| Galway benefitting from Loughnane’s
methods  Two
matches into his reign and already Ger Loughnane’s methods are having
a major impact in Galway.
This win was every bit as comfortable as it looked on the scoreboard and
contained the directness and bite which was the hallmark of the Clare
teams which Loughnane managed with such distinction for so long.
Speaking afterwards Loughnane’s eyes were alight not with the boasts
of guiding his team to victory but with thoughts of the challenge of hosting
Tipperary in Pearse Stadium in two weeks time.
On this evidence there won’t be many teams who fancy coming face
to face with Loughnane’s revitalised Tribesmen.
Three stylish points in the final 10 minutes from Kevin Broderick, Eugene
Cloonan and Richie Murray embellished a victory claimed with the more
usual qualities of hard work and fierce competitiveness.
Every 50-50 ball was fought for by Galway players as if their lives
depended on it a rarity at this early stage of the season. And crucially
the Tribesmen had plenty of dash and ruthlessness in front of the posts
to ensure their efforts were not in vain.
Galway clipped over three points to secure an early lead but Sean O’Connor
trundled a speculative free to the edge of the square into the back of
the net and Limerick found themselves in front without really having earned
their lead.
The Galway defence tightened their grip on the game thereafter and Limerick
found scores hard to come by. Frees from Eugene Cloonan, who finished
with 0-9, and points from play from Damien Hayes and Kevin Broderick sent
Galway into a half-time lead.
A match where imagination was at a premium and physical challenges were
the order of the day saw the Treatysiders trailing by just a solitary
point with 10 minutes remaining before that flurry of scores sealed Galway’s
win.
Speaking afterwards Loughnane said: “We are going in the right direction
but we need to combine our physical game with fast, skillful hurling if
we really want to challenge but I think we can do that.”
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