Conor Whelan urges Galway to take ‘massive opportunity' in Leinster final and bounce back from All-Ireland setbacks
CONOR WHELAN'S decade in maroon has flown by.
The
3
Conor Whelan has been starring for Galway for ten years
Credit: Stephen Marken/Sportsfile
3
He got to the All-Ireland final in his first year in 2015
Credit: Stephen McCarthy / SPORTSFILE
3
He won Liam McCarthy in 2017
Credit: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
And the Kinvara ace enjoyed a dream start — scoring 1-2 against the Rebels in Thurles.
He then racked up 0-2 in a 0-26 to 3-16 semi-final victory over Tipperary at
Two years later, Whelan become an All-Ireland champion under Micheál Donoghue — and he was an All-Star that year too.
The 28-year-old is now captain and into his 11th campaign at senior inter-county level.
Read More on GAA
But the Tribes have not made an All-Ireland SHC final since
That was also the last year they claimed glory in Leinster — having lost three provincial finals on the spin in 2020, 2022 and 2023.
Whelan is determined to make up for lost time in tomorrow's provincial showpiece against Kilkenny at
But he admits forging special bonds is more difficult than before.
He said: 'It's gone very fast. I think the years where you get knocked out early in particular are definitely accelerated.
Most read in GAA Hurling
'If you play only five
Championship
games in the year, you feel like 'Jesus, I never got going really at times'.'
Galway bowed out of the Championship in 2019 in the Leinster round robin — just as they did last year.
Tipperary GAA star 'had to do live apology on RTE' the day after cursing during All-Ireland interview -
They also exited in the second round of the
qualifiers
in 2021.
And Whelan admits those setbacks felt like missed opportunities for the county.
He added: 'Last year, 2021 and 2019 — those three years feel like they accelerated faster.
'It goes very fast and there's less opportunities for the group to spend time together with the way it is condensed.
'I don't think we've been on a night out since the start of the year because of the nature of the league and Championship.
'When you have lots of fresh faces coming in and spending time together, it's a massive part of it.
'We missed out on that an awful lot during Covid as well.
'There's something to look at around the structure of it. Even if you give players two weeks between certain games, just to have that down time and spend some time together.
'When you were there and part of the old system, you had two or three weeks until your
next
game. It feels like it goes faster now.'
SPECIAL BOND
Whelan's bond with Donoghue will always be special thanks to that 2017 All-Ireland triumph.
But the Clarinbridge man left under a cloud after their 2019 Leinster round-robin loss to
summer
.
Galway suffered the same fate against the
Sky
Blues last summer with Donoghue in charge of their opponents as former boss
But two-time All-Star Whelan always knew his former supremo
He said: 'We had fond memories with Micheál, so it's always
nice
to have him and his management team back.
'Micheál always brings a very high standard of what he expects and he's very good at moulding a group and bringing people together.
'He's experienced and brings a familiarity and standard. It has been positive.
'I always felt he would be back and he would have had a very close connection with the players from the first time. I knew that would always draw him back.
'I thought he'd leave it another couple of years until a good few of us were finished. But I always felt that he'd be back.'
Seven long years have passed since Galway's last piece of Championship silverware.
The Cats clawed them in the 2020, 2022 and 2023 finals and are going for six in a row tomorrow.
Kilkenny's 3-24 to 0-21 first-round win on April 19 was a rude awakening for the Tribes.
But they won their next four games against
And Whelan hopes they can end their hoodoo against Derek Lyng's men and
seal
their place in the last four of the All-Ireland series.
He said: 'As a group and individual, you have to look internally after a result like that and take what you need from that to understand that that's not the level.
'The group responded and we've been fortunate to turn it around but we haven't won anything yet.
'It's fairly prestigious to pick up a Leinster medal and put yourself in a great position, then moving forward heading into the last four.
'That's something we haven't done for the last couple of years.
