Eugene Cloonan's championship return has had to be put on hold after he was ruled out of the All-Ireland SHC qualifier against Laois on Saturday through injury.
Cloonan, who last championship game for Galway was back in July 2004 when they were hammered 4-20 to 1-10 by Kilkenny, is ruled out with a thigh muscle injury.
The Athenry marksman, who scored 0-7 in that match against Kilkenny to add to the 4-7 he scored in the 5-19 to 1-14 rout of Down two weeks prior to that, did not feature in the Galway squad throughout last year's run to the All-Ireland final.
Cloonan returned to the Galway squad earlier this year and featured in the national league, but his return to championship action has been delayed.
Two players will make their championship debuts for Galway with last year's victorious minor captain Andrew Keary being selected at left half-forward.
And Athenry's Michael John Quinn, a minor in 1999, is rewarded for a series of consistent displays with selection at left half-back in a Galway team which has thirteen of the fifteen who started last year's All-Ireland final against Cork, although there are many positional changes.
Galway: L Donoghue; D Joyce, T Regan, O Canning; D Hardiman, S Kavanagh, MJ Quinn; F Healy, D Collins; G Farragher, D Forde, A Keary; A Kerins, R Murray, D Hayes
