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Irish Examiner
4 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Meath boss 'delighted' to overcome Kerry in LGFA All-Ireland semi after 'being written off the last year'
TG4 LGFA All-Ireland semi-final: MEATH 2-12 KERRY 1-9 Before and after Jack O'Connor's men fell to a comprehensive defeat to Meath in Tullamore last month, there were a few grumblings in the Kingdom about just how neutral Glenisk O'Connor Park was for a game between the two green and gold counties. But any advantages the male Meath players enjoyed at the home of Offaly GAA for that group game were dwarfed by the way the Royal County turned the midland venue into a real home atmosphere on Saturday afternoon, outnumbering their Kerry counterparts by around ten to one and making that advantage count on the pitch too by doing their bit to try and nudge Maggie Farrelly to give those 50/50 calls to the Leinster County, not to mention adding to the growing sense of momentum by hailing every sideline ball, every turnover and every contest win as if it was the final whistle. It was all a world away from the comfortable outing that Kerry enjoyed in the 2024 quarter-finals, where they brushed Meath aside by double scores in Tralee. Many pundits felt that 0-16 to 0-8 win was a sign of the end of an era for the 2021 and 2022 All-Ireland champions – but Saturday evening, Meath manager Shane McCormack said that once he got a few key players back into the side, he knew his team would always be leading contenders. 'We've been written off for the last year and a half and we had been rebuilding,' he said afterwards. 'A lot of girls came back as well and it was great to have them, these girls would run through a brick wall for you. Their determination and energy was the biggest thing there today. "We were two points up at half-time after playing against the wind and we just said to keep the scoreboard moving. Kerry got their goal but we didn't panic and I was delighted to see the composure'. Former Footballer of the Year Vicki Wall, who missed most of 2024 and only came on as a substitute in that game in Austin Stack Park, would have been earmarked by most as the most valuable returnee to the Meath panel. It was her sister Sarah who picked up Player of the Match honours on Saturday however, while Robyn Murray in goal was another crucial ingredient in the win, both for the way she cleaned up her own sector and also for the accuracy of her kickouts. 'I'm delighted for Sarah, she's been phenomenal, she came back into the setup last year and she's made the six spot her own with great leadership and composure, and we saw that with the goal as well'. The tumultuous roar that greeted the centre back's goal was one of many moments that cemented the feeling that this was always going to be Meath's day. 'The crowds came out in their droves, and today it wasn't Navan it was Tullamore and I'd say it was double the crowd, so my thanks to all the fans and supporters, we really appreciate it,' McCormack beamed. Given the final margin however, and the comprehensive manner of Meath's win, Kerry manager Mark Bourke could only acknowledge that while 2025 was a 'great year', with Munster and National League honours secured, they were clearly second best yesterday. 'I thought the hungrier team won,' said the Tralee man. 'Meath were there to the breaking ball. They were hunting in packs, they were overlapping in numbers, and we weren't doing that'. 'I thought we started well in the second half, we got a goal, but Meath brought it up another gear in terms of the hunger and intensity. That's the difference. 'It takes time to replenish twelve new players again. If anyone doesn't understand that they shouldn't be involved in it. But there's really a lot of talent in Kerry football. You could see it there. 'I'm very happy with the year. You play these games knowing that you could go in to lose. But did everyone do their best, did everyone buy in? Everyone bought in, everyone did their best. Did we lay it out right? "I think we did. Games are going to be won and lost. So, on to the next game,' he concluded. Scorers for Meath: E Duggan (0-5, 4f), K Cole (1-0), S Wall (1-0), C Smyth (0-2), M Farrelly (0-2), A Cleary (0-2), S Ennis (0-1). Scorers for Kerry: S O'Shea (0-5, 4f), D O'Leary (1-0), N Ní Conchúir (0-2), A Galvin (0-1), C Evans (0-1). MEATH: R Murray; MK Lynch, Á Sheridan, K Newe; A Cleary, S Wall, K Kealy; O Sheehy, M Farrelly; M Thynne, N Gallogly, C Smyth; E Duggan, V Wall, K Cole. Subs: S Ennis for Newe (32), K Bermingham for Sheehy (40), N McEntee for Cole (56). KERRY: ME Bolger; E Lynch, C Lynch, D Kearney; A O'Connell, E Costello, A Dillane; M O'Connell, A Galvin; N Carmody, N Ní Conchúir, C Evans; D O'Leary, S Ó'Shea, J Lucey. Subs: R Dwyer for Lucey (37), R Rahilly for Kearney (38), K Enright for Galvin (50), F O'Donoghue for A O'Connell (52), N Quinn for Dillane (53). Referee: Maggie Farrelly (Cavan).
