and one from Kevin Hennessy, stymied the Galway attack and helped ‘the Rebels’ to a merited 4–13 to 2–15 victory. 1987 to 1988 - Galway break the mould The 1987 championship threw up some interesting surprises. Galway put down an early signal of intent by claiming the National League title at Clare's expense. In Munster Tipperary defeated Cork after a thrilling draw and a replay to deny 'the Rebels' a record-breaking six-in-a-row. In Leinster Kilkenny broke back to take the title and book an All-Ireland final spot against Galway. The prospect of becoming the first team to lose three consecutive championship deciders weighed heavily on the Galway team and probably gave them an extra impetus to win. The game was not a classic by any standard and Noel Lane got a key goal for Galway nine minutes before the end. A 1–12 to 0–9 victory gave Galway a second All-Ireland title of the decade and proved that their win in 1980 was not a once-off. In 1988 Galway reached a fourth successive All-Ireland final. After more than a decade-and-a-half in the wilderness Tipperary, the fallen superpower, were back providing the opposition in the championship decider. Galway defeated Tipp in the semi-final the previous year; however, with an extra year's experience it was expected that Tipperary might shade the victory. Galway, however, used this to motivate themselves as they believed their championship victory the previous year did not earn them the respect they were due. Noel Lane again scored the crucial goal for Galway while Nicky English sent a late penalty over the bar for a point. A 1–15 to 0–14 score line resulted in victory for Galway and a third All-Ireland title, ensuring that the eighties definitely belonged to Galway. 1989 to 1993 - The big three redeem themselves In 1989 Tipperary were still the best team in Munster and won a third provincial title. For the third time in as many years Tipp faced Galway in the All-Ireland series; however, on this occasion the men from the West were without their star player Tony Keady. The game turned out to be a tense and unsavory affair as Tipp finally triumphed over Galway. Antrim, the surprise winners of the other semi-final, provided the opposition in the subsequent All-Ireland final. It was an historic occasion as it was only the second appearance of an Ulster team in the championship decider. Antrim's