Eight Gaelic football championship observations: Galway All-Ireland final team in danger of being ripped up

The advanced mark has its limits. The questions remains: what is stopping a defender from tactically fouling after an advanced mark?

Galway had eight players nominated for 2024 All-Star awards. Against Derry, they finished the game with four of them off the field. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

For the third time in 2025, Galway opted to be smart with their 45-metre kick. For the third time, it didn’t work out.

Peter Cooke went short with the kick rather than going for the posts. His side were two points down with five minutes left in the Group 4 tie when Kieran Molloy’s effort was deflected out by Eoin McEvoy. It was a strategy they had also opted for against Donegal in the league and Dublin last time out. The logic is simple. A 45 is worth one. A shot from the same spot is worth two. The new rules and their value of a double reward for a successful shot from open play at the same distance have encouraged a kind of tactical brinkmanship.