ROSCOMMON 1-20 GALWAY 0-22
The TG4 commentary team were in understandable raptures as Roscommon star Diarmuid Murtagh's stunning goal settled a cracking Allianz Leagues Division 2 Final.
Seven Galway defenders couldn’t stop Murtagh as he spun, slipped, slid and bulled towards the goal and delivered a hammer blow.
Murtagh was not causing too many ripples in the Galway backline when - with the scores tied at 0-19 apiece - he received a pass from Enda Smith and prowled from right to left. When he spun to lose his first marker, Murtagh got a glimpse of the goal and there was no stopping him.
The TG4 commentary team's reaction to the Murtagh goal was a mix of astonishment and laughter at the sheer audacity of it all. Marcus Ó Buachalla summed it up perfectly:
https://twitter.com/GAA__JOE/status/1510624242005692432
That Diarmuid Murtagh goal put the Rossies three points clear with less than four minutes of injury time left. Matthew Tierney landed two late points for Galway but it was not enough and Anthony Cunningham's side held on to win some silverware after a fine campaign.
"It's great to get a performance in Croke Park," Roscommon manager Anthony Cunningham said, after the match.
"The last couple of times it hasn't worked out as well as the players would have liked. It see-sawed a lot. We were on the ropes with 10 minutes to go."
Indeed, Roscommon had been 0-17 to 0-12 ahead after 55 minutes, only for Galway to push forward, take more risks with numbers in attack and chip away at that lead.
Within six frantic minutes, inspired by sub Shane Walsh, the Tribesmen were level at 0-17 each. It teed up a tense finish as both sides traded points, before Murtagh's goal settled it.
https://twitter.com/RoscommonGAA/status/1510625962286850053
Galway's Paul Conroy was named Man of the Match after an excellent performance but he and his teammates had to stand back as Roscommon captain Donie Smith raised the Division 2 trophy.
Cunningham was not lingering too much on the trophy success. "It's all about four weeks time," he reflected when he was asked about an upcoming championship game against the winners of Sligo's Connacht clash with New York.
