Micheál Donoghue says lifting the Bob O’Keeffe Cup was Galway’s number one target for the 2026 season, after he watched his side run out 14-point winners over Dublin in Saturday evening’s Leinster SHC final at Croke Park.It is the Tribesmen’s fourth Leinster title and their first since 2018. They had lost three of the last four provincial deciders, including the 2025 final to Kilkenny.“We’re obviously delighted. It was our number one goal at the start of the year and we had a huge focus on that,” said Donoghue afterwards.“When you say it is your number one target, it’s lovely to have accomplished it now.“I think the players deserve unbelievable credit. I think the manner in which we won it, the style of play that we played was really satisfying.“I sat here last year really frustrated after the game that we didn’t implement the gameplan that we wanted when we came here.“The team has gone through a fair transition over the last number of months and we’ve had some really good performances and within those performances some of it not so great but they showed huge willingness to always stay at it.“I’ve said it all year, it’s gone through a huge transition, I think it was 10 changes from the team that started today to the team that started last year’s [Leinster final].”Donoghue said Galway’s preparations had been severely hampered by injuries to approximately half a dozen players and it appeared they were set to lose two more inside quarter of an hour at Croke Park on Saturday.Rory Burke limped off injured in the 14th minute while Daithí Burke required extensive treatment on the sideline for a leg injury – with the initial prognosis that he had dislocated his knee.Daithí Burke, sporting bandages on his right knee, returned to the field and carried out a highly effective man-marking job on John Hetherton.“He thought he actually dislocated it and went back again,” added Donoghue of Burke’s injury. “That’s just a testament to the man he is. He’s a bear.”Galway's Darren Morrissey pictured as he lifts the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship cup. Photograph: Tom O’Hanlon/Inpho Galway now have a four-week break before they return to Croke Park for an All-Ireland semi-final, so it was not just the prize of silverware they collected in the capital but also a return trip to the last four of the Liam MacCarthy competition.“There’s the opportunity to come back here and play in an All-Ireland semi-final. They’re rare occasions. We haven’t been here in a while for that. We had great support today.“Hopefully now we get more here in a month’s time. Look, for us now it’s just enjoy the few days. They’re going to savour it and they will enjoy it and they will celebrate it. We’re glad it’s coming back to Galway.”For Dublin, there was little to celebrate. It just didn’t happen for them. After a sluggish start they worked themselves into the game and only trailed by four at the interval.But Galway outplayed the Dubs in the third quarter and from that point onwards it always looked like the wait for a first Leinster title since 2013 would continue.Dublin manager Niall Ó Ceallachain was not hiding his disappointment afterwards, admitting the manner of the loss was a setback to the group.“It’s a killer, to be honest, it’s an absolute killer. We are well aware that we in Dublin have to take this step and haven’t there today,” said the Dublin boss.“It’s a significant blow to what we’ve done over the last few weeks. In the context of the Leinster Championship and what we want to do, it’s a significant blow.“But we just have to get it off the floor and drive it now in two weeks.”Dublin had beaten Galway in Salthill during the round-robin stages of the Leinster championship but they failed to create the same energy in Saturday’s decider.“Each game takes its own form really,” added Ó Ceallachain.“The truth of it is while we could take huge momentum from nine points out of 10 and we topped the league, but often what went before doesn’t really have a huge impact on the day itself. Each game takes its own form and it’s a new day.“Your energy and aggression levels need to be on point and through the roof. It’s very hard to analyse it now and to break it down. I think they got 25 shots off by going through us as opposed to over, if you know what I mean by that.“It looked like they handled the ball very well, they got off the shoulder very well, they got their heads up in possession and we were just second-best overall.”