Hurling & Camogie

Down camogs return to bread-and-butter issues in club semi-finals

Niamh Mallon - part of Down's All-Ireland final team - will line out for her club Portaferry this weekend
Niamh Mallon - part of Down's All-Ireland final team - will line out for her club Portaferry this weekend Niamh Mallon - part of Down's All-Ireland final team - will line out for her club Portaferry this weekend

AFTER their exertions in last Sunday’s All-Ireland final, the Down squad is back to domestic business this weekend with three senior club quarter-finals as well as both semi-finals in the Intermediate title-race.

Senior champions Clonduff will start their title defence with an away game against 2017 Intermediate champions Castlewellan and that should be comfortable enough for the Shamrocks.

Not one Castlewellan player made the Down squad this year, while no fewer than ten Shamrocks featured in the Mourne county’s phenomenal race to Croke Park and those ten include three of the top four performers in Paula O’Hagan and the Carr sisters.

Young players such as Aoife Keown and Sorcha McCartan would need to really lift their games if Castlewellan are to have any chance of progress.

If they get through they play the winners of the Liatroim v Ballygalget game and this really should be the tie of the round.

The Fontenoys won the last of their record 27 titles two years ago, but Ballygalget were in last year’s final and have a strong young squad coming through, a challenge spear-headed by the Savage sisters, three of whom – Alannah, Blanaid and Deirbhile – featured last Sunday in Croke Park.

Dearbhla Magee and Aimee McAleenan are the key players for a Liatroim team that has struggled to find consistency this year meaning that Ballgalget could well be the dark horses for a first crown since 1968.

Portaferry, with the classy scoring touch of Niamh Mallon as well as rising star Saoirse Sands, should be too strong for Ballela who will look to county defender Catherine O’Hare for leadership.

So it should be Portaferry v An Ríocht in one semi-final with Clonduff maybe waiting on a replay to find out their opponents.

Meanwhile the Intermediate championship is down to the last four with a semi-final double-bill in Clonduff for Sunday afternoon.

Two teams that have made a lot of progress at under-age level in recent years are first up at 3pm. Longstone are maybe a little further on the path to senior camogie than Bredagh and they should therefore be more interested in the second game.

That tie between Ballyholland and Kilcoo could go down to the wire. A hesitant vote for Ballyholland.

Down Senior Championship quarter-finals

Saturday 15th Sept 2018

3pm in Ballycran

Liatroim v Ballygalget

3pm in Kilcoo

Portaferry v Ballela

Sunday 16th Sept 2018

3pm in Liatroim

Castlewellan v Clonduff

Down Intermediate Championship Semi Finals

Sunday 16th Sept 2018

In Clonduff :

3pm : Longstone v Bredagh

4.30pm : Kilcoo v Ballyholland

THE last of the quarter-finals in the Walsh’s Hotel Derry Senior camogie championship takes place tomorrow evening in Magherafelt when Newbridge challenge Lavey.

The Erin’s Own outfit would carry more experience in the likes of Teresa McElroy, Aoife Shaw, Caitriona Toner and Brianna Kelly. But Newbridge are bringing through a lot of young talent in the McNabbs and Aimee Devlin and should put in a goo challenge.

There is also a full round of quarter-final fixtures in the Glenshane Coach Hire Intermediate championship where the game tomorrow afternoon in Magherafelt (2pm) between Bellaghy and Dungiven is being touted as the championship decider.

Both teams look in great form with last year’s beaten finalists Dungiven undefeated in winning Division 2 of the league. That should give them the edge against the Tones.

Just like in the senior quarter-finals, Ballinascreen and Slaughtneil have been paired in the Intermediate as well with the winner facing either Bellaghy or Dungiven. That game is on Sunday at Greenlough.

Glen will be slight favourites against Kilrea who have had to forge through the season without the injured Karen Kielt.

In the final game Banagher should beat Greenlough.

Walsh's Hotel Derry Senior Championship Draw

Saturday 15th September at 2pm in Magherafelt

Newbridge v Lavey

Glenshane Coach Hire Inter. Championship Draw

Saturday 15th September in Ballinascreen

12pm Kilrea v Glen

2pm Greenlough v Banagher

in Magherafelt

4pm Dungiven v Bellaghy

Sunday 16th September at 1pm in Greenlough

Ballinascreen v Slaughtneil

Fire Stop & Seal Ltd Antrim Senior semi-finals

Ahoghill, Saturday

2.30pm : Cushendall v Rossa

4pm : Loughgiel v Dunloy

THE 87th Antrim senior camogie championship sponsored by Fire Stop & Seal Ltd is at the semi-final stage with a double-header at Ahoghill tomorrow afternoon to decide the line-up for the decider in a fortnight’s time.

