Canning: Club glory gives no county guarantee

Galway hurler Joe Canning believes their failure to translate club success onto the inter-county stage has been "blown out of proportion".

Portumna claimed their fourth All-Ireland crown this spring, but recent history suggests September riches will not follow suit. On the three previous occasions a saffron and blue shirt stood over the Tommy Moore Cup, stretching back to 2006, the Galway hurlers exited the championship before the first horse had fallen at Ballybrit.

Indeed, four Galway clubs — Athenry, Portumna, St Thomas’ and Clarinbridge — have annexed the club championship on eight occasions since the turn of the millennium and still the county’s wait for Liam MacCarthy lingers into its 26th year.