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Irish Times
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Donegal open the throttle to book date with Kerry and leave Meath gasping in the dust
All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Donegal 3-26 Meath 0-15 It was a weekend of slightly disappointing irony at Croke Park. The most exciting football championship in years served for its penultimate course two underwhelming All-Ireland semi-finals. Big crowds were in attendance. Sunday saw a capacity crowd turn up for the clash of Ulster champions Donegal and the season's mold breakers, Meath. If only it could have been left suspended in time with everyone in anticipation of perhaps another surprise scalp on the Leinster finalists' belt or at least a pulsating contest. Instead, the winners ran up a margin unseen at this stage of the championship for 32 years since Cork beat Mayo. The reality that intruded on romance was however of such awesome destructiveness that it at least sets up a titanic encounter for this year's All-Ireland final between Donegal and Kerry. There might have been more apprehension at half-time about the prospects for Sunday's second half had everyone grasped the difficulty of scoring into the Hill end. A tricky, swirling breeze narrowed the window of scoring considerably and there was maybe something ominous about how Donegal built a five-point interval lead, 0-13 to 0-8 in the face of the elements. READ MORE First, though, it should be acknowledged that Meath set about the task with energy and determination. Within 15 seconds, Seán Coffey, raiding from the throw-in, burst through but blasted his shot wide off the post. It set an unfortunate trend for the team, who finished the half with nine wides and two dropped short, as they attempted to harness the elements and put a sizable gap on the scoreboard, as they had, when ambushing Dublin in April. There were signs that they were perhaps forcing it a bit, as seven efforts at two-pointers either went wide or dropped short. This was in addition to the two, scored by Eoghan Frayne and Ruairí Kinsella. Donegal's Ciaran Moore scores a goal against Meath in Croke Park yesterday. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho Meath were also combative in defence, turning over Donegal at one point in successive attacks and successful in making Shaun Patton pay for a sequence of wayward restarts. The dynamic of the plucky underdogs wore off as the first half progressed. Meath needed more product on the scoreboard at the break. The downside was also obvious. Donegal were hugely efficient in the first quarter. Michael Murphy steered a two-point free over from a couple of metres beyond the arc – it was the team's only enhanced score of the afternoon. If Jim McGuinness's team became a bit trigger happy before half-time, they were also discovering where the bodies were buried in the opposition defence. Ominously, in light of what was to come, there were three goal-scoring opportunities that came to nothing. Donal Keogan cleared Conor O'Donnell's shot off the line in the 31st minute, followed by Billy Hogan saving a point-blank shot from Hugh McFadden and finally, Murphy doing everything right by taking a step, in front of goal and drilling it high - but it cleared the bar for a point. Meath's misfortune with injuries continued when in the 21st minute centrefielder Bryan Menton had to go off after a collision with Michael Langan, who then proceeded to dominate the sector, as Donegal won about half a dozen consecutive kickouts. For the third match running, Donegal unleashed hell in the second half. Their ability to counter-attack from turnover ball at serious pace is astonishing in its relentlessness. Make allowances for a game but outgunned opposition and yet the sustained tempo was furious. Donegal's Michael Murphy and Adam O'Neill of Meath compete for possession. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho Murphy was replaced on 45 minutes, having done his job, calming everything down in the early stages and – literally, at times – directing play. There were so many stand-out displays. Finbarr Roarty was the tv MOTM, one of his defensive interventions leading to the second goal and his constant movement, either shadowing attackers or breaking out like a forest fire devastatingly effective. Brendan McCole did another fine man-marking job, this time on Meath's MOTM against Galway, Jordan Morris, who was comprehensively frustrated as the slick counter-attacks that had undone the Connacht champions never achieved lift-off. Oisín Gallen, after a slow start, kicked 1-2 – the goal, exceptionally well taken after he had stepped out to make space for his shot after a Caolan McColgan assist. Ryan McHugh was another withdrawn early and also made sharp interceptions and clever runs from the back. He played a pivotal role in the second goal, taking the pass from Shane O'Donnell and popping the ball into the fast raiding Ciarán Moore who placed his shot in the net. Langan, having taken hold at centrefield played a threatening, advanced role to finish with 0-4. Meath players dejected after the final whistle at Croke Park. