point from Conroy put them in the lead 16 minutes in.
Monaghan’s defences remained strong however, often with all of their players defending their half. Despite Joel Wilson stepping in for Conor McManus, Monaghan skillfully counter-attacked, and managed to outsocre Galway in the next round, with Micheal Bannigan tying the score before Gary Mohan and Stephen O’Hanlon brought them to a 0-4 to 0-2 lead after 26 minutes.
Though Monaghan’s lead was shaky, after a limping Walsh was replaced on Galway’s side, points from Rob Finnerty, Matthew Tierney, and Conroy saw Galway regain the lead by halftime.
The second half saw McCarron’s sustained effort bring Monaghan to a tie after 40 minutes of Galway’s fruitless possession. Yet, the introduction of Damien Comer to the Galway lineup invigorated the home crowd of over 6700 and a point from determined veteran Conroy reestablished their lead three minutes later.
In a riveting display of football, Finnerty and McCarron made significant contributions through competitive free kicks while Monaghan brought McManus into their offensive line. Conor McCarthy stole the show by levelling the score after 50 minutes with a fantastic point from the left side.
As the match progressed, Finnerty and John Maher led Galway to a comfortable two-point lead. This was shortly followed by a near miss from Barry McBennett, who narrowly avoided scoring after a perfect setup from Michael Hamill and McCarthy, ultimately hitting the crossbar.
Maintaining a robust defense, Galway pushed their advantage to four, thanks to two additional frees from Finnerty, with 12 minutes left in the match. Comer marked his entry with an excellent point nine minutes post his substitution, pushing the score to 0-13 to 0-8. As Monaghan struggled to catch up, Galway began preparations for the forthcoming All-Ireland quarter-final match, bringing ashore Sean Kelly and Finnerty.
The tension in the final moments escalated as McManus scored two late frees for the Monaghan side. Still, Galway saw no major threat to their position. Galway manager, Padraic Joyce, acknowledged the need for improvement despite the victory. In his words, “It was a close shave for a great while, but we made sufficient scores to claim the match. We’re aware that a similar performance won’t suffice next week. Nevertheless, we’ll appreciate the victory and gear up for the quarterfinals.”
The Galway team included C Gleeson, J Glynn, S Fitzgerald, S Mulkerrin, J McGrath, L Silke, D McHugh, P Conroy (0-3), M Tierney (0-2, two frees), C Darcy, S Kelly, C McDaid, R Finnerty (0-5, three frees), S Walsh (0-1, one free), and J Maher (0-1). The substitutes comprised L Ó’Conghaile (0-1) for Walsh (26), D Comer (0-1) for Darcy (41), J Heaney for McDaid (65), C Hernon for Kelly (68), and D Ó’Flaherty for Finnerty (70).
The Monaghan team comprised of R Beggan, K Lavelle, R O’Toole, R Wylie, J Irwin, R McAnespie, and C McCarthy, who scored 0-1. G Mohan also scored 0-1 and was joined by J Wilson. The team also included M Hamill, M Bannigan who scored 0-2 including one free, and B McBennett. Assisting the team were A Woods, J McCarron who netted 0-3, two of them frees and S O’Hanlon who put in 0-2. Substitutes were introduced during the game with T McPhillips replacing McAnespie at 28 minutes, C McManus (0-2, two frees) swapping for Mohan at 45 minutes, M McCarville replacing Wilson at 53 minutes, C McNulty subbed for McCarron at 58 minutes, and S Jones swapped in for Hamill at 68 minutes. The referee overseeing the match was Sean Lonergan from Tipperary.