Galway demonstrated superior match day prowess as they charged to a 5-11 to 0-12 victory over Dublin in the 2007 All-Ireland U21 hurling championship final at Croke Park Dublin's defence was found wanting in the first half, conceding four goals to give Galway a ten-point interval cushion. It was a pity for the Metropolitans as they had done well out the field, but their defenders were overstretched by a vibrant Galway forward line that would even take some watching at senior level. Conor Kavanagh's eighth-minute goal put Galway four points ahead - 1-2 to 0-1. The corner forward fired to the net after good work from inimitable full forward Joe Canning. Earlier, Canning had cancelled out Alan McCrabbe's free for Dublin after Galway struck the first point of the day. Athenry's Sean Glynn netted a hockey-style goal for Galway two minutes after Kavanagh's strike, his ground shot putting seven points between them. Centre forward Diarmuid Connolly lifted Dublin with a superb point from play but Sarsfields' Kerril Wade replied immediately for the Tribesmen and Finnian Coone added another minor for the westerners, who led 2-4 to 0-2 after twelve minutes, Kavanagh then danced inside the Dublin rearguard to drive his second goal past Paddy Curtin to the roof of the net on 13 minutes. Already, the gap was a whopping eleven points. Curtin brilliantly blocked the next goal effort from Glynn but Canning drove the rebound over the crossbar to make it 3-5 to 0-2. Midfielder McCrabbe (who notched five first-half points) steadied Dublin with a brace of superb frees and the No.9 added a magnificent point from play, splitting the posts after brilliantly avoiding a hook in full flight on the right wing. Still, Galway's three goals had them well ahead on the scoreboard. The Dubs made it five points in a row with scores from McCrabbe's midfield partner Johnny McCaffrey and right corner man Peadar Carton, who had received late clearance to start. Coone just about squeezed a point between the posts and McCrabbe replied with an exceptional score from a free to keep the gap down to seven. Ross O'Carroll and Coone had a miss at either end before Glynn handpassed a ball in to Wade, who placed the sliothar to the net first time with a ruthless overhead strike. Shortly after that fourth Galway goal, there was an unsavoury incident when a Galway forward was guilty of pulling across an opponents' ribs - a moment that has no place in an All-Ireland final, especially with ten points between the teams. The half-time whistle sounded with Galway in total ascendancy: 4-6 to 0-8. McCrabbe got the first point of the second half from a free after Curton had been cynically pulled down and there was a slight melee off the ball, no doubt an afterburner from the incident near the end of the first half. After McCrabbe had closed the gap further, there was a mass outbreak of violence involving the majority of the players on the field. It was a very difficult situation for the referee, who booked three players, two from Dublin. It was wise, effective officiating. McConnell missed a chance to narrow the margin further and Wade extended Galway's advantage from a free ten minutes into the second period: 4-7 to 0-10. Galway led by nine but frustratingly for Dublin they had scored only once less than their more illustrious opponents. In the 43rd minute, Canning demonstrated remarkable skill when he popped a point over the Hill 16 crossbar from a sideline cut on the left wing - an outstanding exhibition of rare talent. Midfielder Keith Kilkenny added to the Galway tally and Wade traded frees with McCrabbe. Between those two scores, Galway keeper James Skehill and full back Ger Mahon did well to thwart a Dublin goal chance. The radar-like McCrabbe took his ninth point from a '65' five minutes from the end At the very end of normal time, substitute Noel Kelly contributed the winners' fifth goal when he latched onto Canning's sideline cut to fire the ball first-time to the net along the ground. The No.23 also added a lovely point from play asVincent Mullins' charges accelerated across the wining line and out of sight. Galway - J Skehill; A Leech, G Mahon, C O'Donovan; M Ryan, J Lee, A Keary; D Kennedy, K Kilkenny (0-1); S Glynn (1-0), K Hynes, F Coone (0-2); C Kavanagh (2-0), J Canning (0-3, 1 sideline), K Wade (1-4, 2 frees). Subs - B Hanley for Glynn (30), A Harte for Kennedy (57), J Greene for Coone (59), N Kelly (1-1) for Kavanagh (59), P Loughnane for Leech (60). Dublin - P Curtin; R Drumgoole, P O'Callaghan, D Webster; K Dunne, T Brady, J Boland; J McCaffrey (0-1), A McCrabbe (0-9, 6 frees, 1 '65, 1 sideline); E Moran, D Connolly (0-1), S Durkin; P Carton (0-1), D O'Dwyer, R O'Carroll. Subs - M McGarry for Webster (18), I Fleming for O'Carroll (48), S Lehane for Connolly (48). Referee - John Ryan (Tipperary). Tweet

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