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho The best of the three goals came from a move as goldenly pieced together as a Fabergé egg. Patrick McBrearty, who again made a big impact off the bench with 0-3 from play, attacked and played in Jason McGee, who checked and kicked back across the goal for Conor O'Donnell who cut back and finished. Meath by now were like dogs chasing cars, exhausted and bewildered. They tried to make the scoreboard more respectable, but the Northern End was not hospitable and chances went wide. Seán Rafferty, who had been defiant all day, came up from the back and kicked their first in 11 minutes but it was little more than a reminder they were still there. There was a sense that if two disappointing semi-finals is the price we pay for an epic final, so be it. It will be the second time Kerry have played Donegal in an All-Ireland final, 11 years on from the first. Fourteen/ more sleeps. Donegal: S Patton (0-0-1, 45); F Roarty, C McColgan, B McCole; R McHugh (0-0-1), EB Gallagher, P Mogan (0-0-1); H McFadden, M Langan (0-0-4); C Moore (1-0-1), C Thompson (0-0-2), S O'Donnell (0-0-1); C O'Donnell (1-0-3), M Murphy (6: 0-1f-4, 1f), O Gallen (1-0-2). Subs: P McBrearty (0-0-3) for Murphy (45 mins), J McGee for McFadden (50 mins), D Ó Baoill (0-0-1) for McHugh (55 mins), O McFadden-Ferry for Mogan (59 mins). Meath: B Hogan; S Rafferty (0-0-1), S Lavin, R Ryan; D Keogan, S Coffey, C Caulfield; B Menton, A O'Neill; M Costello (0-0-1f), R Kinsella (3: 0-1-1), C Duke (0-0-1); J Morris (0-0-1), K Curtis (0-0-3), E Frayne (5: 0-1-3). Subs: C Gray for Menton (21 mins), E Harkin for O'Neill (46 mins), J McEntee for Lavin (51 mins), B O'Halloran for Curtis (57 mins), S Walsh for Kinsella (62 mins). Referee: P Faloon (Down).
BBC News
13-07-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Donegal cruise past Meath into All-Ireland final
Donegal are into a first All-Ireland SFC final since 2014 after a ruthless display in their sizeable 3-26 to 0-15 victory over Meath in their semi-final at Croke have defeated Dublin, Kerry and Galway in a giant-killing season, but they fell short against the more efficient Ulster the Donegal carefully crafted points, Meath tried at every opportunity to shoot on sight, particularly within the two-point range, with varying degrees of success resulting in them trailing 0-13 to 0-8 at dialled it up a notch in the second half showing an even greater clinical edge with Oisin Gallen, Ciaran Moore and Conor O'Donnell scoring goals which put the result beyond McGuinness' side will now face Kerry in a mouth-watering decider on 27 July as they look to win the Sam Maguire for the first time in 13 years. Patience pays off for efficient Donegal In a breathless start in the sun, Sean Coffey hit the post when aiming for a point before Michael Murphy got Donegal off and running with a looping two sides then traded scores before Meath's first two-pointer arrived from Eoghan successive Donegal points followed, but another two-pointer, this time from Ruairi Kinsella, had Meath right back in it.A lull followed midway through the half, as both sides misfired going forward, with Meath guilty of 12 wides in a wasteful first-half display they failed to recover Brenan's side were dealt a blow as Bryan Menton limped off with an injury before Donegal wrestled control by demonstrating the efficiency Meath got the first point of the game in over 10 minutes with Murphy, Gallen and Ciaran Thompson helping McGuinness' side rattle off four successive scores as the tide started to turn in the then got Meath's first score since 14th minute, but they were indebted to goalkeeper Billy Hogan for keeping them in the game as he denied Hugh McFadden from close quiet Jordan Morris registered his first score on 33 minutes but late efforts from Gallen and Murphy, when he may have opted to go for goal, gave Donegal a five-point lead. Three Donegal goals in strong second half showing Points at either end followed early in the second half before Gallen netted to virtually end Meath's hopes of a stirring jinked his way inside before clinically dispatching beyond Hogan and into the far corner, with Murphy adding another point soon after to stretch their advantage to Patrick McBrearty tagged on another before Moore stroked home a second goal to add to Donegal's healthy lead with 24 minutes still pushed Thompson's effort away, but with space opening up, Donegal kept the scoreboard ticking, adding on five more were still hungry for more goals and Conor O'Donnell weaved his way inside before firing into an empty net as they inflicted further damage on a jaded Meath side, whose fairytale run came to crashing can now look ahead to the All-Ireland final in a fortnight's time against a Kerry side that dispatched Tyrone with similar ease to which McGuinness' side saw off Meath. Line-ups Donegal: Shaun Patton; Finnbarr Roarty, Brendan McCole, Peadar Morgan; Ryan McHugh, Eoghan Ban Gallagher, Caolan McColgan; Hugh McFadden, Michael Langan; Shane O'Donnell, Ciaran Thompson, Ciaran Moore; Conor O'Donnell, Micheal Murphy, Oisin Gavin Mulreany, Stephen McMenamin, Odhran McFadden Ferry, Eoin McHugh, Caolan McGonagle, Odhran Doherty, Patrick McBrearty, Jamie Brennan, Niall O'Donnell, Daire O Baoill, Jason Billy Hogan; Seamus Lavin, Sean Rafferty, Ronan Ryan; Donal Keoghan, Sean Coffey, Ciaran Caulfield; Bryan Menton, Adam O'Neill; Conor Duke, Ruairi Kinsella, Keith Curtis; Jordan Morris, Matthew Costello, Eoghan Sean Brennan, Brian O'Halloran, Eoin Harkin, James McEntee, Cian McBride, Conor Gray, Aaron Lynch, Daithi McGowan, Shane Walsh, Diarmuid Moriarty, Cathal Paul Faloon (Down)
