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Irish Independent
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Kerry minor football manager: ‘Tiniest of margins' will decide All-Ireland minor semi-final
Wayne Quillinan: 'Play until the final whistle blows, and make sure at the end of it we have no regrets, because they're the things that you can't live with' Kerryman Wayne Quillinan believes that the experience of being brought to the brink of elimination by Cavan a fortnight ago will stand Kerry in good stead as they prepare for Sunday's Electric Ireland All-Ireland MFC semi-final against Mayo in Ennis. The Kingdom manager, while acknowledging that his side didn't play to their full potential, saw enough in the way they dug out victory against the Breffni men to fill him with plenty of encouragement heading into the trip to Cusack Park.
Irish Examiner
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Mayo set up All-Ireland minor semi-final with Kerry after goalfest victory over Offaly
Electric Ireland All-Ireland MFC Quarter-Final Mayo 3-13 (3-2-9) Offaly 4-7 (4-0-7) Mayo will be Kerry's opponents in the All-Ireland minor semi-final in a fortnight after they just about held off a powerful second half-surge from Offaly in Roscommon this afternoon, kicking the last three scores to secure the win just when it looked like the Faithful County had produced yet another miracle comeback. Over the course of the hour, Mayo were marginally the better team, despite the absence of leading corner forward Tony Carey and midfielder Cian May - though they came dangerously close to losing their way when they tried to defend their lead rather than pushing on and driving home their advantage in the second half. With Offaly supporters outnumbering their Mayo counterparts by nearly ten to one, it was easy to see why they would try and stifle the midlanders and defend their nine-point interval advantage, though when Mayo were at their best, they were scintillating. They ransacked the Offaly defence to score 2-6 unanswered in the 20 minutes before half-time. In every aspect of play, they were running riot, and causing Offaly a world of problems. The start of the game saw Ben Holmes set up Conor Hession for a goal, but Offaly replied well, employing an all-out attack approach. Every free was tapped and run at the Mayo defence, every attacker wanted to take on and beat his man, and that yielded a fine goal for Ruairí Woods and some well-taken points from Tony Furey, Dylan Dunne and Cathal Weldon. However throughout the year, long spells of playing second fiddle in the kickout battle have haunted Offaly, and that again was to come to the fore here as Mayo starved the Offaly attack of ball and unleashed wave after wave of their own attacks. Adam Kelly, an injury doubt leading up to the game, was dominant in the middle but the real star of the show was Dara Flanagan, operating at centre-forward. The Eastern Gaels man scored 1-3 in all, 1-2 in the first half, and created real danger every time he took possession. His tap and go free down the right set up another goal for Conor Coghill through the middle of the Offaly defence, and Mayo could easily have added to their 3-7 to 1-4 half-time lead, with Rhys Neary firing over the bar with the goal at his mercy and three wides in the closing minutes keeping the lead down to single digits. The physical presence of Hession and Ben Holmes was also a threat, and when Mayo used the breeze to hit their two big men, they created chaos and chances, with Holmes adding two points of his own. However that threat was removed for the second half, and Mayo's running game also dried up. As they did for the Leinster final, the Offaly supporters travelled in big numbers for this fixture and a crucial part of Mayo's gameplan for the second half would have been to remove the crowd as a factor in the contest. A goal from Furey at the start of the second half threatened to throw that plan out the window but Mayo overcame that setback and monopolised possession for long stretches, holding the ball for two and three minutes at a time on several occasions. More often than not however, no scoring chances materialised at the end of those possessions, albeit that didn't matter as long as Offaly weren't scoring at the other end. Then the midlanders won a turnover, Caden O'Beirne played the ball down the line to Cian McNamee, and the Rhode man beat his marker along the end line and squeezed in a goal from an impossible angle. The crowd came alive, and after the two sides traded points, another goal, this time from Dylan Dunne, sent the Faithful into raptures. They had the wind at their backs, the nine-point lead was fully wiped out, and after Eamon Maher made an incredible mark, he was dragged down, Tony Furey tapped over the free, and they had all the momentum and energy. That all changed on the next kickout when Eoghan Dever