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Galway Hurling thread

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Absolute belter of an U20 final coming up after last night's semi finals. Clarinbridge have all the recognisable names with Niland, Liam Leen, Sean Murphy etc. Add in Josh Ryan who changed the senior game against Larkins when he came on off the bench. Oranmore will be fancied though with Rory Burke who is probably the best player at this age group and they put up a big score against a very strong Sarsfields side.

galway19 (Galway) - Posts: 828 - 07/09/2023 11:30:09    2503401

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Replying To galway19:  "Absolute belter of an U20 final coming up after last night's semi finals. Clarinbridge have all the recognisable names with Niland, Liam Leen, Sean Murphy etc. Add in Josh Ryan who changed the senior game against Larkins when he came on off the bench. Oranmore will be fancied though with Rory Burke who is probably the best player at this age group and they put up a big score against a very strong Sarsfields side."
Should be a great one. Lots of good names there.

Trump2020 (Galway) - Posts: 2388 - 07/09/2023 19:44:48    2503469

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Replying To Mayo52:  "Limerick full back line are small men? Dan Morrisey certainly is'nt"
I suppose they're SMALL until it's time to play against them. lol.

Trump2020 (Galway) - Posts: 2388 - 08/09/2023 02:50:48    2503478

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Replying To clare_sparrow:  "Glynn cant do it on his own. Limerick 18 team were a good bit bigger and stronger than the Galway 18 team overall. Your pointing out one of the very few exceptions. And I acknowledge the role of the small lads, they wont win you much. Not in the modern game anyway. 2 or 3 small lads (less than 6 foot) would be adequate if I was picking a team."
Just as well you're not picking a team then eh

Stool Pigeon (Galway) - Posts: 906 - 08/09/2023 07:36:04    2503480

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Replying To Trump2020:  "Hey I agree with your post for the most part but isn't there such a thing as a late bloomer? I don't have any examples to make my weak point but isn't it possible?"
It's certainly 'possible', particularly if you are a goalkeeper, but it's so rare that you could basically say it's not going to happen.

The 'late bloomer' would have to have years' worth of IC level training in the legs/body for a start, which would appear unlikely if you're not actually involved at that level of a sport. And that's before you get to the technique and skill levels required for hurling which don't suddenly develop from (basically) nowhere.

It's possible that a player can gain a new lease of life from a positional switch (Tannian went from a mediocre corner forward to an All Star midfielder, I thought he would have been a magnificent 7 myself) but outside of that, the only real prospect for a 'late bloomer' is someone who has played hurling at underage, departed for another (professional level) sport and then returned to hurling later and 'bloomed late' like Dessie Hutchinson. But players who can play professional level sport are clearly rare and he was obviously playing elite level sport in his late teens anyway.

Shane Long was a very good minor hurler for Tipp before giving the game up for professional football, it wouldn't have been a stretch to see him come back and possibly play at the top level, but rabbits aren't really being pulled out of hats anymore, really. The net is too tight at this stage, which isn't a bad thing, in my opinion.

Stool Pigeon (Galway) - Posts: 906 - 08/09/2023 07:49:54    2503481

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Replying To Stool Pigeon:  "It's certainly 'possible', particularly if you are a goalkeeper, but it's so rare that you could basically say it's not going to happen.

The 'late bloomer' would have to have years' worth of IC level training in the legs/body for a start, which would appear unlikely if you're not actually involved at that level of a sport. And that's before you get to the technique and skill levels required for hurling which don't suddenly develop from (basically) nowhere.

It's possible that a player can gain a new lease of life from a positional switch (Tannian went from a mediocre corner forward to an All Star midfielder, I thought he would have been a magnificent 7 myself) but outside of that, the only real prospect for a 'late bloomer' is someone who has played hurling at underage, departed for another (professional level) sport and then returned to hurling later and 'bloomed late' like Dessie Hutchinson. But players who can play professional level sport are clearly rare and he was obviously playing elite level sport in his late teens anyway.

Shane Long was a very good minor hurler for Tipp before giving the game up for professional football, it wouldn't have been a stretch to see him come back and possibly play at the top level, but rabbits aren't really being pulled out of hats anymore, really. The net is too tight at this stage, which isn't a bad thing, in my opinion."
The is a lot of examples of lads moving positions and really taking to that position. Aidan Harte was more of a squad player, average forward but move to wing back he became one of the most consistent backs in the country for 4/5 years, Conor Fogarty was a bit part corner back, moved to midfield and became a growth addition midfield, probably should've won an all star or two, almost a pre William O'Donoghue type enforcer and worker, Pat Fox from corner back to top corner forward in country, Gearoid Macs first 2 or 3 years on the panel as a brutish wing forward on the bench every now and then in the league to almost winning hurler of the year at centre back, Lee Chin started off a centre back and now is one of the top forwards in the game, Barry Nash was a talented but unreliable and inconsistent forward and now probably one the best corner backs in Ireland who came close to winning hurler of the year. Sometimes lads can get pigeon holed in a certain position and mightnt suit their skills that well at all, suppose that's where a good management set up comes in and tries these things.