Irish Times
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Live GAA updates: Meath and Donegal battle for remaining All-Ireland final spot
Fixtures: All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Meath v Donegal, Croke Park, 4pm All-Ireland JFC final: New York v London, Croke Park, 1.30pm 3 minutes ago It's been a mad summer for Meath, the surprise package of the football championship. Losing the Leinster Final was a big blow, but they've beaten Dublin, Kerry and Galway on the way to their first All-Ireland semi-final since 2009. Malachy Clerkin describes how new manager Robbie Brennan has changed the Royals' fortunes. [ Vibes and victories: how Robbie Brennan put smiles on Meath faces ] 1 day ago Hello and welcome to live coverage of today's championship football in Croke Park. In today's main event, Donegal take on Meath (4pm), with a place in the All-Ireland final against Kerry at stake. Donegal come into the match as favourites, but Meath have already beaten the odds to get here. Before that, London play New York in the All-Ireland Junior Final. Stay with us for updates throughout the afternoon.
Irish Times
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
David Clifford's 1-9 sees Kerry into All-Ireland final with room to spare over Tyrone
All-Ireland SFC semi-final: Kerry 1-20 Tyrone 0-17 On the hottest day of the year, Kerry got the job done long before the final whistle to qualify for a third All-Ireland SFC final in four years. Tyrone were reduced to booming in long, hopeful balls during the closing stages after Kerry made a decisive move in the third quarter of this semi-final to drain all hope from the Ulster side's challenge. Kerry celebrated briefly at the final whistle but many of the players were off down the tunnel before Joe O'Connor had even finished his man-of-the-match interview along the Hogan Stand sideline. The Tyrone players lingered on the pitch until they were accompanied only by some of the panel's young children and a crafty flock of ravenous seagulls who descended upon the stadium to feed on whatever parcels of food had been left behind from the departed 62,434 spectators. READ MORE For most of the afternoon the Tyrone forwards had been forced to live off scraps, while at the other end of the field David Clifford was in gluttonous form, finishing the game with 1-9 and ensuring Pádraig Hampsey will spend a few nights seeing the back of his Kerry jersey in his nightmares. [ Kerry 1-20 Tyrone 0-17 - As it happened Opens in new window ] Kerry led 1-9 to 0-9 at half-time, having played with the breeze in that opening period, but they won the match in a commanding second-half display. Darragh Canavan kept Tyrone in the contest with four points – including one two-pointer – during the opening 10 minutes after the restart. However, from the 43rd to the 63rd minute Kerry outscored Tyrone 0-8 to no score to lead 1-20 to 0-13. Tyrone kicked five successive wides in a six-minute period during that spell, too, and with each miscued effort the energy visibly drained from Tyrone's challenge. Four of their starting six forwards had been taken off by the end. Even coming down the home straight, Kerry's energy and desire were impressive – Brian Ó Beaglaoich put his body on the line to make a superb last-ditch diving block on a Niall Devlin shot. A Tyrone goal wouldn't have made any difference to the outcome, but Ó Beaglaoich's willingness to make that block offered an insight to Kerry's mindset. And though the final 10 minutes played out more like the end of a one-sided league game than a closely contested All-Ireland semi-final, Tyrone had actually laid the foundations for a possible upset in a decent first-half showing. Jason Foley of Kerry attempts to block an effort from Tyrone's Eoin McElholm during the semi-final at Croke Park. