‘People’s champs’ look to complete fairytale

WHATEVER the outcome in Sunday week’s All-Ireland final, there is no debating that Galway are already the people’s champions.

Not only was their semi-final win over Kilkenny one of the most exciting games in living memory, it also broke up the game’s mini-cartel by denying Kilkenny top billing with Cork for the third September in succession.

The recent dominance of the big two has been all the harder to take after hurling’s most democratic decade, which saw Offaly, Wexford and Clare challenge and defeat the old order by capturing the Liam McCarthy.

The feeling is that a Galway win would be good for hurling as well, that it would act like a beacon for other counties to follow in the years to come.

Galway forward Damien Hayes understands the sentiments but points out that all the good will in the world won’t beat Cork on the day.

“Yeah, it would be great for hurling, but that won’t win an All-Ireland for you.

“We have a huge task ahead of us in Cork. They’re the best team in the country and we have to get it right on the day.

“If we don’t, we’ll be blown away. Simple as that. It would be nice to win because it’s been ‘88 since the last one, but it’s all on the day.”

Galway’s involvement has certainly brought a refreshing novelty factor to the build-up, not least in the county itself. Working in Al Hayes Motors in Portumna - the family business - Hayes can hardly find time to make a deal what with every customer proving more eager to talk hurling than buy a car.

Not that he minds. He can’t remember the last time he was hurling inter-county so long into the summer and driving to training with clubmates Ollie Canning, Andrew Smith and Kevin Hayes is a pleasure rather than a chore.

If the rest of the county is getting carried away by the countdown, Hayes is refusing to join the tide. Conor Hayes spoke after the Kilkenny game of how the team would enjoy that win on the night before returning to ground level the very next day. Hayes was a prime example of that.

“There’s been no getting time off. I was back working at nine o’clock the morning after the Kilkenny game because we’ve nothing won. I’ve lost two U21 All-Irelands, a county final, two Agricultural Colleges finals and a Railway Cup final. I’ve lost a lot more than I’ve won so I wanted to be brought right back down to earth as soon as I could.”

Ask him where it has all gone right so suddenly and Hayes doesn’t put his finger on any one reason. Luck, attitude and the extra games provided by the new qualifier system have all played their part. He can see their benefit from his own slot at corner-forward where he has noticed the two attacking lines gelling to far better effect than last year.

As opposed to a group of individuals, Galway are now more of a team.

Having delved so deep into their reserves to dispose of Tipperary and Kilkenny, it remains to be seen how much Galway have left to give in this, their biggest challenge of all.

Perhaps the only guarantee is that, no matter what the score near the end, this is a team that will refuse to give up until Seamus Roche blows his whistle for the final time on the 11th. The memories of last year’s humiliation by Kilkenny, as it has done all season, guarantees that.

“It was absolutely terrible. You didn’t want to see anyone for a week. We wanted to get back to Croke Park this year. Hurling was at an all-time low after being beaten by 19 points and we just wanted to put a bit of pride back into Galway hurling, which I think we’ve done.”