Gort are new galway hurling champions

END of an era. For even if Portumna come back next year or the following year to win another County Senior Hurling Championship, it’s not realistic to think there is a return to the national stage in them. Four times All-Ireland Club champions (2006, 2008, 2009 and last St Patrick’s Day) and magnificent ambassadors for Galway hurling, a great team is breaking up, mainly because of the passing of the years.
At Kenny Park, Athenry on Sunday they lost no honour in defeat and they had no complaints as Gort, a powerful new rising force in Galway club hurling, won the Tom Callanan Memorial Cup with a fiercely determined display, especially in the second half.
In the final four minutes of a hard-fought county final, plus time added on for injuries and other stoppages, Gort scored their two goals and Portumna pounced for their only goal of the game.
Gort led at the interval by four points but Portumna, gallant in their perseverence and in continuing to believe they could save the day, battled back to level pegging in the 56th minute when Niall Hayes lobbed in a ball that came back off a goalpost for the wonderfully alert Ollie Canning to cleverly transfer to Kevin (“Chunky”) Hayes for a spectacular goal from close range, to show the scoreboard now reading Gort 0-13 Portumna 1-10.