IT WAS A bad day at the office in Tullamore for Ger Cunningham and his Dublin hurlers yesterday.
They leaked five goals against rampant Galway and this game was done and dusted with 18 minutes on the watch, when the Tribesmen led by as many points.
Cathal Mannion helped himself to a first half hat-trick and the Westerners piled on the misery in the second half, with Joe Canning collecting a stunning brace of goals.
For Dublin, the season is not over yet as they look to regroup for the qualifiers.
But how much long-term damage this 13-point defeat has done will only become clear as the summer progresses.
“We have no choice, we have to get back up,” said Cunningham.
“Obviously we’ll see the draw when it comes. You’re only as good as your last match and our last match was poor so we’ll have to get up for the next one.”
Cunningham’s second championship game in charge resulted in a spectacular defeat for Dublin, not the script he had penned leaving Croke Park last Sunday after his side should have claimed victory.
And as Galway piled on the replay misery, Cunningham cut a dejected figure on the touchline.
“It was a very difficult situation and you had heads dropping. When it happens so quickly you suddenly find yourself three or four goals down.
“But in fairness to our lads in the second-half they never gave up. They kept on going to the end. It’s just a disappointing quarter-final to lose.”
Cunningham added that he would look at footage of the game again before deciding whether Galway’s goals were clinically taken or bad defending on Dublin’s part.
“The first two (from Cathal Mannion) were right in the bottom corner and looked like great finishes.
“It was the worst possible start we could have got. It gave them the licence to show all the skills that they have.”