fielded the ball, he too was tackled, and Conor Hession traversed the black spot on the crossbar with as important a kick as he'll ever have taken in his young career so far. Offaly still had to chase the game and they did exactly that, but three chances went astray, the closest being Aaron Daly hitting the post from 35 metres out, and as they grew increasingly desperate, gaps opened up at the other end for Ben Joyce and Oran Murphy to add the insurance points and see Mayo through to a semi-final clash with the Kingdom. Scorers for Mayo: C Hession 1-5 (2tpf, 0-1f), D Flanagan 1-3, C Coghill 1-0, B Holmes 0-2 (0-1m, 0-1f), R Neary 0-1, B Joyce 0-1, O Murphy 0-1. Scorers for Offaly: T Furey 1-4 (0-2f), R Woods 1-1, D Dunne 1-1, C McNamee 1-0, C Weldon 0-1. MAYO: T Williams; C Coghill, B Langan, C Tighe; R O'Donnell, D Duffy, E Dever; A Kelly, P Garvey; R Neary, D Flanagan, C Jordan; F Ó Cinnseala, B Holmes, C Hession. Subs: O Murphy for Holmes (40), F Ó Cinnseala for Neary (47), O McCann for Fiachra Ó Cinnseala (51), B Joyce for Garvey (54) OFFALY: J Ryan; C O'Beirne, T Carroll, C Farrell; P Duffy, T Kelly, E Rouse; E Maher, C Duffy; C Weldon, D Dunne, A Daly; T Furey, C McNamee, R Woods. Subs: D Stewart for Weldon (47), C Duffy for Furey (54), D Stoyanov for Carroll (57) Referee: Alan Coyne (Westmeath).
Irish Independent
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Kerry pushed all the way by Cavan in thrilling All-Ireland MFC quarter-final
A patchy Kerry were put to the absolute pin of their collar before edging out a never-say-die Cavan in an exciting Electric Ireland All-Ireland MFC quarter-final played in windy conditions at O'Moore Park in Portlaoise.
Irish Examiner
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Tyrone too good for dogged Cork as they book place in All-Ireland MFC semi-final
All-Ireland MFC quarter-final: Cork: 1-12 (1-1-10) Tyrone: 1-21 (1-2-17) A blistering Tyrone first quarter display gave the Red Hand county enough of a cushion to confidently see off a dogged Cork fightback in an entertaining Electric Ireland All-Ireland MFC quarter-final at O'Moore Park in Portlaoise. Sprinting out of the starting blocks, with the Rebels not knowing what had hit them, the Ulster champions were absolutely ruthless in the opening exchanges, building up an eight-point lead, 1-6 to 0-1, by the eleventh minute. The goal arrived as early as the fourth minute, with Cork goalkeeper Rory Twohig making a fine save to deny impressive Tyrone wing-back Thomas Meenan after he was put through by Joel Kerr, but Cathal Farley was on hand to tap home the rebound from close range. Entering the last ten minutes of the half, the gap was out to nine (1-9 to 0-3), and Keith Ricken's men were in serious danger of being submerged under the tide. However, belatedly raising their intensity levels, they surged back into proceedings. Full-forward Ben Corkery Delaney was the undoubted catalyst for Cork's second quarter revival, firing over two points, before blasting home a brilliant goal in the 24th minute, after being fed by Donagh Flynn. The deficit was now three points, 1-9 to 1-6, but that was as close as it would get. By the interval, with excellent centre-forward Peter Colton, full-forward Eoin Long, and wing-backs Meenan and Aodhán Quinn all making their presences felt, Tyrone ended up six points to the good, 1-13 to 1-7, heading into the second half. Corkery Delaney continued his tour-de-force on the changeover, launching over a two-pointer and, as Tyrone lost their bearings for a spell, Flynn's 42nd minute point had Cork within four of their opponents, 1-15 to 1-11, and well in contention to attack the last quarter. However, as is the sign of a well-drilled outfit full of self-belief, Tyrone quickly regained their composure, and their scoring touch, kicking six of the game's last seven points, to power on to the semi-finals with more than a bit to spare. They won't be easily stopped now. Scorers for Tyrone: E Long (0-6, 0-3fs), C Farley (1-2), P Colton (0-5,1tp), J Mulgrew (tp), T Meenan, J Kerr (0-1 '45, 0-1f) (0-2 each), A Quinn, P McDonald (0-1 each). Scorers for Cork: B Corkery Delaney (1-4, 1tp), E Maguire (0-4, 0-3fs), J Byerley(f), L O'Mahony, D McCarthy, D Flynn (0-1 each). TYRONE: R Donnelly; E Kerr, P Goodman, C McCrystal; A Quinn, J Daly, T Meenan; J Mulgrew, P Donaghy; D McAnespie, P Colton, C Farley; J Kerr, E Long, M Kennedy. Subs: V Gormley for Kennedy (43), M Mullin for E Kerr (47), M Daly for McAnespie (51), P McDonald for J Kerr (55), H Patton for Farley (58). CORK: R Twohig; B Coffey, A Keane, M Kiernan; J Miskella, C McCarthy, B Cronin; S Kelleher Leavy, R Hayes; L O'Mahony, D Flynn, S Long; J Byerley, B Corkery Delaney, E Maguire. Subs: J Hanrahan for Kelleher Leavy (22), E Collins for Long (30), D McCarthy for Byerley (35), T Whooley for O'Mahony (41), J O'Leary for Miskella (52). Referee: C Ryan (Galway).