While Rossa defeated Cushendall 3-9 to 2-9 in Belfast early in the Division 1 campaign, the Ruairí Óg team has bounced back and they had a great second half to their league season, including a 3-16 to 2-6 over the city side in the return fixture.

Rossa’s campaign on the other hand slipped off course and they finished with just three victories. But in recent years they have always raised their challenge for the championship.

However there are few players remaining from 2013, the year they won the last of their ten championships in 14 seasons – Natalie McGuiness, Máiréad Rainey and the Quinn sisters – and the club is embarking on a re-building programme.

Therefore Cushendall are strong favourites in my opinion to reach a first final since 2000. They have a young squad built around a minor championship winning team of five years ago.

The likes of Orlagh O’Hara, Colleen Patterson, Siobhan McKillop and the Cosgroves have gained some useful inter-county experience over the past couple of seasons and that will be put to good use in Ahoghill.

If Cushendall are the form side for that opening fixture, then there is no doubting who are the favourites for the second semi-final.

Five in a row chasing Loughgiel are unbeaten in Division 1 of the Antrim league this season and easily saw off Portglenone in a preliminary round tie in mid-August. 6-29 in any currency is impressive shooting and the big decision for PJ O’Mullan and his management team is selecting the in-form players at present.

The Shamrocks had two very good challenge games against Down as the latter prepared for Croke Park during the past month, with perhaps the management getting a first chance to look at their defence under some pressure.

The strange thing about this semi-final is that some people are in fact giving Dunloy a decent chance of causing what would be a huge upset indeed. Loughgiel’s last defeat in Antrim was back in 2013 when Dunloy threw the form-book out the window.

Dunloy are, like their opponents, a championship side, a club that can always raise their game at this time of year – and all the more likely when they are facing their neighbours.

In the first round of the championship they bossed their encounter with last season’s beaten finalists Ballycastle, despite the talismanic Aileen McManus only making a cameo performance in the last few minutes.

McManus will not start this game either due to injury and the Conlon sisters, Chloe Drain, the recently returned Nicole O’Neill and exciting young minors such as Kathryn Mullan, Eilish Kearns, Dearbhail Magill and Caitlin Crawford will be charged with taking the game to the Shamrocks.

I cannot see Loughgiel under real pressure in this game, but even if they were to struggle to establish control, they have a very strong bench that can change the game.

It has to be a Loughgiel v Cushendall final.

Darragh’s Coaches Antrim Intermediate semi-final

Sunday 2pm in Randalstown

Dunloy v Brídíní Óga Glenravel

Two years ago this was the pairing in the Antrim Junior final with Brídíní Óga taking their first title that evening in Randalstown, followed this time last year by success for Dunloy and both have moved up the grades.

Last season the Glenravel outfit reached the Intermediate final but lost to Loughgiel. The same opponents await the outcome of this semi-final as well.

Glenravel opted at the start of last year to play in Division 1 and were well beaten in all their games. This year they remained there and picked up three wins and a draw indicating that what is basically a young team has made considerable progress in the interim.

That was evident in the opening 20 minutes of their quarter-final game with Tír na nÓg a month ago when they totally dominated and ran in five goals and eight points. However they looked less than impressive during the rest of that game.

Nevertheless they didn’t concede much at the back where county midfielder Laoise McKenna and her cousin and All-Ireland minor winning captain Ellen Hynds pinned down the centre line.

Up front Ashling Millar hit three goals and there was impressive shooting from a number of players with eight eventually contributing to the score-board.

Dunloy found six scorers in their 2-12 to 0-12 win over Cargin in their first round tie a fortnight ago with the two goals from Dearbhaill Elliott the key scores.

They too have a strong presence down the centre in Clare McGuckian, Lisa McConville and Lisa McGuckian and last season’s run to the Ulster final will have done them no harm at all. They also can bring through a couple of their impressive championship winning under 16 team and that will strengthen their challenge.

However Brídíní Óga have Division 1 experience and reached the Intermediate final last season. They should be back there by 3.30pm on Sunday afternoon.