30th title for the Rebels - now for the 3-in-a-row? After all the excitement and drama of the semi-finals, everyone looked forward to the clash of Galway and Cork in the final. Most people stated that it would be a very open game and so it proved to be. I am probably right in saying also that the majority of counties would have loved to see Galway win and so would I, but not against Cork. All the hassle and drama over tickets had most of us drained before a ball was thrown in and I swore to myself again - never again - just say no, I do not have any instead of I will see what I can do - not a good idea. There has to be a better way! Anyway on with the important matter and analysing the game. The main talking points prior to this game were about the Cork defence - their ability to defend against a goal scoring Galway attack - and who would win the midfield battle. But what nobody had thought of was that Donal Og Cusack would change tactics with his puck outs and deliver them long instead of short and that Galway would follow Cork's lead all year and use a very quick and short one to keep the ball away from the Rebel's half back line. It was fascinating stuff and meant the game flowed from end to end at an unbelievable pace with terrific scores being taken on both sides. The Cork defence though set down an early marker particularly the full back line where 'the Rock' was dominating against Niall Healy and Brian Murphy did a man marking job on Damian Hayes to very good effect. On the opposite side Pat Mulcahy held a tight rein on Ger Farragher. This meant that the trio who destroyed the Cats were not having the same impact.- To be fair to Galway, they did try to shake up the half back line of Cork by playing a fast and low ball out to them which meant they were pulling O hAilpin, Curran and Gardiner out of position on a regular basis. This resulted in Alan Kerins having one of his best games in a maroon shirt on no less a man than Gardiner, who for me up to that day was Hurler of the Year. Now there are one or two more in the running with Gerry O Connor now a joint favourite in many peoples' eyes. But the key to this match was the performance of the Cork midfielders, Tom Kenny and Gerry O'Connor; they ran the show and scored some fantastic points by charging onto the breaking ball from Cusack's puck outs. Also the form of Brian Corcoran in the first twenty minutes made you think he was only a twenty year old. He came out the field to win possession and then laid it off for others to score, as well as scoring one sublime effort himself. I bet he will still be around next year! Throw in the goal from Ben O Connor and it was the start Galway would have wanted themselves and it became clear that the Tribesmen needed to up the ante considerably. They responded in style with some fabulous hurling and if Alan Kerins had finished his chance before half time - who knows what would have happened? Still I believe the Connacht side would still have been happy with their position at half time. They were hurling okay and surely they wondered was their brilliant form against Kilkenny about to return? Cork started the second half very brightly again and it became quite obvious that Ben O'Connor was going to be the major influence on the game as he hit over point after point. To be fair to his opponent Derek Hardiman, he was having a blinder also but his man was having an effect where it mattered, on the scoreboard. Galway were not going to give up and tested Donal Og on a few occasions before Damian Hayes' goal threw them a life line. But for me the defining moments in that period were John Gardiner scoring a free from close on 90 yards quickly after the goal, Gerry O'Connor's point from under the Hogan Stand and the switch of Sean Og over on Alan Kerins. All three combined ensured that Galway's challenge started to fade. Cork were deserving winners but Galway will learn a lot from this experience and will be the new team on the block shortly. Winning a minor and contesting an U21 All-Ireland shows that there is plenty of talent there and their day will come. What about the Rebels? Will they have the hunger and desire to go and try win a three-in-a-row? I believe they will as this one of the most professional outfits I have seen. John Allen and his selectors will take a lot of credit here but the backroom team and all those parts of the set up must be congratulated. Sean McGrath and Gerry Wallace deserve special mention as the physical trainers as they implemented new ideas all year to keep the players fresh and sharp for the challenges that lay ahead. Special mention to Limerick and Galway minors who served up a splendid contest and the boys in green surprised a lot of people by the quality of their performance. Well done to all. Hopefully all minor semi-finals will be played in Croke Park next year and the All-Ireland quarterfinals will be played outside of Croke Park to create a better atmosphere and reduce the costs to spectators. I will sign off by picking my team of the year who I feel were the best performers throughout the championship - Donal Og Cusack, Pat Mulcahy, Diarmuid O'Sullivan, Brian Murphy, Derek Hardiman, John Gardiner, Sean Og O'hAilpin, Paul Kelly, Gerry O'Connor, Henry Shefflin, Seamus Prendergast, Tommy Walsh, Eoin Kelly, Brian Corcoran, Ger Farragher. Tweet

Most Read Stories