Pressure on Galway to stand up and be counted
A championship season for Galway footballers, that less than two weeks ago presented a decent measure of modest promise, now hangs by a thread as they shape up to a survival battle against Donegal at Markievicz Park on Saturday evening (7pm).
Yeats Country this weekend was not a place Galway expected to be, but a complete engine seizure against Roscommon in the Connacht final at Salthill has left them desperately seeking a quick reconditioning job.
Galway manager Kevin Walsh will be hoping his players can tap into reserves of pride and sheer resilience to allow themselves creep out of the deep hole that they dug for themselves in the provincial final.
It will not be easy. First and foremost, there is the jolt in confidence and morale that the heavy defeat to Roscommon has inflicted upon them, while secondly, they are meeting a team buoyed up with two qualifying victories under their belts.
Walsh is under no illusions about the scale of the mental challenge that Galway face when they trot onto the pitch in Sligo around 6.30 on Saturday evening.
“I suppose we have to face up to the fact that we had an off-day against Roscommon, and that was very disappointing, given our consistent form through the National League campaign.
“Now, we have to ask ourselves the question: does one off-day turn us into a bad team? Now, at least, we have the chance to bounce back within a short space of time.
“It won’t be easy – it never is after a defeat – but now we have to work hard and believe that we can come again and deliver a big performance,” said Walsh.
He believes though that Galway can draw on the positive experiences of the past couple of seasons such as the two-successive championship wins over Mayo; last year’s Connacht title success and the solid form they displayed through the National League this Spring.
“It’s all about moving on and picking ourselves up and at least the chance has been given to us to bounce back. Getting our minds right for this match is the key factor, and all things considered, the mood has been good this week.
Full preview in this week's Connacht Tribune.