A MEETING of two counties hoping to make up for the disappointment of their senior campaign - Kilkenny from their one-point loss to Cork in last Sunday's All-Ireland final and Galway from the late comeback by Clare in the quarter-final which won them a draw and set up Galway's loss in the replay.
Galway have already received some consolation with a deserved victory over Tipperary in the minor final last Sunday. The under-21 side produced a similar display when beating Tipperary by two points in the semifinal two weeks back, holding off a late surge which saw the losers score an unanswered 1-2 in the closing seven minutes. But there's no doubting the ability of this Galway side - the county is contesting its fourth consecutive final in this grade.
Managed by former All-Ireland winner Noel Lane, the team boasts the services of senior players Eugene Cloonan and Rory Gantley. Cloonan ended up the top one-off scorer of the championship with his 2-10 in the losing replay against Clare and then contributed 1-6 in the fast-paced under-21 semi-final. Gantley has also been picking off scores from centre back and Galway have another quality scorer in David Tierney, who shot 2-1 the last day in Tullamore.
The one change from the side that beat Tipperary sees Eoin McDonagh, son of GAA president Joe McDonagh, come in at right corner back for Steven Morgan, who was sent off during the semi-final win over Tipperary, and is suspended.
Kilkenny, however, have no lack of scoring power either. The side includes joint top-scorer of the entire championship, Henry Shefflin, who shares Joe Deane's total of 1-24. Shefflin also claimed 1-7 in the under-21 semi-final when they walloped Antrim with six goals and 17 points to spare in Drogheda at the end of last month.
Manager Richie Power has also made a few minor changes from that team, with Michael Kavanagh coming back from his role at wing back on the senior side last week to take up the cornerback position for this game. Kevin Power, who scored 0-8 the last day, stays among the half forwards while Shefflin lines out in his familiar spot at full forward.
Kilkenny will, however, be without their other senior panellist, John Hoyne, who injured his back after the great performance in the Leinster final and is currently awaiting surgery to repair the damage.
There are obvious reasons to suggest why Kilkenny's hunger for salvation may be greater, and Power has already indicated the courage that both Shefflin and Kavanagh have shown in keeping spirits high within the team even after the dejection of last weekend. Galway may still be a few games short, but they surprised a lot of people by defeating Tipperary in their first championship outing and are certainly capable of another surprise here.
Both sides have proven scoring ability, but Jimmy Coogan will have an important role to play in that area for Kilkenny at centre forward and will also have to contend with the close marking of Gantley. The victory, therefore, is unlikely to be decided by who wants it more, but who needs it more.
KILKENNY: J Power; A Walpole, N Hickey, M Kavanagh; A Cummins, S Dowling, R Mullally; J O'Neill, JP Corcoran; M Gordon, J Coogan, K Power; A Geoghegan, H Shefflin, E Brennan.
GALWAY: N Murray; E McDonagh, D Cloonan, S McClearn; E Linnane, R Gantley, D O'Shaughnessy; E Tannian, E Donoghue; D Tierney, M Kerins, D Loughrey; E Poniard, E Cloonan, D Donaghue.
Referee: G Harrington (Cork).
