Hurling & Camogie

Tyrone camogs through to All-Ireland Minor final

All Ireland Minor C Championship semi-finals:

Tyrone 1-9 Wicklow 0-2

Kerry 2-6 Mayo 1-5

TYRONE are through to the All-Ireland Minor C final as a result of their comfortable enough outing against Wicklow in Inniskeen on Saturday afternoon when they used the strong breeze to run up a seven points’ lead after just 20 minutes play.

Katlin Gallagher opened the scoring after just two minutes and quickly added a second point.

By the end of the half both Gallagher and Lára Devlin had accumulated three points each with Eimear Colton contributing their seventh score from a 45 midway through the half.

Wicklow pulled a point back before the break but were 0-7 to 0-1 down at the turnover although they had the wind in their favour for the second half.

Eimear Colton, who won an Ulster Schools’ All-star this year as a goal-keeper, found herself back between the posts at the start of the second half to save a Wicklow penalty.

A goal at that point might well have changed the game as Wicklow put it up to the Ulster side during the third quarter and Erin Byrne scored her second point.

Eventually Lára Devlin lifted the siege with a point and in the 22nd minute Reagan Fay, well shackled by the Wicklow defence up until that point, fired a low shot to the net to seal passage into a final with Kerry who came back strongly in the second half in Gort against Mayo.

Despite playing into the gale, Kerry got the scoring under way through Amy Sullivan but Mayo settled into proceedings with a couple of points from Méabh Delaney, while Ellen Tener and Aoife Doherty also raised white flags.

Fionnuala McLaughlin added a vital goal and Miriam Page’s team was in a strong position at the interval, leading by 1-4 to 0-1.

It was no surprise that Kerry would have the whip hand after the restart, Caoimhe Spillane reducing the deficit early on and then Lia O’Connell grabbing a fine goal in the 41st minute.

Mayo goalie, Anna Durkin kept her side in front with a brilliant save from the very next attack but Sarah Lawlor goaled at the end of the third quarter and the game was turning in Kerry’s favour with Sullivan bringing her tally to four with three fine points.

Saoirse Delaney registered Mayo’s only score of the half to leave a goal between them but Lawlor split the posts at the other end to guarantee her side’s advance.

The Kerry v Tyrone final is scheduled for Saturday week, April 27.

Tyrone: A Ferran, B Jones, E Donnelly, A Begley, E McLaughlin, M Clarke, S McGeary, K Donnelly, F Farley, R Fay (1-0), E Colton (0-1 free), L McGuigan, L Devlin (0-4), S Fitzgerald, K Gallagher (0-4).

Subs: G Daly for L McGuigan, A Embala for S Fitzgerald, A McAteer for K Gallagher

Wicklow: S Davis, N Byrne, J Tyrrell, A Barrett, C Kelly, M Rafferty, E Byrne (0-2 frees), S Byrne, E Murphy, L O’Reilly, L Rooney, L Carroll, A Whelan, E Carroll, K Tyrell

Subs: JM Maxwell for A Whelan

All Ireland Minor A Championship

Waterford 2-12 Antrim 2-12

Galway 1-11 Cork 1-11

It was a day for draws in the All-Ireland Minor A championship with last minute heroics earning league points for all four teams.

The Antrim v Waterford game had originally been postponed to accommodate a draw and replay in the All-Ireland Schools’ final between Cross and Passion Ballycastle and St Angela’s Waterford and many of the same players were involved in Saturday’s draw as well.

Two goals midway through the opening half slowed up a good start from Antrim who held a 0-4 to 0-2 lead when the first goal came after 14 minutes. A minute later it was 2-2 to 0-4, but Antrim got going again with a point from Aoife O’Mullan and finished the half with a 2-4 to 0-7 deficit, four of the points scored by Roisin McCormick.

Roisin opened the second half with a point and she buried a 20 metres free in the 37th minute to bring Antrim within a point of the leaders.

However a series of points from frees kept Waterford ahead.

Indeed their only score from open play during the second half came when Antrim saved a penalty in the 45th minute and Abbie Flynn picked up the rebound to add to the score-board.

McCormick buried a second 20 metres free five minutes from time and substitute Fionnuala Toner popped over a late equaliser as the teams finished joint third in the group.

Meanwhile the outstanding game in the other section ended in a 1-11 each draw in Gort after Cork came back from a half-time deficit of 0-8 to 0-3.

It all means that Cork have taken the second semi-final qualification spot from the group and Galway, winners of the last four All-Ireland under 16 titles, have been eliminated.

The semi-finals on Saturday pair Tipperary with Clare and Kilkenny with Cork.

Antrim: A Graham, C Heggarty, E Kearns, EL McAreavey, B McAuley, M McGarry, C McNaughton, A O’Mullan 0-1, M Kelly 0-2, M Downey 0-1, R McCormick 2- 7, C Laverty, B Delargy, K Laverty, C McGarry.

Subs: F Toner 0-1 for K Laverty, G Black for B Delargy

All Ireland Minor B Championship: Down 6-12 Carlow 0-7

Down set up a Minor B Shield semi-final with Kildare next weekend as a result of this unexpected high-scoring win over Carlow at Mayobridge on Saturday.

The home side was without the services of senior player Saoirse Sands and were four points to one down after ten minutes following a brace each from Catherine Kavannagh and Eibhle Lawler.

However a goal and a point from Sorcha McCartan got Down up and running and they settled well into the game and led by 1-4 to 0-6 at the break despite playing into a stiff breeze. And how they made the advantage of the elements count during the second half!

Beth Fitzpatrick fired home a second half hat-trick and there were further goals from Geraldine McGrattan and Colleen Clarke as Down pulled away for a comfortable victory.

Down Scorers: S McCartan 1-6, B Fitzpatrick 3-0, G McGrattan 1-2, C Clarke 1-l, A McKee 0-2, B Savage 0-1, A Hagen0-1

Carlow: C Kavanagh 0-3, E Lawlor 0-3, K Murphy 0-1

Littlewoods Ireland Camogie Leagues Div 2 Relegation play-off:

Dublin 2-16 Carlow 0-6

AFTER Down defeated the Carlow minors on Saturday, Dublin compounded a disappointing weekend for the midland county by relegating them from the Littlewoods Ireland Camogie League Division 2 through a 2-16 to 0-6 score-line in Banagher.

Carlow made a fist of it in the opening half and were just a goal in arrears at the interval. But they failed to score after the break as their opponents moved through the gears.

A ninth minute goal by Sinéad Wilde separated the teams at the change of ends. However Laura Walsh stormed into the fray and registered four second-half points, while Aoibhe Dillon totted up three.

A last minute goal from Sinéad Wilde brought her personal contribution to 1-4 and opened the trapdoor to Division 3 for Carlow after four seasons at the Intermediate grade.