Shane Walsh says Padraic Joyce's belief is rubbing off on the Galway players

When Padraic Joyce took the Galway job in late 2019, he laid out his ambitions to win the All-Ireland title.

The Tribesmen fell short in his opening two seasons at the helm, losing successive Connacht finals to Mayo.

But after securing the Nestor Cup already this summer, there is a sense in the county that there is a real opportunity at hand. And Joyce's belief is rubbing off on the players.

"There's definitely more of a belief there now," said Shane Walsh.

"Pádraic is a man of belief. He's such a confident man. What he said when he played, he did. He was just an unbelievable footballer and to have that confidence, it shows, and it spreads across the team as well. The players see that as well. When you have a manager breathing that confidence into you as well, that helps.

"There could be doubts in the back of some lad's mind and they're kind of saying, 'Am I going to? Is it going to happen?' Whereas if you have a manager inspiring you all the time to help you and encourage you on, then you're thinking, 'Well, why can't I?'

"That's the way I see it. Why not us? Tyrone won it last year and when Dublin were winning it, they had the belief.

"Where we get our money's worth is there could be a stage in the quarter-final where we're down having played well at half-time and that's when your belief is tested. You're saying to yourself, we played well, but we've been unlucky. There could be a goal that goes in off a freak deflection or something like that. It's how we respond to that, that's when your character is tested.

"I think throughout the league we've bounced back in situations that were sticky enough and came through those. Even against Roscommon we didn't play well on the day and still came back to make a right game of it down the stretch.

"I think that's the sign of a team and I think we are building that character all the time. Hopefully everyone will see that down the line."

In the wake of the Connacht final win over Roscommon, Joyce described Walsh as "one of the best footballers I've ever seen playing". Such a compliment has challenged him to strive for new heights.

"Pádraic has always challenged me," said Walsh.

"That is the nature of it. Pádraic sees potential in me, no more than I do. I am trying to get the best out of myself every time I go out and play. Sometimes it is frustrating when you are not able to get that performance out of you for one reason or another.

"I have huge admiration for Padraic as a player and a manager. He has Galway at the centre of his heart.

"It is so refreshing when you have someone like that. He wants the best for Galway. He has made that so clear. It is the heartwarming thing for me. Galway to the core.

"It is nice. He might say that the last day but I know he will have something different to say to me in training the next night as well. Look, there is a challenge there every time you go out it is to try and better yourself. He always says when you go out leave your best performance for Galway every time you play and improve every day.

"If we do that, good things can happen for Galway. If that happens with every player, it has to happen all around. I think I am the last of the players to play well so hopefully, we can keep it going now."

After a number of near-misses in recent years, regaining their provincial crown was a welcome boost.

"The most pleasing aspect was the fact that we ticked a box that no one knows about in that we won one in Pearse Stadium, that as a big thing for us," Walsh explained.

"Galway hadn't won one in Galway since 2005 so that was probably the motivating factor for us all and then add in the couple of lads in the panel that hadn't won Connacht titles so that was probably an extra motivation.

"And then you had Roscommon beating us twice this year so we weren't lacking motivation it was about trying to get a performance."

Our GAA coverage continues on Saturday, with Derry vs Clare and Dublin vs Cork live on Sky Sports Arena from 3:15pm.