Throughthemidfieldhewasstormin (Wexford) - Posts: 293 - 08/09/2023 14:13:13    2503531

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Replying To galway19:  "Absolute belter of an U20 final coming up after last night's semi finals. Clarinbridge have all the recognisable names with Niland, Liam Leen, Sean Murphy etc. Add in Josh Ryan who changed the senior game against Larkins when he came on off the bench. Oranmore will be fancied though with Rory Burke who is probably the best player at this age group and they put up a big score against a very strong Sarsfields side."
Are the two young Burke lads playing for Oranmore seniors related? Cousins, brothers, twins??

Seeing their names a lot this year but have yet to see them play.

A real progressive club, both codes, on and off the field. Could be a powerhouse in years to come.

GalwaysFinest (Galway) - Posts: 193 - 08/09/2023 17:40:50    2503548

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Replying To Throughthemidfieldhewasstormin:  "The is a lot of examples of lads moving positions and really taking to that position. Aidan Harte was more of a squad player, average forward but move to wing back he became one of the most consistent backs in the country for 4/5 years, Conor Fogarty was a bit part corner back, moved to midfield and became a growth addition midfield, probably should've won an all star or two, almost a pre William O'Donoghue type enforcer and worker, Pat Fox from corner back to top corner forward in country, Gearoid Macs first 2 or 3 years on the panel as a brutish wing forward on the bench every now and then in the league to almost winning hurler of the year at centre back, Lee Chin started off a centre back and now is one of the top forwards in the game, Barry Nash was a talented but unreliable and inconsistent forward and now probably one the best corner backs in Ireland who came close to winning hurler of the year. Sometimes lads can get pigeon holed in a certain position and mightnt suit their skills that well at all, suppose that's where a good management set up comes in and tries these things."
I wouldn't disagree with anything you've said but in all the cases you mention above, they had already shown they were good enough for a county panel in their 'wrong' position. So the raw ability was already obvious. You could famously add Ollie Canning of course.

This is a different discussion though. I was replying to the notion that there might be some 'mushroom types' who could spring up overnight on the club scene long after their underage days are done. Realistically, there aren't. Not that I wouldn't be pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong on this.

Stool Pigeon (Galway) - Posts: 906 - 08/09/2023 20:51:16    2503556

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Replying To Stool Pigeon:  "It's certainly 'possible', particularly if you are a goalkeeper, but it's so rare that you could basically say it's not going to happen.

The 'late bloomer' would have to have years' worth of IC level training in the legs/body for a start, which would appear unlikely if you're not actually involved at that level of a sport. And that's before you get to the technique and skill levels required for hurling which don't suddenly develop from (basically) nowhere.

It's possible that a player can gain a new lease of life from a positional switch (Tannian went from a mediocre corner forward to an All Star midfielder, I thought he would have been a magnificent 7 myself) but outside of that, the only real prospect for a 'late bloomer' is someone who has played hurling at underage, departed for another (professional level) sport and then returned to hurling later and 'bloomed late' like Dessie Hutchinson. But players who can play professional level sport are clearly rare and he was obviously playing elite level sport in his late teens anyway.

Shane Long was a very good minor hurler for Tipp before giving the game up for professional football, it wouldn't have been a stretch to see him come back and possibly play at the top level, but rabbits aren't really being pulled out of hats anymore, really. The net is too tight at this stage, which isn't a bad thing, in my opinion."
Great points by you but I guess I was more leaning towards lads that were maybe TOO SMALL at minor or even under 20 stage then grew into their bodies and filled out a bit and were more suited to the Senior Game rather than the underage scene. Just food for thought, i have no real proof that such an animal exists.

Trump2020 (Galway) - Posts: 2388 - 08/09/2023 22:02:00    2503559

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Replying To GalwaysFinest:  "Are the two young Burke lads playing for Oranmore seniors related? Cousins, brothers, twins??

Seeing their names a lot this year but have yet to see them play.

A real progressive club, both codes, on and off the field. Could be a powerhouse in years to come."
Oranmore-Maree are very strong underage in both codes. They have big numbers and have grown massively as a club over the last couple of decades, with people moving into the area. They're fielding up to 5 or 6 underage football teams at some of the lower age groups, similar to Claregalway.
They have the numbers to sustain strong teams in both codes. While their intermediate football team aren't great at the moment, I'd expect them to get a lot stronger and go up to senior in a few years.
On the hurling side, they're much further ahead already and I can see them start to challenge at the business end of the senior championship soon.

