Galway 5-29 Laois 0-17 By Cóilín Duffy Leinster beware - Galway will show no mercy, as the Tribesmen's debut in the GAA Leinster Senior Hurling Championship ensured Laois were dumped into the Qualifiers following a 27-point drubbing at O'Moore Park, Portlaoise. The score-line doesn't do full justice to this game, and although Galway firmly deserved their victory one has to look a little deeper to see where the overall story lies. It was a 15th minute two-goal salvo from the visitors couplled with some Laois indiscipline which firmly dented any chance the hosts had in this game. Laois had dominated possession in the opening ten minutes, but some poor shooting and the use of the advantage rule by Offaly whistler Brian Galvin cost them early on. With 68 percent of the possession in the first ten minutes, Laois failed to make this pay, with scoring opportunities going astray - while Messers Canning, Damien Hayes, Aongus Callanan and Niall Healy slotted over points at the opposite end. Laois' opening score arrived from Owen Holohan in the 11th minute, but Galway hadn't come for the glorious sunshine and when Healy and Canning despatched rasping shots to the back of the Laois net, the visitors quickly opened up a 2-4 to 0-1 advantage. Laois matched Galway point-for-point over the next five minutes, before a Galway brace was cancelled out by two James Young pointed frees. It was the type of game where some good free-flowing hurling was on offer, but indiscipline suddenly crept in and this was to prove costly for both sides. Tempers overspilled 45 metres out from the town-end goal on the stand-side, and when the chaos die-down both Laois free-taker James Young and Galway centre-half-forward Kevin Hayes were despatched for early showers. It turned from bad to worse for Laois from the resulting free out - this time Michael McEvoy receiving his second yellow card for a shoulder on Adrian Cullinane and now a chasm left in the Laois rear-guard. Joe Canning outscored Laois by three points to one in the closing stages of the first half, with Brian Campion on target for the hosts as Galway took a 2-11 to 0-7 interval lead. Campion and Willie Hyland kept Laois in touch in the second half but in reality the damage had been done. A brace of second half goals from Niall Healy ensured the Craughwell clubman completed his hat-trick with Damien Hayes also bagging a 45th minute goal as Galway took a comfortable 27-point win. Galway - C Callanan; D Joyce, S Kavanagh, F Moore; E Lynch, J Lee, A Cullinane; K Hynes (0-4), A Smyth (0-1); A Callanan (0-3), K Hayes, C Donnellan (0-3); D Hayes (1-3), J Canning (1-10, 6f), N Healy (3-5, 1 f, 1 '65). Subs - G Mahon for K Hayes (Blood 18-21); D McClearn for Kavanagh (HT); B Costelloe for Lee (45); D Tierney for D Hayes (55); M Ryan for Moore (58); J Gantley for J Canning (59) Laois - T Doran; J A Delaney, D Maher, B Stapleton; M Whelan, B Campion (0-5, 3f), M McEvoy; J Young (0-4, 4f), James Walsh; D Peacock, W Hyland (0-6, 3f), O Holohan (0-2); J Purcell, J Rowney, E Jackman. Subs - M Moloney for J Walsh (Blood 20-22); S Dwyer for Peacock (HT); K Fitzpatrick for Stapleton (45); R Young for Purcell (52); C Delaney for Rowney (65) Ref - Brian Gavin (Offaly) Tweet

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