'It's a massive opportunity from a silverware perspective and from the prize of going through the front door.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
33 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
All-Ireland semi-final ticket prices to increase again this year
All-Ireland senior semi-final ticket prices have increased for the second year in a row. Stand tickets, starting with Saturday and Sunday week's hurling last four games, are priced at €60, €5 more than last year's figure. The same €5 increase applies to discounted student and old age pensioner stand tickets, which are now €55 in the Cusack and Davin Stands. Admission to Hill 16 remains €40 as was the case last year. Entry for a juvenile (U16s) for the Cusack and Davin Stands is €10. Last year, admission rose by €5 for adult stand and terrace tickets as well as concessions having been €50, €45 and €35 respectively in 2023. In two years, a stand ticket for an All-Ireland semi-final has jumped by nearly 17%. The news for Cork, Dublin, Kilkenny and Tipperary supporters comes after Tipperary and Galway fans were charged €40 for their standalone All-Ireland SHC quarter-final in Limerick on Saturday, the same price as last year's double-header. In May last year, the GAA confirmed it was increasing price points for the All-Ireland quarter-final and semi-finals by €5 as well as raising a stand ticket price for an All-Ireland final to €100 and terrace to €55. For the second year in a row, the Munster Council last month increased ticket prices for June 7's Munster SHC final and stand admission cost €50 having been €40 in 2023. That was in line with their decision to raise the admission prices for round robin games for the second successive season with a stand ticket now priced at €40, up €10 from two years ago following the two bumps. Tickets for the All-Ireland senior hurling semi-finals will go on general sale on Monday at 12pm (Cork-Dublin, July 5) and 2pm (Kilkenny-Tipperary, July 6) respectively. Tickets for this forthcoming weekend's All-Ireland SFC quarter-final double-headers, which were last year priced at €45 for a regular stand ticket and €35 for Hill 16, will go on sale early this week.
Irish Examiner
33 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Shaun Patton admits current All-Ireland format is 'intense'
Shaun Patton admitted the gruelling schedule of the current All-Ireland format is 'intense' as Donegal reached the quarter-finals following a seventh championship win this season. Donegal had to go the hard way to win Ulster as they were drawn in the preliminary round, but won all four games to retain the Anglo-Celt Cup. Patton, who had been a huge weapon for Jim McGuinness' side, picked up an injury in the final, which saw him miss the first two games of the All-Ireland group stages, a loss to Tyrone and a win over Cavan as Gavin Mulreany deputised. He was back for the Mayo game as Donegal secured second in the group and a home tie with Louth seven days later, the 2-22 to 0-12 win over the Leinster champions secures a spot in the last eight of the competition, where they will face either Meath or Monaghan next weekend. 'It is an intense schedule,' Patton said after the game. 'For myself, I'm not running the legs off myself like the other boys are, but it's intense and you can't afford to be picking up knocks when it's week on week. 'But that's the structure of the championship, and there's no point complaining about it. 'I had a wee break to myself, so I'm feeling quite good and I'm delighted to be back in. 'It's tough to watch on from the sidelines but Gavin stepped in and, in my opinion, did really well. You look at the Tyrone game and it was a tough game to go into. The game was flat in general from our perspective so I'm delighted to get back in but we have a fantastic goalkeeper in Gavin behind me.' On the game itself, Donegal failed to flatter in a first half that still saw them lead by 1-6 to 0-7 but they really got going after the restart and it was job done for the St Eunan's goalkeeper. 'The whole point of today was getting the result and getting to Croke Park for the quarter-final next week, so we're happy to get that box ticked. 'Obviously, it's the performances we'll have to look at, that first half we wouldn't be too happy with, but the job is done and we'll go on to next week and get the bodies right from now until then. 'We started reasonably well, but I don't really know what the cause of it was, whether it was poor shot selection, which cost us at the other end and we can't really let that happen. 'We were happy to get into half-time and we're happy with the second half performance but moving on we can't really allow a first half like that to happen.'
