Finian Hanley won't be making excuses about Galway being in transition if they lose to Kerry on Sunday.

Since breaking into the Galway team a decade ago, the full back has heard the excuse bandied about quite a bit following defeats. However, as the Tribesmen prepare for their first All-Ireland SFC quarter-final since 2008, Hanley insists the transition phase is well and truly over and it's time to push on.

"Every time you have a kind of bad year, you say, 'well, we're in transition from the (good years)'. But, you know, it's a long time since 2001 and they've been talking about transition ever since. You can't be using that anymore. You just have to push on," the Salthill-Knocknacarra man is quoted as saying in the Irish Examiner.

"Teams go through stints of not progressing but hopefully it's an upward curve for Galway now because it's a big county, a traditional football county. It's time to see them on the up again."

On Sunday's opponents, Hanley said: "It's Kerry, they're a class act. They're always there or thereabouts. They were a kick of a ball away from a final last year and everyone had them written off. They have their sights on big things as well.

"We've been around this team a couple of years ourselves. So we've our sights set on pushing on too. It's just great to be back in a quarter-final and we'll give it a right rattle." Tweet

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