Armagh v Kerry live updates from the All-Ireland quarter-final clash
The last All-Ireland quarter-final clash of the weekend sees defending champions Armagh take on Kerry in a fascinating contest.
Ulster football has already two representatives in the last four of Championship after victories for Donegal and Tyrone over Monaghan and Dublin respectively on Saturday.
Armagh and Kerry met at the semi-final stages of last year's campaign with the Orchard County claiming a two-point victory after extra-time before going on to defeat Galway in the final last July.
Kieran McGeeney's men suffered another heartbreaking Ulster final loss to Donegal, but they've returned to form in recent weeks to become the favourites to retain the Sam Maguire.
Kerry will be keen end their reign this afternoon as they seek to find their stride after a shock loss to Meath in group stages.
In David Clifford, they possess Gaelic football's MVP, but they'll need more if they are to reach the All-Ireland semi-final.
Midfielder Diarmuid O'Connor dislocated his shoulder against Cavan in the preliminary quarter-final and will play no part this afternoon while Paudie Clifford and Paul Geaney are named on the bench.
Armagh, meanwhile, will be without Oisin O'Neill and Stefan Campbell for today's clash while Conor Turbitt is held in reserve.
Last year's meeting went to extra-time and there's every reason to suspect today's rematch will go right to the wire.
You can follow live updates from Croke Park below.
Donegal defeated Monaghan 1-26 to 1-20 while Tyrone enjoyed a 0-23 to 0-16 win over Dublin in yesterday's quarter-finals.
Galway have just taken the lead thanks to Liam Silke's goal. With 10 minutes remaining, they lead Meath 2-12 to 1-13
Kerry: Shane Ryan, Paul Murphy, Jason Foley, Dylan, Casey; Brian Ó Beaglaoich, Gavin White, Tom O'Sullivan; Sean O'Brien, Joe O'Connor; Micheál Burns, Sean O'Shea, Graham O'Sullivan; David Clifford, Conor Geaney, Dylan Geaney.
Armagh: Ethan Rafferty, Paddy Burns, Barry McCambridge, Peter McGrane; Ross McQuillan, Tiernan Jelly, Jarly Óg Burns; Niall Grimley, Ben Crealey; Darragh McMullan, Rory Grugan, Joe McElroy; Oisin Conaty, Andrew Murnin, Rian O'Neill.
All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Armagh 1-18 Kerry 1-16
Armagh produced a rousing comeback before holding their nerve to see off Kerry and book their place in the All-Ireland SFC on a dramatic day at Croke Park.
The Kingdom led 0-10 to 0-6 at half-time and a controversial Paul Murphy goal midway through the second half had them five clear after Armagh had cut the deficit to two points.
Yet, Armagh's bench made huge impact with Stefan Cambell, Jarly Óg Burns and Ross McQuillan all scoring and extra-time was needed to separate the teams.
Armagh fans massively outnumbered Kerry in the 55,548 crowd and most would have been hoping to avoid penalties after the Orchard County's recent bad luck in shootouts.
A brilliant performance from Kieran McGeeney's men in extra-time ensured penalties were not required this time around as Armagh defeated Kerry by two points.
The result looked unlikely at half-time as Kerry were the dominant team of the opening half and repeatedly turned over Armagh in the tackle.
Although Barry McCambridge was having a fine game marking Kerry star David Clifford, a run of four unanswered points early in the half gave Kerry some breathing space with Tony Brosnan, Dara Moynihan, Sean O'Shea finding the target while Clifford converted a stunning free from under the Hogan Stand side of the pitch.
Armagh rallied with back-to-back scores from Niall Grimley and another from Rian O'Neill, but Kerry were good value for their four-point lead at half-time with Clifford (mark) and Diarmuid O'Connor scoring.
Kerry can claims for a penalty waved away by David Gough moments after Shane Ryan was called into action to deny Andrew Murnin.
Peter McGrane fouled Paul Geaney in the air with the foul judged to have taken place just outside the 13-metre line. Sean O'Shea converted with McGrane booked and replaced by Campbell for the second half.
Armagh made a bright start to the second half thanks to two points from captain Aidan Forker, but they were hit with a sucker punch when Kerry scored the game's first goal.
A wayward effort from Clifford was kept in play by Diarmuid O'Connor and Paul Murphy palmed the ball into the Armagh net despite protests from the Orchard players of a square-ball infringement.
Armagh have suffered more than their fair share of heartache at Headquarters over the last two seasons, but they werre determined to write a different ending in this semi-final.
Conor Turbitt kick-started their comeback with a much-needed free before they brought their fans to their feet with a goal of their own.
Much like Clifford's shot which led to Kerry's goal, Rian O'Neill's effort dropped short but Shane Ryan spilled possession and McCambridge was on hand to fist the ball into the Kerry net.
Although Paudie Clifford momentarily pushed the lead back out to two, Armagh had the momentum and drew level with two classy points from Campbell before a superb score from O'Neill gave Armagh the lead for the first time in the game.
Dylan Geaney forced extra-time with a well-worked score, although the Kerry substitute also missed a chance to win the game in stoppage-time.
Remarkably, Jack O'Connor's side failed to score in the first period of extra-time as Armagh took the lead with scores from Jarly Óg Burns and Turbitt.
McQuillan's point gave Armagh a three-point advantage in the second period of extra-time, but the game seemed destined for penalties when Kerry replied with back-to-back points from Cillian Burke and Paudie Clifford.
However, the impressive Turbitt had the final say when he opted to fist over Armagh's final point rather than shoot for goal.
It was a sign of lessons learned from the Orchard County as they closed the game out and they'll return to Croker for the All-Ireland final on Sunday, July 28.
Armagh scorers: Conor Turbitt 0-5 (0-3fs), Rian O'Neill 0-3, Barry McCambridge 1-0, Aidan Forker 0-2, Niall Grimley 0-2, Stefan Campbell 0-2, Peter McGrane 0-1, Rory Grugan 0-1 (0-1f), Ross McQuillan 0-1, Jarly Óg Burns 0-1.
Kerry scorers: David Clifford 0-4 (0-3fs), Sean O'Shea 0-4 (0-1f, 0-1 45), Paul Murphy 1-0, Paudie Clifford 0-3, Dylan Geaney 0-1, Cillian Burke 0-1, Diarmuid O'Connor 0-1, Tony Brosnan 0-1, Dara Moynihan 0-1.
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Irish Examiner
16 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
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Irish Examiner
3 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
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