Moore the merrier as he looks to improve for the replay

VARIOUS THEORIES pursue the sporting stalemate – the team snatching a replay from the jaws of defeat having the advantage the next day, the team letting victory escape not letting it happen again, etc.

Fergal Moore is buying none of them: the only theory the Galway hurling captain is interested in is the one manager Anthony Cunningham will put up on the drawing board when they start back training this evening, and how, or rather how much, they will need to improve again to beat Kilkenny on September 30th.

“That’s the big thing, the only thing that matters,” says Moore. “Because Sunday’s game is in the past now. We can only take what we can from it, learn and work to improve, and put those into practice for the replay. And sure, there is plenty to improve on, because we are a learning team, the whole time, and an improving team, gaining experience day in, day out.

“And Sunday was a huge occasion for us, a big step up, even the pace of the game, again, and I thought our young fellas responded very well, and that can only improve them. So that’s the main thing, that we’ve a lot of improving to do, and it’s very important that we get the heads down again in training over the next couple of weeks, and make those improvements.”

The only worry for Galway, naturally, is that Kilkenny will be thinking they have plenty of room to improve as well – particularly on their first-half performance. There’s no doubt Galway started the stronger, but at least they finished strong too, even if it took Joe Canning’s free to save their day.

Having witnessed Canning miss a similarly crucial chance, just minutes earlier, Moore could be forgiven for thinking Galway’s strong finish wouldn’t be strong enough – although he claims he never lost hope, nor did any of this team-mates.

“Well, we were always going to keep going until the finish,” he says, “but of course, all the kudos to Joe. An unbelievable pressure free at the end, and he put it straight over the black spot. So we lived to fight another day, and delighted to do so.

“We did start very well, got the early goal. But then we were playing the All-Ireland champions, on the biggest day of the year, and always knew they’d come back, and that’s what they did in the second-half. They’re not champions for the past few years for no reason, kept tagging over the scores and didn’t panic.

“We missed chances, sure, but you’ll always have that on the big occasion, chances missed at both ends. But the main thing for us is that we kept going until the final whistle, which is something a lot of Galway teams haven’t done in the past, kept going, kept fighting, and we’ve got ourselves another chance.

“And the one thing I’ve been saying about this team is what they might lack in experience they make up for with enthusiasm. They fought tooth and nail for every ball, and every player that came on as subs fought the same way as well. That’s very satisfying for the management to see, but again, none of that is any good if we don’t bring it back into training over the next three weeks, and back into the replay.”

Moore found himself in the unexpected position of having to block a Henry Shefflin free in front of goal early on, when the Kilkenny forward chanced a goal effort instead of taking his point: inevitably then the Galway defender was sure that Shefflin would chance the goal again when Kilkenny were awarded a penalty, with just three minutes of normal time remaining.

“Well, I didn’t know how much time was left, to be honest. But yeah, I did think he would go for the goal. But he went for his point. Six of one, half dozen of another maybe. But it gave us the chance to draw the game, and draw it we did.”

That chance for the draw, the result of an apparent foul on Davy Glennon by Jackie Tyrrell, will no doubt be debated right up until replay time, although Moore is content to let it go, at least before he inevitably gets to see it on TV.

“Well no, I didn’t see it, being down at the other end of the pitch. But you’ll always get those 50-50 decisions. There were plenty on both sides, first and second half. So absolutely no complaints, either way. I thought the game was refereed very well.”