Tom Humphries at Semple Stadium
Not a person in sight. Just the sound of citizens boarding their windows and nailing shut their doors. The faint-hearted have fled town. An evil wind whistles down the main street pushing tumbleweed and old newspapers before it. Hurling feels a shiver down its spine. Hurling knows. Kilkenny are back. And this time it's personal.
Since Wexford went and got them riled a month ago the rest of the community has been fearing this. First Kilkenny went to Carlow and drilled Dublin full of holes. A 26-point margin and we thought that maybe Dublin had it coming.
Galway though, well Galway have lived in Dodge City. Galway stood up like the toughest of hombres three years ago. Last night Galway lay by the roadside - 19-point losers. Holes all through their ten-gallon hats.
And then they dipped the hands into a hat. Clare and Offaly play each other next week for the right to play Kilkenny a week later. Why not save the trouble, boys? Draw straws.
Kilkenny were awesome yesterday. Galway, the league champions and the last side to dump Kilkenny right out of a championship, can scarcely have figured that this was coming across the prairie at them. Galway pride themselves on standing up and staying that way.
It's best not to get them stoked. Nine minutes into the second half yesterday Galway got a goal. Nice effort too. Kevin Broderick scooting away, Damien Hayes taking the pass and tucking it away, leaving him with 1-2 after his name, a slight libel on his marker, the wonderful Tommy Walsh.
Still it left them just three points adrift. One score. The maroon flags waved hopefully. Perhaps Galway would muster a posse and fight till the death.
Kilkenny were having none of it. After that they outscored Galway by 2-8 to 0-2. That's 14 points to two down the home stretch of a knockout game against one of the best sides in the country. 2-8 to 0-2 in the heat of battle.
Spooky. Frightening.
What can you say about them? First you don't want to say anything to make them annoyed. As it was, men in sweat-shirts were trickling out of the Kilkenny dressing-room afterwards making sarcastic comments to the poor, huddled media waiting for the benison of a quote.
"Ah, good to see ye back, lads." As if the scribblers were rats who'd jumped back aboard a ship which hadn't after all sunk. Fact is Kilkenny took a little water. Nothing else. Nobody even suggested it.
Yesterday they went a point behind in the opening minute and were never threatened after that. Henry Shefflin had one of those days that leave players blushing and saying it's not about the individual, it's about the team. He scored 2-11. If all the team do that someday what are they going to say? His first goal was a lovely quick-wristed flick stapled onto the end of a move which began with a free inside the Kilkenny half. A couple of touches and the ball was nestling in the corner of the Galway net.
Poor Galway got up and dusted themselves down but the lead kept whistling past their ears. At half-time they were five points adrift and the worst was yet to come.
Kilkenny's mood might best be judged by that of their manager, Brian Cody, who moved up and down the sideline like a force of nature. "I don't get wound up. I told you that before," he said afterwards with a rueful smile "I don't do wound up."
Given that, we can only assume it was sweet nothings Brian was pouring into the ear of both linesman and referee during that first half.
And if he ever does get aggravated we trust there will be storm warnings on the radio.
After the break, after more serene words with their manager, Kilkenny just ran riot. Galway's goal was a mere irritation to them. Some Kilkenny players played well. Others gave exhibitions. Shefflin. Walsh. JJ Delaney. Conor Phelan. James Ryall. Eddie Brennan. All competed for best in show.
They ended up with four goals and 20 points on a day DJ Carey contributed just a point from a 65. If DJ finds his wind the next day? Well, there'll be nobody left standing.
For the last few minutes of the game Kilkenny just enjoyed themselves like men shooting at tin cans on a fence. Shefflin had his second goal, an impudent 20-yard free. Then Eddie Brennan took a feed from John Hoyne and prompted a green flag. A couple of minutes later Brennan repaid Hoyne with a pass. Goal number four.
And that was it. It's been a fine old hurling summer till now. Filled with novelty and lightness. It's about to get all grim and grown up now. Kilkenny are back and they have the haggard look of desperadoes. All those in their path between now and September had best be fixing the sights on their barrels.
"We went out and we played from minute one to the last minute," said Cody afterwards. "That's what sport is about, going out and giving everything. People from last September were wondering if we had the hunger. I know that's there. The want is there. The hunger is there."
And when he finished speaking there was no sound but that wind blowing down the main street.