Cuala (Dublin) 1-17 Liam Mellows (Galway) 0-11

All-Ireland club hurling champions Cuala are back in the final after Mattie Kenny’s side easily accounted for Galway’s Liam Mellows in Thurles.

Con O’Callaghan hit four points from play for Cuala, while David Treacy helped his side pull clear in the second-half with seven points, while substitute Brian Fitzgerald fired a late goal for the Leinster champions.

Cuala will meet 2016 winners Na Piarsaigh of Limerick in the final on St Patrick’s Day, but on this form they will be hard stopped as they bid for back-to-back titles.

Lining up with two in their full-forward line, Cuala managed to create great space for O’Cllaghan and Nicky Kenny to work with, and even with spare man David Collins sweeping in front of his full-back, the Leinster champions still frequently put the ball in O’Callaghan’s hand.

Captain for the day David Treacy – Paul Schutte was replaced by brother Mark before the game – opened the scoring after three minutes from the left, while Mark Schutte doubled that lead from the same side a minute later.

Adrian Morrissey’s eight points were key to Liam Mellows first county final win in 47 years, and he got off the mark in the fifth minute from a placed ball on the right.

O’Callaghan got up and running in the sixth minute when he snuck off his marker Michael Conneely and made a yard to score, but a Morrissey free from halfway made it 0-3 to 0-2 after ten minutes.

It was at that point that Cuala’s game went up a level and they began to make the most of O’Callaghan’s pace and power. A ball into space from Jake Malone saw him score after David Collins lost possession at halfway, while Sean Treacy was afforded too much time to pick the pass into the full-forward after 17 minutes for his third.

And moments later O’Callaghan made the most of an ugly ball in, which he won above Conneely, to draw a foul that David Treacy converted.

It was hard to see Mellows recovering at that point as they failed to gain a foothold around the middle, but with Morrissey in superb free-taking form from distance, they bypassed much of that mass of bodies.

Either side of two huge frees from Morrissey, Mellows’s Conor Kavanagh struck the point of the half when he picked, turned and fired a score from wide on the left.

Kenny and Collum Sheanon added points for Cuala before the interval – all but one of their points came from open play – as the three-in-a-row Dublin winners led 0-8 to 0-6 at the interval.

Straight from the throw in, Cuala could have taken a massive step towards victory when Darragh O’Connell gathered the break at midfield and took off towards goal. A goal looked a certainty, but his batted effort off the stick lobbed over Kenneth Walsh’s crossbar.

Nevertheless, the All-Ireland champions soon pulled further clear. Two frees from David Treacy sandwiched a simple O’Callaghan point, while Treacy’s third free of the half made it 0-13 to 0-6 by the 37th minute.

Another Morrissey free kept Mellows in touch, although Sean Treacy’s point from play at the other end chalked out that effort after 43 minutes.

Morrissey again found his range and Aonghus Callanan tagged on a point for Mellows, but Treacy’s accuracy from placed balls meant Cuala had an easy canter to the finish line.

Cuala (Dublin) 1-17 Liam Mellows (Galway) 0-11

All-Ireland club hurling champions Cuala are back in the final after Mattie Kenny’s side easily accounted for Galway’s Liam Mellows in Thurles.

Con O’Callaghan hit four points from play for Cuala, while David Treacy helped his side pull clear in the second-half with seven points, while substitute Brian Fitzgerald fired a late goal for the Leinster champions.

Cuala will meet 2016 winners Na Piarsaigh of Limerick in the final on St Patrick’s Day, but on this form they will be hard stopped as they bid for back-to-back titles.

Lining up with two in their full-forward line, Cuala managed to create great space for O’Cllaghan and Nicky Kenny to work with, and even with spare man David Collins sweeping in front of his full-back, the Leinster champions still frequently put the ball in O’Callaghan’s hand.

Captain for the day David Treacy – Paul Schutte was replaced by brother Mark before the game – opened the scoring after three minutes from the left, while Mark Schutte doubled that lead from the same side a minute later.

Adrian Morrissey’s eight points were key to Liam Mellows first county final win in 47 years, and he got off the mark in the fifth minute from a placed ball on the right.

O’Callaghan got up and running in the sixth minute when he snuck off his marker Michael Conneely and made a yard to score, but a Morrissey free from halfway made it 0-3 to 0-2 after ten minutes.