Sunday World
37 minutes ago
- Sunday World
Damien Duff quits as Shelbourne boss and sends shockwaves through League of Ireland
duff bombshell | The Ireland legend decided he could offer no more to the side who claimed the Premier Division title last season. Duff could not be convinced to rethink his decision to leave the club. Photo: Thomas Flinkow/Sportsfile The statement released by the reigning League of Ireland Premier Division champions on Sunday confirmed the former Ireland and Chelsea star who led Shels to the title last season has decided he could offer no more to the team after a 1-0 defeat against Derry City on Friday night. 'Shelbourne FC regretfully wishes to announce the departure of Damien Duff as first team manager,' read the club statement. 'Damien informed the club this morning that, after much thought, he has made the decision to resign. He shared the news with the players earlier today. 'While all at Shelbourne FC are deeply saddened by Damien's decision, we fully respect that he feels this is the right choice for him at this time. Duff could not be convinced to rethink his decision to leave the club. Photo: Thomas Flinkow/Sportsfile News in 90 Seconds - June 22nd 'During his four extraordinary years at Tolka Park, Damien transformed Shelbourne Football Club both on and off the pitch. 'Appointed in November 2021, he took over a newly promoted side and rebuilt it from the ground up. Duff guided Shels to a seventh-place finish and a first FAI Cup Final appearance since 2011 in that debut season. The following year, in 2023, a fourth-place finish brought the Reds back to European competition for the first time in 18 years. 'In 2024, Duff led the Reds to one of the greatest triumphs in the club's 130-year history, clinching the League of Ireland Premier Division title, our first since 2006. On the final day we went to Derry, where a 1-0 win at the Brandywell secured the title in dramatic fashion, marking Shels return to the summit of Irish football. 'The club wishes Damien and his family every happiness and success in the future. His impact on Shelbourne FC was transformational. He will always be one of our own, and we are eternally grateful for the indelible mark he has left on our club. 'Joey O'Brien and the coaching staff will take charge for tomorrow's trip to the RSC to face Waterford and will prepare the team for Friday's away fixture against Galway United.' Duff's decision to step down was a shock, despite his scathing criticism of team following the defeat against Derry. 'I prepared for the game like I was a professional footballer,' said Duff on Friday night. 'My wife probably cursed me at times. Three-hour siesta, ate really well, focused my mind. I would like to really, really know how many of my players prepared like me or as well as me, which is damning. 'There was a severe lack of energy, real flatness, severe lack of quality and you are going to get nowhere. I don't accept that that's our third game in a week. Never have, never will until the day I die. If you are an amazing pro you bounce into the night. Even if you are a bit tired, a bit flat, drag yourself along, give yourself a talking to. 'That's where you have to be an amazing pro, an elite pro, a pro that belongs in the Champions League which are strange words for me to say at the minute. 'Did I smell it on Thursday? Of course! It (training) was awful. It all comes from within, your energy, your motivation, how good a professional you are. 'I don't mind saying it again, because it is absolutely true. It's my energy that has driven the players for four years. I've offered them the dressing room for them to lead this show, this steam train. They've never really done it. Again, tonight, it's me shouting and screaming. Joe (O'Brien – assistant) shouting and screaming. We had a real energy because we were highly motivated men, prepared well and I didn't feel that spark, that energy off the players. 'You're all probably saying 'here he goes again'. I'm trying to drag the team, trying to wake them up, but they never woke up. 'For three years, we've been an incredibly motivated team. If you had a bad night it was a given that you get a reaction. As I told the lads upstairs, I don't know (if there will be one in Waterford on Monday). You never know with us anymore, which is damning. It's damning on me because I'm the manager. 'To become champions again, you have to be hungrier than last year, you have to work harder than last year, and again if you ask that question to our guys, I'm not sure how many would say yes, I smelled these type of issues in pre season. 'I thought I would come back and the dressing room would drive itself, because there's big characters, there's champions in there. It didn't. It's not driven by the players. It's driven by me. And like I said to Darren (Cleary – press officer), you can grab every player down here now and ask the same question: 'Is it Duffer that drives everything?' 'It is, and it gets tiring, but most importantly, it gets frustrating. Yeah, I'm there to help and coach and pick the best teams. I don't think it's the manager that should drive a dressing room that still is.'
