The Men’s Galway Cup came safely back to Maigh Cuilinn this week as our local league lads lived up to their favourites tag to see off a game Titans outfit 76 to 67 in the final.

The team has a chance in the coming closing games of the League to wrap up the double but for now, it’s full focus on the celebrations, particularly for the cohort within the squad that has managed to put together impressive back to back cup titles (check out our post here from the 2023 winning team).

Having enjoyed large wins over Claregalway (albeit that one was a tighter affair than the final score suggested) and Maree in the quarter-final and semi-final respectively, Maigh Cuilinn were fancied against a youthful and energetic Titan’s squad.

That said, nobody expected there to be much in the margin and so it was, with Titans proving every bit the match for their more experienced counterparts. The city side got fine performances from young Powell, Okeke and Begley to name a few and they led after the first quarter 17 to 18, much to the joy of the nice sized crowd of supporters that came to cheer them on.

Maigh Cuilinn, buoyed by their own travelling faithful exploded to life in the second quarter however with Paul O’Brien and Rory Gilson running the show and feeding the ball to the hot hand of Donogh McDonogh (who finished the half with four three pointers made) as our lads roared into a nine point advantage, 45 to 36.

Titans made sure it remained a great game for the spectators enjoying the fare and would win the third quarter by three points to narrow the gap to 62 v 56 entering the last.

The omens were good for Maigh Cuilinn however, with veteran Rory Monaghan netting a 100% shooting return from the field while Rhys Plower, Davey Jackson and John Hynes absolutely tormented the Titans defence with pointed drives to the ring. Maigh Cuilinn’s breakout star of the Galway League campaign to date meanwhile, young Cian Carroll, was generally unstoppable until he was eventually told by the referees to sit down (nominally for allegedly committing five fouls, but probably just out of mercy in the closing minute of the game).

In the whole, it was Maigh Cuilinn’s excellent all around team play and calm heads that saw them through against a furious Titans’ effort and as the game reached its conclusion there was only going to be one winner with our lads extending the lead in the fourth quarter to claim a final victory on a 76 to 67 scoreline.

The Dominick King Galway Men’s Senior Cup was proudly hoisted by Monaghan and player/coach/defensive enforcer Niall Faherty and celebrations ensued generally, with all rumours of a subsequent session wholeheartedly denied by club officials.

A special note must go to club stalwart Mairtin O’Conghaile (somehow a stalwart despite not yet being 25) who, with his second Galway Senior Men’s Cup winner’s medal now in his back pocket, becomes arguably the winningest player in club history having captured every significant underage title right up to U20 National Cup and a now healthy dose of senior medals too. He had another irrefutably flawless game again in the cup final. Coinnigh leis Mairtin!

You can keep an eye on the final Galway League fixtures here so why not come in and support the lads in one of the last remaining games as they try to clinch the double of league and cup glory to end the year.

Categories: News