Galway’s ‘long road’ will start in Laois

FAVOURED for the second successive year with the softer draw in the All-Ireland senior hurling qualifiers, the most difficult task facing Galway manager Conor Hayes this week has been to keep his team focused.

In a four-team group with Waterford, Westmeath and Laois, two to qualify for the All-Ireland quarter-finals, Galway are red-hot favourites to advance, the only battle anticipated being their clash with Waterford to decide who tops the group.

First up for Hayes and Galway is Laois in Portlaoise this evening. Given that Galway hammered them in the league (3-12 to 0-5, albeit in Pearse Stadium), that they beat them by 11 points in the qualifiers last year, his should be an easy one. Hayes, of course, can’t approach it like that. “It’s hard to know how Laois are this year, they weren’t great in the league, but we find it difficult to play against them in Portlaoise ... we had it tough enough against them there last year in the qualifiers.

“It’s championship, everyone is fighting for their lives at this stage. There’s bound to be a kick in them after losing to Offaly (in the championship), so we won’t be taking anything for granted.”

A problem for the Galway manager this year was that his team didn’t qualify for the play-off element of the National League, leaving them without a competitive game for a couple of months. “We don’t really know how we are ourselves,” Hayes admits.

“We haven’t played competitively since the 2nd of April against Kilkenny, and that wasn’t a great performance. We’ve played a few challenges since, tweaked a few things; we left the lads back to their clubs as well, but we kept them for one night a week just to keep a bit of shape for the championship.

“When they go back to their clubs they play in different positions with different responsibilities and it can take the edge off them. The last week or two we’ve come back strongly again, they’ve shaken off the cobwebs, fellas are starting to look forward to it.

“That was the one drawback I found about going out of the league early; every other team that was knocked out was able to regroup immediately, say, ‘Right lads we’re out against Limerick, or Cork, or whoever, on the 21st of June or whenever’.

“It’s easier to focus then, easier to gear your training, but we were in a bit of a limbo. The Hurling Board (in Galway) were even starting to question whether we’d be out on the 17th of June, wondering would they be able to get in another round of the championship. It’s not until the draw is made that you can really plan, that you can say, now, the serious stuff starts.”

Hayes will have no problem getting his players up for Waterford; the challenge is to ensure there is no complacency in the other two games. Everywhere they turn, they will be hearing the same thing; Galway are already through to the All-Ireland quarter-final, it’s a matter of turning up against Laois and Westmeath.

“Last year expectations were quite low, this year I think people are inclined to be dismissive of our league form, ‘Ah don’t worry about that, ye’ll be fine in the championship,’ that sort of thing. People’s expectations are higher, it’s as if they’re already looking beyond the qualifiers.

“We still have to ... take each day as it comes. We’re trying to get the lads to focus on it that way, not go around thinking that because we were in the All-Ireland final last year we should automatically get back again.

“We have Waterford a fortnight after Laois, down in Waterford, then we play Westmeath at home. Obviously the Waterford game is the toughest one.

“There’s bound to be a reaction there to their loss to Tipperary, but they seemed to be improving as that game went on, and they have a few big players to come back, so you’d be worried about how much is in the tank with them.

“But any of those games can catch you. It’s a long, long road back, it has to be taken one step at a time, and the first step is against Laois.”