PAT SPILLANE HAS been impressed with Galway’s form in Division 1 and expressed his admiration for their style of play after they drew with Dublin to maintain their unbeaten run in the league.
Galway have returned to the top tier of the National League following a seven-year absence and many expected they would struggle to survive.
But they have managed to exceed expectations thus far and have won five of their six outings, to go with their 0-13 0-13 result against Dublin. They have also booked their place in the Division 1 final after their victory over Monaghan.
That meeting with the Dubs on Sunday was a feisty and incident-packed affair, with Dublin finishing the tie with 14 players. Galway were five points up at half-time, but Jim Gavin’s charges rallied after the break and almost snatched a victory in Pearse Stadium.
Galway however, managed to find a late response through a Johnny Heaney equalisier which ensured a share of the spoils.
Kerry legend and GAA analyst Pat Spillane is pleased with what he has seen from Galway so far and speaking on RTÉ’s Allianz League Sunday, he said that being able to compete with Dublin at this stage of the season is a good measure of their progress.
“This was the first real test of their system, particularly their defensive system and they came through with flying colours,” he said.
“They’ve now played six matches in the league, [they're] unbeaten, the best defensive record in Division 1. They’ve conceded 1-70 — one goal conceded in six matches. It’s working and they have some great forwards.
The Achilles heel of Galway down through the years, they were a sort of soft touch for a start, they’re no longer a soft touch.
“Their heads [used to] drop very easy, heads didn’t drop today. They came back to gain a draw.
Six games in, Galway are still unbeaten and Pat Spillane is impressed #AllianzLeagues pic.twitter.com/S7JpdLGdBW
— RTÉ GAA (@RTEgaa) March 18, 2018
He continued:
“The other thing about it was, particularly last year, they’d a full-back line which I always felt was weak. Now, that defensive system is in place. Look, it was shadow boxing but I think they will have benefited [from it].
Dublin, maybe six or seven of the team will be playing in the league final but every extra match at that quality for this Galway team to hone their system, I’ll tell you this, they’re a serious outfit and I know there were critics of their system, that they were overly defensive.
“I think they’re getting the balance right, I think they’re a damn good team and fair play to them.”
You can watch the full episode of Allianz League Sunday on the RTÉ Player here.
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