WanPintWin (Galway) - Posts: 2253 - 09/09/2023 08:27:15    2503568

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Replying To galway19:  "Absolute belter of an U20 final coming up after last night's semi finals. Clarinbridge have all the recognisable names with Niland, Liam Leen, Sean Murphy etc. Add in Josh Ryan who changed the senior game against Larkins when he came on off the bench. Oranmore will be fancied though with Rory Burke who is probably the best player at this age group and they put up a big score against a very strong Sarsfields side."
Should also mention that Gavin Lee is still u20 for the Bridge as well

galway19 (Galway) - Posts: 828 - 10/09/2023 10:19:03    2503639

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Replying To Trump2020:  "Great points by you but I guess I was more leaning towards lads that were maybe TOO SMALL at minor or even under 20 stage then grew into their bodies and filled out a bit and were more suited to the Senior Game rather than the underage scene. Just food for thought, i have no real proof that such an animal exists."
Realistically you have the frame at U20 that you're going to have for life, allowing for an overindulgence of chocolate or booze, of course. Your skeleton ain't growing any bigger at that point.
But in size/muscle terms, you can put some weight on but there's the associated risk of your frame not being able to deal with the additional muscle leading to injury.
Micah Richards is a classic example, he put on about a stone in pure muscle in one off season and was never really able to stay fit after that, his frame (tall/lanky) wasn't able to carry the additional muscle and he kept braking down with niggling injuries.

It's unlikely such an animal exists, as you say, but one can never say never, of course.

Stool Pigeon (Galway) - Posts: 906 - 10/09/2023 14:47:05    2503654

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Congratulations to Ballygunner of Waterford. 10 in a row County Titles. Remarkable consistency. Whoever comes out of Galway will have a tough road ahead. Galway Abu.

Trump2020 (Galway) - Posts: 2388 - 10/09/2023 16:06:46    2503656

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Replying To galway19:  "Should also mention that Gavin Lee is still u20 for the Bridge as well"
After being 'ineligible' for the intercounty u20 grade a whole season ago, along with Killeen. Did any 'genius' in the Galway hurling hierarchy ever take ownership of that increasingly bizarre looking decision? What were they thinking?.......and who specifically was thinking it?

Pope_Benedict (Galway) - Posts: 4006 - 11/09/2023 08:32:31    2503706

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Replying To Stool Pigeon:  "Realistically you have the frame at U20 that you're going to have for life, allowing for an overindulgence of chocolate or booze, of course. Your skeleton ain't growing any bigger at that point.
But in size/muscle terms, you can put some weight on but there's the associated risk of your frame not being able to deal with the additional muscle leading to injury.
Micah Richards is a classic example, he put on about a stone in pure muscle in one off season and was never really able to stay fit after that, his frame (tall/lanky) wasn't able to carry the additional muscle and he kept braking down with niggling injuries.

It's unlikely such an animal exists, as you say, but one can never say never, of course."
Incorrect - males bone structures stay growing until the age of 25.

Jackson88 (Galway) - Posts: 72 - 11/09/2023 09:32:57    2503715

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Replying To Jackson88:  "Incorrect - males bone structures stay growing until the age of 25."
Also just to point out my belly has never stopped going. Hard to keep the barrell full on a Friday and Saturday nowadays.

SamandLiamSoon (Galway) - Posts: 623 - 11/09/2023 11:31:30    2503754

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Replying To WanPintWin:  "Oranmore-Maree are very strong underage in both codes. They have big numbers and have grown massively as a club over the last couple of decades, with people moving into the area. They're fielding up to 5 or 6 underage football teams at some of the lower age groups, similar to Claregalway.
They have the numbers to sustain strong teams in both codes. While their intermediate football team aren't great at the moment, I'd expect them to get a lot stronger and go up to senior in a few years.
On the hurling side, they're much further ahead already and I can see them start to challenge at the business end of the senior championship soon."
Yes all the "satellite" towns around the 4 corners of Galway city i.e. Oranmore in the Southeast, Claregalway in the Northeast, Moycullen in the Northwest and Salthill / Barna in the Southwest appear to be growing stronger in one or in some cases both codes e.g. Moycullen.

tommy k (Galway) - Posts: 3470 - 11/09/2023 13:27:22    2503798

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Replying To Jackson88:  "Incorrect - males bone structures stay growing until the age of 25."
Maybe so, but you're unlikely to grow 6 inches taller in your 20's, are you?

And if one did, that spurt of growth would lead to a lot of ligament injuries anyway.

Stool Pigeon (Galway) - Posts: 906 - 11/09/2023 14:13:53    2503818

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Replying To tommy k:  "Yes all the "satellite" towns around the 4 corners of Galway city i.e. Oranmore in the Southeast, Claregalway in the Northeast, Moycullen in the Northwest and Salthill / Barna in the Southwest appear to be growing stronger in one or in some cases both codes e.g. Moycullen."
They can only grow in both codes if there is next to no crossover of players though.

Moycullen have almost no players playing both football and hurling as starters for both teams and that's how it works for them. It probably wouldn't otherwise.
Otherwise it's a matter of facilities and priorities etc, it's not easy to coordinate, that's for sure.

Stool Pigeon (Galway) - Posts: 906 - 11/09/2023 14:17:13    2503820

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Lackagh football getting going next year. Construction underway on the pitches behind the hurling club. Frustrating for Corofin as we draw well from there e.g. Daithi Burke and many others down the years.

crankyincorofin (Galway) - Posts: 101 - 11/09/2023 14:19:11    2503821

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