McIntyre: We'll stay united

The critics are rounding on Galway after last night's disappointing Leinster SHC semi-final defeat to Dublin - but manager John McIntyre insists they will close ranks and come back stronger.

Galway's 0-19 to 2-7 loss in Tullamore means they are bound for the All-Ireland qualifiers and a date next month with Limerick or the losers of today's Munster semi-final between Clare and Tipperary.

The Tribesmen never hit their stride against the Dubs and only had three scorers on the night - goal scorers Joe Canning and Joe Gantley, who struck 1-3 apiece, and substitute Alan Kerins (0-1).

Speaking afterwards, McIntyre said: "I appreciate more than anybody else that the critics are going to have a field day back home. I heard some of the comments coming off the field about the management and players being a disgrace to Galway hurling.

"We have to live with that for the next fortnight. But we're going to stay together, stay united and hopefully the players will avail of the opportunity to retrieve their reputations, along with the management, in the qualifiers.

"We're in a bad place tonight, there's no walking away from it. I'm extremely disappointed and so is everybody associated with this team.

"It wasn't what we came here for. We're going home with our tails between our legs and that's the bottom line."

This was Galway's third year in the Leinster Championship and their second fall at the semi-final hurdle. They reached the final last year only to suffer a seven-point defeat to Kilkenny, but are undoubtedly benefiting from having busier summer campaigns.

The days of their wilderness in the west are gone and the county's trophy haul in recent years at All-Ireland minor, Under-21 and club levels shows that the raw materials are there for senior inter-county success.

But Galway have not reached the last four of the All-Ireland Championship since 2005 and McIntyre is all too aware of the media barbs - the latest of which came from Galway legends Brendan Lynskey, Conor Hayes and Noel Lane in yesterday's Irish Independent.

"I said it to the players after the game, the easiest thing is to throw in the towel and wave the white flag. We've worked too damn hard - I know it mightn't have looked it tonight in that performance.

"Those players in there are men of the highest integrity. It's the ultimate test of character now for everybody associated with this Galway senior hurling team.

"If we don't avail of that opportunity...you had the Irish Independent (today) with the big headline on the front page, 'are Galway too soft?' Well then, maybe we'll just all have to accept that it's a fair comment.

"But we still have an opportunity in a fortnight against Limerick or possibly the losers of Tipperary and Clare, If we don't avail of that opportunity, well then the consequences are severe for this panel of players and the team management."

McIntyre agreed that it was a case of his players misfiring as a collective, with a wides tally of 15 and their failure to take advantage of Ryan O'Dwyer's sending-off the most frustrating aspects of their game.

"We came to Tullamore tonight with our eyes open. We knew what Dublin were going to bring - they have been the team of the year so far, league champions, they're very physical and athletic," added the former Tipperary hurler.

"We missed an awful lot of chances, struggled to get into any sort of rhythm. We had a bad ten minutes coming up to half-time but the match was still retrievable. Teams have come back from seven points down with 10 minutes to go, never mind 35.

"We just couldn't get a flow going - we'd score one point and wouldn't score again for six or seven minutes. Chances weren't taken...some of our players, it just didn't happen for them on the night."