SEAMUS DUKE spoke with legendary Galway hurler Noel Lane this week…
Noel Lane is generally regarded as one of Galway’s greatest ever hurlers. The Ballinderreen club man won three All-Ireland senior titles (1980, 1987 and 1988) and was recognised with two All-Star awards. He is also a former manager of the Galway senior hurling team (2000 to 2002).
Noel spoke to the Roscommon People earlier this week about Sunday’s All-Ireland hurling final and Galway’s hopes of upsetting the odds and winning back the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
I began by asking Noel what level of expectancy there was in Galway at the start of 2025 following the re-appointment of Micheal Donoghue as team manager.
“There was a lot of positivity in the county from the start of the year. It was clear that the new management were introducing several young players on to the panel and it was good to see the management put their faith and trust in those players.
“There was a feeling that the older brigade had served the county well but that it was time for change. That happened, and as the year went on there were signs that there was light at the end of the tunnel.
“The expectation was that if Galway could win a Leinster title they could plan from there. That was achieved, and now they have gone one step further. The management have done a very good job.”
So were there signs throughout the league that Galway were improving?
“There were positive signs from the start of the year. We did very well against Limerick and Cork in the league and then in the play-off against Limerick they went 12 points up but Galway pulled it back and it took them (Limerick) all their time to win that match, so there was a definite improvement as the year went on.”
What does Noel make of the Galway style of play which (as I’ve noted in the match preview) has seen them often withdraw several players into defence as a prelude to attacking teams on the counter-attack – with Jason Rabbitte staying inside as the target man?
“Teams are finding it hard to deal with Galway’s style this year. Cork did well in the first half in the semi-final but they reverted to their usual game plan in the second half and Galway picked them off. I’m sure that John Kiely and Paul Kinnerk (Limerick management) will have been studying the Galway style and will be trying to come up with a plan to deal with it. But it will not be easy to counteract that game plan.”
Noel has been very impressed by the role that young Jason Rabbitte has played this year.
“He has been superb, he is only 19 years old but he is playing like a veteran. It’s also great to have Aaron Niland in the team. He is a great young player and a super free-taker. The team in general is playing with great confidence.”
I asked the Galway legend for his assessment of the Limerick’s form this season.
“It’s hard to know whether Limerick as are good as they have been. After all the All-Irelands and big games they have been in, maybe the hunger might not be as sharp as it has been. They have a lot of mileage on the clock. Don’t get me wrong, they will be mad to win another All-Ireland and they are a great team, but they are not unbeatable. I thought they looked a little leggy against Clare but we will have to see what happens on Sunday.”
So how does he think the final will go?
“If Galway can bring their ‘A’ game to the table there is no reason why they cannot win this final. We have a very astute management team and we have total harmony within the panel and that’s always a good place to start. I’m certainly not being over-confident but if we can play up to our best we are in with a great shout” he concluded.
