Micheál Donoghue determined to secure Leinster honours

Competitive, yes. Consistent, no. Well, consistent in terms of getting to the decider. Consistent, too, in coming up short.

It was 2009 when the Galway hurlers packed their bags and headed east, a move signed off on to reinvigorate a provincial championship whose graph had fallen off the page owing to a decade of Kilkenny dominance.

And even the Cats were now losing interest – just over 18,000 attended the 2008 final where Brian Cody’s charges walloped Wexford to the tune of 19 points.