It was at that point that Cuala’s game went up a level and they began to make the most of O’Callaghan’s pace and power. A ball into space from Jake Malone saw him score after David Collins lost possession at halfway, while Sean Treacy was afforded too much time to pick the pass into the full-forward after 17 minutes for his third.

And moments later O’Callaghan made the most of an ugly ball in, which he won above Conneely, to draw a foul that David Treacy converted.

It was hard to see Mellows recovering at that point as they failed to gain a foothold around the middle, but with Morrissey in superb free-taking form from distance, they bypassed much of that mass of bodies.

Either side of two huge frees from Morrissey, Mellows’s Conor Kavanagh struck the point of the half when he picked, turned and fired a score from wide on the left.

Kenny and Collum Sheanon added points for Cuala before the interval – all but one of their points came from open play – as the three-in-a-row Dublin winners led 0-8 to 0-6 at the interval.

Straight from the throw in, Cuala could have taken a massive step towards victory when Darragh O’Connell gathered the break at midfield and took off towards goal. A goal looked a certainty, but his batted effort off the stick lobbed over Kenneth Walsh’s crossbar.

Nevertheless, the All-Ireland champions soon pulled further clear. Two frees from David Treacy sandwiched a simple O’Callaghan point, while Treacy’s third free of the half made it 0-13 to 0-6 by the 37th minute.

Another Morrissey free kept Mellows in touch, although Sean Treacy’s point from play at the other end chalked out that effort after 43 minutes.

Morrissey again found his range and Aonghus Callanan tagged on a point for Mellows, but Treacy’s accuracy from placed balls meant Cuala had an easy canter to the finish line.

Scorers for Cuala: David Treacy 0-7 (0-4f, 0-1 65), Con O’Callaghan 0-4, Brian Fitzgerald 1-0, Mark Schutte 0-1, Colum Sheanon 0-1, Nicky Kenny 0-1, Darragh O’Connell 0-1, Sean Treacy 0-1, Diarmuid O’Flynn 0-1.

Scorers for Liam Mellows: Adrian Morrissey 0-7 (0-7f), Aonghus Callanan 0-2, Tadhg Haran 0-1 (0-1f), Conor Kavanagh 0-1.

CUALA: Sean Brennan; Oisin Gough, Cian O’Callaghan, Simon Timlin; John Sheanon, Sean Moran, Mark Schutte; Jake Malone, Darragh O’Connell; Sean Treacy, Colm Cronin, David Treacy; Colum Sheanon, Con O’Callaghan, Nicky Kenny. Subs: Cian Waldron for Colm Sheanon (44), Diarmuid O’Flynn for Simon Timlin (44), Niall Carty for Nicky Kenny (52), Brian Fitzgerald for Mark Schutte (57), Ross Tierney for Cian O’Callaghan (65).

LIAM MELLOWS: Kenneth Walsh; Cathal Reilly, Michael Conneely, Sean Morrissey; Mark Hughes, David Collins (jc), Stephen Barrett; Jack Hastings, Kevin Lee; Conor Hynes, Tadhg Haran, Ronan Elwood; Adrian Morrissey, Aonghus Callanan (jc), Conor Kavanagh. Subs: Jack Forde for Conor Hynes (41), David Fahy for Ronan Elwood (44), Stephen Killeen for Conor Kavanagh (58), Brian Leen for Michael Conneely (61), Conor Elwood for Tadhg Haran (63).

Referee: Paud O’Dwyer (Carlow).

Conor Whelan's brace of first-half goals helped Galway to a 2-18 to 0-17 victory over battling Laois at O'Moore Park.

Eamonn Kelly's charges really put it up to the all-conquering league and championship holders and the final scoreline is probably harsh on the hosts, but in the end Michael Donoghue's men just about got over the line for the second weekend running.

The Tribe made a flying start when Whelan netted in the third minute following a Davey Glennon offload but the midlanders hit back with points from Eric Killeen and captain Ross King (3). It was nip and tuck until the short whistle but Whelan's second major deep into added time had the winners ahead by 2-6 to 0-10 at the turnaround.

Both side were reduced to 14 men before the interval as a scuffle resulted in a straight red for Galway's Greg Lally and a second yellow for Laois midfielder James Ryan.

Playing into the wind and with King (0-13) leading the way, the underdogs were brilliant in the second half but scores from Padraig Mannion, Aidan Harte and Conor Cooney kept Galway's noses in front.