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Dublin overcome Galway after extra time to secure All-Ireland ladies football final showdown with Meath
TG4 LGFA All-Ireland semi-final: Dublin 3-14 Galway 2-14 (after extra-time) Carla Rowe's audacious flick for a decisive goal at the start of the second half of extra-time will be the clip that will go viral during the week, but it was Hannah Tyrrell's composure under pressure that was the single-most significant play in Dublin's return to an All-Ireland final. A golden generation of Galway footballers has known any number of agonising hard luck stories in recent years, but none will haunt them as much as their inability to manage possession with a one-point lead and 60 seconds left on the clock at the end of normal time. All evening, sloppy handpassing had been the westerners' weak point. Their bravery and endeavour meant that they prevented plenty of inaccurate passes from becoming turnovers, but Dublin did pick up a fair share of their possession from unforced errors, and that made Galway's decision to try and keep the ball a risky one. They gave away one possession and then their second saw Aoife Molloy surrounded and then pinged for overcarrying, with time almost expired. Read More Meath impressively dethrone Kerry to book All-Ireland Ladies football final spot Tyrrell's free would have been a two-pointer in the men's game, but splitting the uprights from over 40 metres out was invaluable, as it sent the contest into overtime at 1-10 to 0-13, and it was only then that Dublin finally looked like the better team. Galway played with the breeze for the first ten minutes but only got one Olivia Divilly point in that period, while Dublin kicked three. Rowe's flamboyant finish made it 2-13 to 0-14, and a third goal from Kate Sullivan seemed to kill off the game, only for consecutive green flags from Andrea Trill and Divilly to leave 40 seconds of tension at the end. It wasn't just the closing minute of normal time that Galway will regret however. They also had the breeze in the first half-hour, but a string of missed goal chances meant that they were only level at the interval, 0-9 to 1-6. Olivia Divilly, Kate Geraghty and Nicola Ward all went well for the Connacht county but on another day, Kate Slevin could have had two goals instead of a single point and Louise Ward hit the crossbar, albeit Dublin also struck woodwork through Nicole Owens. Dublin managed the play well however, taking chunks of time off the clock for each attack at a time when anything more than 30 metres from goal was outside of scoring range. Rowe kicked two good points and Caoimhe O'Connor was devastatingly effective, winning a penalty which Tyrrell converted, and leading the race for player of the match before she went down injured shortly before half-time. Perhaps due to the absence of O'Connor and perhaps due to the natural balance between two teams that also needed 80 minutes to separate them in a quarter-final last year, Dublin failed to exploit the breeze and in a tense encounter that was high on tempo but also high on error count, it wasn't until Kate Sullivan hooked a shot over the bar with her right foot in the 45th minute that a score was registered in the second half. Neither side shot a wide in the first half while Dublin had three after the break, meaning the contest was still finely poised going into the closing minutes, 1-9 to 0-12. Andrea Trill came off the bench to score what could have been the winner with her first involvement, but the little bit of composure that Galway lacked to see things out, Tyrrell showed in spades with her season-transforming free kick. Scorers for Dublin: H Tyrrell (1-6, 0-5f, 1-0 pen), C Rowe (1-2), K Sullivan (1-1), N Hetherton (0-2), S Goldrick (0-1), O Nolan (0-1), S McIntyre (0-1). Scorers for Galway: O Divilly (1-3), R Leonard (0-5, 0-4f), A Trill (1-1), E Noone (0-3, 0-1f), K Slevin (0-2, 0-1f). DUBLIN: A Shiels; J Tobin, L Caffrey, N Crowley; M Byrne, N Donlon, H McGinnis; É O'Dowd, N Hetherton; C O'Connor, S Goldrick, N Owens; H Tyrrell, C Rowe, K Sullivan. Subs: O Nolan for O'Connor (27), L Grendon for Rowe (39), S McIntyre for Owens (47), Rowe for Hetherton (52), Hetherton for McGinnis (full-time), A Kane for Byrne (73), H Leahy for Donlon (74), C Darby for Rowe (76), A Timothy for Sullivan (76). GALWAY: D Gower; K Geraghty, C Trill, B Quinn; H Noone, N Ward, A Molloy; L Ward, S Divilly; N Divilly, O Divilly, A Davoren; E Noone, R Leonard, K Slevin. Subs: L Noone for N Divilly (half-time), K Thompson for Leonard (41), L Coen for Davoren (50), A Trill for Slevin (57), M Glynn for S Divilly (70), M Banek for Quinn (h-t in e-t), Davoren for Coen (h-t in e-t), Slevin for L Noone (h-t in e-t), C Cooney for Molloy (75), S Lynch for Banek (77). Referee: Seamus Mulvihill (Kerry).
