Galway boss Ger Loughnane says he has no regrets about declaring he would be a failure if he didn't win an All-Ireland within two years of taking over the Tribesmen.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT . . . Galway manager Ger Loughnane in pensive mood as Cork scuttle his side's chances at Semple Stadium on Saturday evening. Photo: Ray McManus/SPORTSFILE

He said that no progress had been made over the past two years despite the huge effort put in by everyone involved.

"I don't regret making that comment whatsoever. It is a failure, there is no other way of saying it. I went up to Galway for two years, I said I'd give it two years to win an All-Ireland and we didn't even win a quarter-final, we didn't even get to a semi-final, we got nowhere in two years.

"It was a complete and utter collapse when you think of the amount of training we've done, the quality of training we've done. It's absolutely disillusioning when you produce a display like we produced in the last 25 minutes, when the game was really there to be won or lost," said Loughnane. He said they were in a great position at half-time but just did not push on from there.

"The very same problems we had in the league final against Tipperary in the league final where only one or two forwards performed, we had the very same problem again today after all the training we've done. In any man's language, that's a failure," he added.

Loughnane paid tribute to the spirit displayed by Cork, especially in the second-half.

"All their big men came up trumps when things were really needed, and that's what champions do. Big men come up trumps when they're really needed. Unfortunately only one of our big men, and he gave a fantastic display at full forward, but too many other of our players just didn't perform on the day.

"It could have been 22 points, at least 12 points was the real difference between the two teams. Only that we had Joe Canning we'd have been beaten off the field," said Loughnane.

He said that Galway needed to look at what structure they wanted to play in but it was clear they were ill-equipped for the first big test of the year.

"What I was hoping there at the end was that we'd get a draw and have a replay, and then you'd really see where you were going. We didn't deserve a draw, it would have been total robbery if we'd got a draw, but that's what you'd be hoping for.

"But I'm completely disullisioned, totally and utterly. I've had disappointments before with teams, but that was inexplicable when you see how we were playing in training and the quality of hurling," he added.

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