Irish Examiner
07-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Kerry narrowly overcome a battling Cavan side to reach All-Ireland MFC semi-final
All-Ireland MFC quarter-final: Kerry 0-14 (0-1-12) Cavan 1-9 (1-1-7) Despite dramatic late fade-outs in both halves, a sporadically impressive Kerry did just about enough to advance by the skin of their teeth past Cavan in this Electric Ireland All-Ireland MFC quarter-final at O'Moore Park in Portlaoise. Leading by the bare minimum at half-time, having played with a strong breeze, the Kingdom improved immeasurably in the third quarter and, despite a well-taken goal by the Ulster side's corner-back Matthew Duffy, the Munster champions appeared to gain a semblance of control. With corner-forward Ben Kelliher very prominent, and Tadhg O'Connell and Pádraig Ó Mainnín notching off the bench, Kerry moved five points clear, 0-13 to 1-5, entering the last ten minutes, and looked likely to ease towards the winning post. However, Cavan refused to throw in the towel and, with excellent goalkeeper Cian McConnell moving outfield to telling effect, four points on the trot by the Ulster county left the game right in the melting pot in the closing stages. Kerry were now hanging on for dear life, with the Ulster runners-up giving it everything in search of a last-gasp equaliser but, in an exciting denouement, another Kingdom replacement Liam O'Brien had the final say with the insurance point at the death. With wind advantage in the first half, it was Kerry who made the early running, points from Danny Murphy and Kevin Griffin, followed by a Gearóid White tap-over free, pushing them three clear by the tenth minute. However, it was already clear at this juncture that Cavan were scrounging brilliantly for breaking ball and, with a dominant midfield pairing in Sam Maguire and Faolán Graham, they quickly gained a foothold in the game. The scores didn't come instantly for the Breffni men, with a two-point Griffin placed ball, and a lovely white flag from Kelliher giving the Kingdom a five-point lead by the 18th minute (0-6 to 0-1), Jay Graham with a pointed free for the Ulster side. Amazingly, Kerry would fail to register for the remainder of the half, finishing with nine first half wides in total, as they hit too many long-range hit-and-hope efforts. Growing in self-belief, Cavan were more economical in the second quarter. A booming point by midfielder Graham, added to by a two-point free, and a closer range score, by his namesake, reduced the deficit at half-time (0-6 to 0-5). They would have fancied their chances heading into the resumption, but just came up short as Kerry edged into the last four. Scorers for Kerry: B Kelliher (0-5, 0-2fs), K Griffin (0-3, 1tpf), G White (0-2, 0-1f), D Murphy, T O'Connell, P Ó Mainnín, L O'Brien (0-1 each). Scorers for Cavan: J Graham (0-5, 0-2fs, 1tpf), M Duffy (1-0), F Graham, G McCabe, C McConnell, N Quigley (0-1 each). KERRY: R Kennedy; R Sheridan, E Joy, T Ó Slatara; D Murphy, D Sargent, M Clifford; M Ó Sé, J Curtin; M O'Carroll, G White, A Tuohy; N Lacey, K Griffin, B Kelliher. Subs: T O'Connell for Lacey (41), P Ó Mainnín for Griffin (48), L O'Brien for Kelliher (56), J Kissane for Tuohy (58), C McGibney for Clifford (60+3). CAVAN: C McConnell; D Brady, C Bough, M Duffy; M Smith, H McMullen, J Donohoe; S Maguire, F Graham; CJ Fitzpatrick, J Brady, C Smith; F McIntyre, N Quigley, J Graham. Subs: D Lynch for Fitzpatrick (36), S Smith for C Smith (47), G McCabe for M Smith (48), K Heery for McMullan (54). Referee: N Quinn (Clare).
