The league’s most consistent side produced their worst half of hurling in the opening thirty five on Sunday and finished up in the no man’s land of fourth spot for the second year running. Although they battled bravely until the bitter end, Galway were in no mood to fold and goalkeeper Colm Callanan only had one save of substance to make. It leaves Waterford wondering as they will go without a competitive game throughout April and May.
Galway raised the temperature from the off. They imposed their physicality and were prepared to go right to the edge to achieve the right result. Their appetite was ferocious and Waterford went into damage limitation mode early on. That muscle was most evident in defence where they brushed aside their markers, shut down the space and forced turnovers. Iarla Tannian also imposed himself in a powerful first half that saw him burst through the tackles all over the field and also post two points.
Handling errors and a general lack of precision from the home side meant that attack after attack was swept clear. They held on for dear life in the first quarter as a couple of uncharacteristic wides from Joe Canning and that penalty miss kept Waterford within shouting distance. Maurice Shanahan’s fresh air on 17 minutes offered the clearest sight of goal all afternoon as the hosts went on a barren scoring run. Trailing 0-8 to 0-3 by the break, they were cast adrift and it could have been worse if Galway were more clinical.
They pegged it back to the three on the restart but that was as close as they came. If Tannian lorded the first half, Davy Glennon was the star of the second. His speed of thought and movement left defenders trailing in his wake as he registered three crucial points from play. At the other end, Shanahan went for broke a little bit prematurely when he took aim on 52 minutes. A point would have a made it a three point ball game but Callanan made the save and Galway stretched the gap to six soon after. The strong wind and icy cold conditions reduced the chances of a shootout but Waterford fell well below the required targets. Even on a day like last Sunday, five points from play is never sufficient at this level. Three goals in five games and three blanks in five games doesn’t help the scoring statistics.
What this game illustrated quite clearly is how greatly Waterford’s attacking fortunes hinge on Seamus Prendergast. He was the only forward to stand up to the firm challenge laid down by the Galway backs. In the second half, the hosts opted to put the towering man from Ardmore at number fourteen and loft direct ball on top of him. He made three clean catches, earned a free (was harshly denied another) and also blasted over a point. This ability to rattle off opponents at either centre forward or full forward and consistently pluck the ball from the clouds makes him indispensable at this moment in time. Prendergast started and finished all five league games which stresses his importance to a fresh forward line. Since making his championship debut back in 2001, he has been unperturbed by injury and Michael Ryan will be praying that he doesn’t pick up a knock before June 2.
So a promising league campaign ended on something of a downer. After making positive strides, Waterford just couldn’t finish the deal. They still exceeded expectations by taking two narrow wins, gaining an unlikely draw and pushing Kilkenny to the pin of their collar in their own backyard. Five players ( Jake Dillon, Brian O’Halloran, Jamie Barron, Paudie Prendergast and Ray Barry) made their first league starts and a new look squad gelled together. A savage work ethic was in evidence yet again on Sunday through the persistence of Jake Dillon and Jamie Barron to chase down lost causes. If you don’t show that level of labour, you won’t make the first fifteen. Young players like Dillon, Barron, Brian O’Halloran and Paudie Prendergast all shone but the more battle hardened like Jamie Nagle, Michael Walsh, Shane O’Sullivan and Seamus Prendergast also gave good reasons to be optimistic about a long summer. The jury remains out on the style of play that involves precise passes instead of direct deliveries. Certainly the short puck out strategy needs a rethink.
On the minus side, the lack of firepower is what may hold this team back on the big days. After Sunday’s defeat, Michael Ryan admitted that it was an area of concern. “It’s something that we will have to look at and something that we will have to address going forward. Normally you don’t win matches if you don’t get a goal or two and as the year goes on maybe we will tweak our game plan and see can we get more fellas closer to goal in dangerous positions.” There were also a couple of players who didn’t get the opportunity to show what they are capable of. The De La Salle duo of Dean Twomey and Eddie Barrett didn’t get an opportunity to audition for a place beside Shane O’Sullivan at midfield. Martin O’Neill and Gavin O’Brien also only got a limited window to perform in attack. The exclusion of Pauric Mahony and Stephen O’Keeffe towards the latter end of the league also raised eyebrows. The lack of match practice between now and the championship will concern them most of all however as the waiting game begins.
