History of The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship - 1987 To 1988 - Galway Break The Mould

Galway Break The Mould

The 1987 championship threw up some interesting surprises. Galway put down an early signal of intent by claiming the National League title at Clare's expense. In Munster Tipperary defeated Cork after a thrilling draw and a replay to deny 'the Rebels' a record-breaking six-in-a-row. Tipp's annexing of a first provincial title since 1971 prompted captain Richard Stakelum to declare that:

In Leinster Kilkenny broke back to take the title and book an All-Ireland final spot against Galway. The prospect of becoming the first team to lose three consecutive championship deciders weighed heavily on the Galway team and probably gave them an extra impetus to win. The game was not a classic by any standard and Noel Lane got a key goal for Galway nine minutes before the end. A 1-12 to 0-9 victory gave Galway a second All-Ireland title of the decade and proved that their win in 1980 was not a once-off.

In 1988 Galway reached a fourth successive All-Ireland final. After more than a decade-and-a-half in the wilderness Tipperary, the fallen superpower, were back providing the opposition in the championship decider. Galway defeated Tipp in the semi-final the previous year, however, with an extra year’s experience it was expected that Tipperary might shade the victory. Galway, however, used this to motivate themselves as they believed their championship victory the previous year did not earn them the respect they were due. Noel Lane again scored the crucial goal for Galway while Nicky English sent a late penalty over the bar for a point. A 1-15 to 0-14 score line resulted in victory for Galway and a third All-Ireland title, ensuring that the eighties definitely belonged to Galway.