Galway survived a late Westmeath surge to win 3-21 to 2-21 in Round 2A, with McGrath punching over the decisive score on 71 minutes after the favourites had been dragged into a nervous finish.
That is the sort of result people are searching for now because it came out of a live set of GAA results that were changing fast, with Galway and Dublin both on winning paths and other Round 2A games running at the same time. The final margin in Galway and Westmeath was only one point, but it did not look that way until the closing minutes.
Galway had already done the damage before the endgame, building a lead that gave them room to absorb pressure. By 53 minutes, their full forward line had scored 2-8, with Shane Walsh on 1-2, Tierney on 1-2 and Finnerty on 0-4. Conroy then kept them in control by manufacturing a chance in front of the posts on 61 minutes, and Galway stayed ahead even as the game opened up.
Westmeath refused to let it finish quietly. Duncan palmed in a goal on 67 minutes after Forde had landed a two-pointer, then McCartan added another two-pointer on 70 minutes to slash the gap again. They were within touching distance and almost forced one more break when Forde’s two-pointer dropped short on 69 minutes and Duncan nearly tipped it in, but Galway won the kickout on 71 minutes and McGrath pushed the ball over to settle it.
The result matters because it keeps Galway alive in the All-Ireland senior football championship knockout path, and because it shows how quickly a match can tilt even after a late chase looks ready to overturn it. Dublin were also moving through their game, with O’Callaghan converting a penalty goal on 67 minutes after Dublin had already stretched seven points clear through points from Guiden and O’Callaghan. Elsewhere, Tyrone and Mayo were level at 0-4 after 13 minutes, while the schedule also included Waterford against Galway at Walsh Park at 2pm and Tipperary against Cork at Semple Stadium at 3.30pm.
What Galway settled in the end was not just a one-point game, but the gap between control and panic. Westmeath kept finding answers, yet Galway had done enough earlier to make McGrath’s late point the last word.