Galway - J Skehill; A Tuohy, J Hanbury, S Bannon; G Lally, P Mannion (0-3, 2f), A Harte (0-4, 1f); J Coen (0-1), P Breheny (0-1); S Linnane (0-1), J Cooney (0-3), C Mannion; C Whelan (2-1), C Cooney (0-3, 1f), D Glennon (0-1). Subs: B Concannon for C Mannion, N Burke for C Cooney, S Cooney for S Linnane.

Laois - E Rowland (0-1f); D Hartnett, L Bergin, L Cleere; P Lawlor, M Whelan, E Killeen (0-1); P Purcell, J Ryan; A Corby, B Conroy, C Taylor; R King (0-12, 7f, 1'65), N Foyle, W Dunphy (0-2). Subs: J Keyes for A Corby, S Downey for C Taylor, M Kavanagh (0-1) for B Conroy, P McCane for N Foyle, J Phelan for L Cleere.

Referee - P Murphy.

New Galway captain Damien Comer admits that it is a great honour to lead the side in 2018. The Tribesmen got their NFL Division 1 campaign off to a good start when they defeated Tyrone at Tuam Stadium. Having been promoted last year, Galway are keen to make their mark on the top flight early on and led by the impressive Comer who scored a goal in the opening minute, they got their wish.
The Annaghdown man was a member of the Galway team that won the All-Ireland Under 21 Championship in 2013. He made his senior Championship debut in 2014, and was part of the Galway team that won the 2016 Connacht Championshp. He started all of the team's games as the county won its first Connacht title since 2008.

David Burke will bid to play himself into the annals of Galway GAA after it was confirmed he will continue as captain of the hurlers as they try to retain the All-Ireland title.
Johnny Coen skippered the Tribesmen for their opening league game against Antrim at the weekend, but manager Micheal Donoghue has confirmed Burke will resume the captaincy when he returns from a knee injury in the coming weeks.
“Davy is still captain, but he’s probably a few weeks away. There are a few lads carrying knocks, but we’ve stressed to the squad that lads will be getting opportunities and hopefully lads will put up their hands,” said Donoghue.
Burke will hope to join two Galway legends this year by leading them to All-Ireland glory for the second year in a row.
Enda Colleran was the first to do it when he captained the Galway footballers in 1965 and ’66 when they completed a three-in-a-row, while Conor Hayes led the Tribesmen to the MacCarthy Cup in 1987 and ’87.
Prior to Hayes, only Christy Ring, who led Cork to the 1953 and ’54 All-Irelands, has managed to achieve the distinction in hurling, since the early years of the GAA.
First up for Donoghue is the search for new talent to bolster the defence of their league and All-Ireland titles, with more of their emerging talent set to feature when they travel to play Laois on Saturday.
Donoghue said he knows Galway “have a target on our backs” this year and they were pushed all the way by Antrim last weekend in Pearse Stadium, before they won by 1-19 to 1-16.
“The learning curve for us is that we know now that that is going to happen every week and we have to be ready. Over the course of the next few weeks, we’ll get some more of the established guys back, but there is an opportunity there for others.
“I think, because of starting early, Division 1A and 1B, with the weather and the pitches, everything is a leveller. We clearly understand that we were lucky to get out with the two points (from the Antrim game).
"But the main thing is that we continue to work during the week and we can look forward to next weekend,” said Donoghue.

Article by: John Fallon (irish Examiner)

For the second year in a row Sarsfields have qualified for the finals, and once again they will meet Derry’s Slaughtneil in a repeat of last season's senior decider. On that occasion the Ulster champions edged Michael McGrath's outfit by 1-10 to 0-11, and they will be more determined to claim this year's trophy.
In flying form, Sarfields saw off Burgess-Duharra last Sunday in a tight encounter. Level at the break with 0-5 each, Sarsfields edged the contest, finishing 0-10 to 0-9 ahead of the Tipperary side.
Galway's first-half points came from sharpshooter Niamh McGrath and sister Siobhan, who scored all of the Galway side's points after the break. It also took a super save from Laura Ward to deny Burgess a goal, that proved crucial in the end.


At intermediate level Galway's Athenry prevailed over Lismore and now face former junior champions Johnstownbridge. Athenry's experienced trio of Therese Maher, Jessica Gill and Rebecca Glynn helped Athenry to a 0-5 to 0-2 lead at half time, with points from Niamh Hannon (two) and Noreen Coen ensuring Athenry advanced.