Joe Canning: Henry & Cody are probably laughing about the handshake now

It was the handshake that launched a thousand tweets, but Joe Canning was unmoved.

Brian Cody's steely grip and cold stare into the eyes of his former player Henry Shefflin, seconds after Galway had beaten Kilkenny in a pulsating Leinster SHC clash, had camera men falling over each other.

Cue slow-motion replays, screen-grabs and pictures that hogged Monday's front pages as debate swirled about 'The Handshake'.

"What do people want?" Canning shrugged when asked about it at the launch of the Bord Gáis Energy GAA Legends Tour Series.

"Do they want the boys to be hugging and laughing and joking after what happened 30 seconds before it? In fairness, if I lost a game with a last-second free I'd be p****d off enough.

"I think people just read too much into that sort of stuff. It's a competitive sport and that’s all it is. It’s just a competitive streak in the two guys and they wouldn’t have won what they’ve won if they weren’t competitive and didn’t like losing. So that’s all it is.

"I’d take it with a pinch of salt. I’m sure they’re probably laughing at everyone talking about it now. I think it’s blown out of proportion and it is what it is. I much prefer to see the two guys like that rather than hugging and joking after the game."

Canning, of course, watches these battles as a supporter now, though the 33-year-old remains consumed by hurling as he juggles playing with Portumna - injuries permitting - with his role on the management team for the Galway minors.

Shefflin did try to convince the five-time All Star forward to stay on for another campaign, but Canning simply wasn't able.

"When he gets in your head, you'd love to work with him, but physically, I couldn't," he reflected.

"I'd say there were lads retired five or 10 years, and