Henry Shefflin: You can't play for 25 minutes in an All-Ireland semi-final

Henry Shefflin rued Galway's inability to build on their blistering start against Limerick as they suffered a third All-Ireland semi-final defeat in four years against the Treatymen.

Galway recovered from the concession of an early Aaron Gillane goal to move six points in front by 26 minutes, a Cathal Mannion stunner hitting the back of the net and Evan Niland punishing Limerick indiscipline.

However, the Tribesmen's lead had been cut to one by the half-time whistle as Limerick shifted up a gear, and they took complete control after the restart by limiting Galway to 0-05 while hitting 1-12 at the other end.

'You can't play for 25 minutes in an All-Ireland hurling semi-final' - Henry Shefflin reflects on his Galway side's fast start and their inability to back it up pic.twitter.com/0FMpcIhIwS

"We started very well and really felt we were playing on our terms but, as Limerick do, after 25 minutes they started to wrestle the game back to their terms," Galway manager Shefflin told RTÉ Sport.

"The defining moment was the second goal. Limerick had started the third quarter well and they probably kicked on from there. Their freshness, they grew into the game and got stronger as it went on. They were exceptional.

"We're very disappointed. We had scored 1-13 after about 25 minutes and were moving very well, but from there on Limerick took over the game."

We need your consent to load this comcast-player content We use comcast-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content. Manage Preferences

Cathal Mannion scored a superb first-half goal for Galway

Galway caused Limerick major problems early on with their