No dream return for Keating

NO surprises. No dream return for Babs Keating. No further hint of a Wexford re birth. All a bit inevitable, really, that Tipperary and Galway should manage to reach the National Hurling League final, to be staged at the Gaelic Grounds on Sunday week, given their recent liking for this particular competition.

Still, Keating's Laois team did manage to give Tipperary a run for their money at Nowlan Park, even if the final score of 1-13 to 1-11 flatters the losers just a little. As Tipperary's Colm Bonnar suggested afterwards: "I thought we took our foot off the pedal."

His side had enjoyed a comfortable seven point cushion - helped in no small way by John Leahy's outstanding contribution of 1-4 - entering the final eight minutes but were forced into a backs to the wall scenario as Laois salvaged pride and boosted confidence before the upcoming Leinster championship.

It was a bad day all round for Leinster hurling. Wexford found the step up in class to face Galway, too much to handle, the westerners eventually winning by 2-15 to 1-10. And Wexford manager Liam Griffin conceded: "We were beaten fair and square. We were up against a good team and it is hard to keep the plans going." Just another part of the learning process.

Galway also seem to be learning and the decision to move Joe Rabbitte back out to the wide spaces on the wing appear to have borne fruit. Rabbitte notched up 0-5 and Frank Forde 1-5 as Galway produced the sort of form to suggest some silverware can yet head west of the Shannon.

The GAC's decision to hold the Tipperary Galway league final at Limerick's Gaelic Grounds has caused a fixtures headache for the Munster Council, who had planned to stage the Cork Limerick Munster championship first round meeting at the venue.