Galway’s 1-13 to 0-11 victory over Mayo in Pearse Stadium last Sunday was the talking point of the weekend.
Not because the Tribesmen delivered their third consecutive league victory effectively securing their Division One status for 2019. But for the fiery nature of the final 10 minutes that resulted in Paul Conroy and Mayo duo Cillian and Diarmuid O’Connor receiving red cards.
Kevin Walsh said afterwards he hadn’t seen clearly the incidents and talking to Joe Molloy on offtheball.com, he agreed that there was no love lost between the Connacht rivals.
The Galway manager also discussed a bad-tempered match against Mayo #OTB #GAA https://t.co/YL8tlTD5G2
— Off The Ball (@offtheball) February 15, 2018
“That’s where it should be really,” said Walsh when asked about the rivalry. “Going back to our own playing days, there’s no bigger game than Mayo and Galway. It’s full of passion. It’s full of all the good things about sport.
“I think when you’re on the sideline, it’s quite difficult (to see). It was a pity in the last 10 minutes that so many bodies got involved. From a point of view of our own, I’ll stand by what I have been saying.
“As regards somebody going in fist-a-cuffs or boots or stuff, that certainly wasn’t (the case) in my view. And as well as that, as to how the thing would have started. I still don’t know how that started. But you’re going to have a lot of passion running high in local derby games.”
Walsh did acknowledge that he was glad his team didn’t back down with the initial incident occurred that saw three Galway players, including Conroy, receive yellow cards along with Mayo’s Aidan O’Shea following a 20+ man brawl that set the tone for the closing stages.
“You have to stand up for yourself,” added the 1998 and 2001 All-Ireland winner. “You have to be competitive.
“I don’t think any manager wants anybody going out with the mind that ‘I’m going to get sent-off or do something dirty here.’ That certainly wouldn’t be allowed in our dressing room and I would say most dressing rooms.
“Discipline is really, really high in our agenda to be honest. And we view videos all the time as usual every single week. And if something comes up on a discipline side that could jeopardise a team or isn’t right, it’s highlighted then and dealt with.
“But obviously, there’s always factors that will contribute to incidents like last week. And there’s always little bits and pieces that people won’t see and can aggravate people.”
Walsh also discussed his team’s prospects for the year ahead, Paddy Tally’s involvement in the set-up and Galway’s 1998 All-Ireland win among others.
Listen to the full interview on Newstalk’s Off The Ball Below
GAA 🏐📻 | As the 2018 campaign begins to heat up, @Galway_GAA football manager Kevin Walsh will join @MolloyJoe to gauge his side's prospects for the year ahead. pic.twitter.com/2RKive56Qu
— Off The Ball (@offtheball) February 14, 2018