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho There were significant changes made to both teams before throw-in, with Paudie Clifford and Mark O'Shea starting for Kerry while Micheál Burns and Conor Geaney dropped to the bench. Eoin McElholm and Ben McDonnell came in from the start for Tyrone with Rory Brennan and Peter Harte making way. The announcement of McElholm's inclusion – his first senior championship start – generated a huge chorus of cheers from the Tyrone fans inside the stadium. Dylan Casey immediately picked up McElholm while Paul Murphy marshalled Canavan and Jason Foley marked Darren McCurry. At the other end of the field Hampsey was given the onerous task of tagging David Clifford, Cormac Quinn picked up Dylan Geaney while Devlin marked Paudie Clifford. Such was the heat in Croke Park that several players carried ice packs as they walked the pitch for the pre-game parade, Mattie Donnelly dabbing the back of his neck as the band marched down by the Cusack Stand. But Tyrone started like a group of players with ice in their veins – McElholm taking to the moment like a seasoned veteran as he danced inside the Kerry defence to feed Ciarán Daly for his side's opening point in the fourth minute. That made it 0-1 apiece after O'Shea had popped over an early point following a foul on David Clifford. Even in those opening stages, Clifford looked dangerous. But Tyrone were the better team in the opening quarter of an hour and a nice left-footed point by McElholm put them 0-5 to 0-2 ahead. They had also created two goal chances, the second of those saw Shane Ryan save well from Darren McCurry, though the shot was hit at a nice height for the Kerry goalkeeper. Tyrone also turned over Kerry's first four kick-outs. But the Munster champions simply refused to get flustered. O'Connor was doing brilliantly driving forward from the middle of the field and as the game progressed the clearer it became that Hampsey was struggling to get a handle on David Clifford. Not that it was all the Tyrone defender's fault, he was left exposed too often. But before Clifford netted his 29th-minute goal, it's fair to say many in Croke Park felt such a score had been coming. Kerry's Joe O'Connor celebrates scoring a point. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho Mike Breen was allowed saunter up the field unchecked and gave a lovely weighted handpass inside to Clifford. The Fossa man still had a bit of work to do but used his trademark bounce deftly to buy some extra space and evade Niall Morgan before placing the ball to the back of the net. Morgan made some fine stops during the game but Clifford's genius with the hop was fitting of the occasion. Tyrone probably weren't too disheartened to only go in three down at the break because they had the wind to come in the second half. Canavan reduced the gap to two inside the opening minute and when he added a two-pointer soon after it appeared a gripping climax might be in the offing. Kerry had other ideas though. It was too warm for such drama so instead they shifted through the gears and got back safely down the road with little fuss. Tyrone's attack started to malfunction, too, during that second half. McElholm, Daly and Seánie O'Donnell had been lively and productive in the first half but their influence on the game waned and all three were eventually hauled ashore. Kerry had repelled Tyrone's early onslaught. Tyrone couldn't do likewise when the Kerry one followed. The Kingdom now await the winners of Sunday's semi-final between Donegal and Meath. It'll be a green and gold decider, either way. The writing of Kerry epitaphs seems a lifetime ago now. KERRY: Shane Ryan; Paul Murphy, Jason Foley, Dylan Casey; Brian Ó Beaglaoich, Mike Breen, Gavin White; Joe O'Connor (0-0-2), Mark O'Shea; Seán O'Brien, Seán O'Shea (0-0-3, 2f), Graham O'Sullivan (0-0-1); David Clifford (1-1-7, 0-4f), Paudie Clifford (0-0-2), Dylan Geaney (0-0-1). Subs: Killian Spillane (0-0-2) for Geaney (48 mins); Evan Looney for Casey (58); Tadhg Morley for Breen, Micheál Burns for O'Brien (both 62); Tony Brosnan for P Clifford (65). TYRONE: Niall Morgan; Cormac Quinn, Pádraig Hampsey, Niall Devlin; Ben McDonnell, Peter Teague, Kieran McGeary (0-0-1); Brian Kennedy, Conn Kilpatrick; Seánie O'Donnell (0-0-2), Mattie Donnelly (0-0-2), Ciarán Daly (0-0-2); Eoin McElholm (0-0-1), Darren McCurry, Darragh Canavan (0-1-5, 0-2f). Subs: Michael McKernan for McDonnell, Mark Bradley for McCurry (both 48 mins); Peter Harte for Daly (52); Ruairí Canavan (0-1-0) for McElholm (56); Michael O'Neill for O'Donnell (67). Referee: Joe McQuillan (Cavan).
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Donegal win relegation play-off to stay in All-Ireland SFC
Donegal preserved their All-Ireland SFC status for 2026 with a 2-15 to 1-12 victory against Leitrim in their relegation play-off at Kilcoyne Park. Two first half goals from Suzanne White and Jodie McFadden proved crucial in helping James Daly's side to stay in the competition they have played in since 2011. Advertisement They led 2-7 to 1-5 at half-time after an end-to-end first half in the sun in Tubbercurry. Clare Friel then saved a late penalty in the second half as her side held on for the victory against last year's All-Ireland IFC champions. The two sides traded scores early on before White fired home a goal for Donegal on nine minutes. James Daly's side pulled further ahead but Leitrim responded with a goal from Laura O'Dowd. After Leitrim got back to within two points, McFadden smashed home Donegal's second goal as they led by five at the break. Donegal registered the first three scores of the second half, but Leitrim then managed four unanswered points to stay in the contest. Friel's penalty save on 58 minutes proved crucial as Donegal saw out the win which relegated Leitrim to the All-Ireland Intermediate series for 2026.
