Meath will face Kerry in the All-Ireland semi-final while Galway will take on Dublin

Irish Examiner

3 days ago

Galway manager Daniel Moynihan expects Dublin to be on a revenge mission when they clash in the semi-finals of the TG4 All-Ireland on Sunday week.
Galway, runners-up to Kerry, defeated Dublin in the quarter-finals last year and Moynihan knows what to expect this time round.
'It's going to be an interesting game. Dublin had a difficult situation last year going to extra time and us just catching them at the end. So, I'm sure their tails will be up. They'll be looking forward to playing us and getting a little bit of revenge against us,' said Moynihan.
A Kate Slevin first half penalty laid the platform as Galway built a 1-7 to 0-3 interval over Waterford at Tuam Stadium before going on to win by 1-18 to 1-12.
'We have a huge variation of scorers out there and that's fantastic for me as a manager that we have that variation,' added Moynihan. 'It causes a little bit of confusion for other teams as well in knowing who to pick up. We started really, really well today.'
Lauren McGregor's strike early in the second period — she finished with 1-7 — breathed new life in the Deise challenge, but they were unable to catch Galway.
'We just didn't probably hit a lot of the markers we'd laid out in the first half,' said Waterford manager Tomás Mac a tSaoir. 'We probably left too much work to do in the second half. A spirited comeback in the second half but we just couldn't squeak in close enough to maybe squeak ahead.
'Lots of things to build on. Those girls inside there know they're not that far away from busting into the top section of counties that have been performing over the last five or six years. They have to start thinking about that now for the next couple of months.'
Dublin joint manager Paul Casey said they have plenty of room for improvement despite seeing off Cork by 3-15 to 0-7, with Hannah Tyrrell leading the way with 1-5.
'I think for lots of that game, there were probably lots of aspects that we weren't overly happy with,' said Casey. Our shooting let us down on a number of occasions, but in fairness to our girls they battled to the very end and their work-rate was superb throughout. We're really pleased and delighted to be in the semi-final.
'In fairness to our medical team and our S&C team, they're getting the players back when we need them now coming in. To see Orlagh Nolan coming in there. A year ago she did her cruciate and she has had to work so, so hard to come in and get her 15 minutes in there today. There is competition for places. We know there is lots of work that lies ahead, but we won't underestimate anybody that is left in this competition.'
'I thought Dublin were superb all the way through,' said Cork manager Joe Carroll. 'I think their pace, their tackling was at a different level to what we're at and what we have been used to. I would definitely say the best team we have seen play this year so far. They mightn't win an All-Ireland, but if they keep producing performances like that, they won't be far off it.'
Síofra O'Shea led the way for champions Kerry, scoring a hat-trick in their 3-12 to 0-11 win over Kildare in Tralee. Two of the goals came in the opening half when the Kingdom were playing against the wind in Tralee.
'I thought the effort was much better than it was in previous games,' said Kerry manager Mark Bourke. 'We were only playing in dribs and drabs, 30 minutes here and there in the last few games, but I thought we were very good today for 50 minutes.
'The goals were absolutely crucial. To go up four points against the wind was the making of the game for us.'
Even though the Lilywhites got off to a very strong start, notching four points in the opening nine minutes to take the early ascendancy, the concession of the two green flags before the break was a hammer blow to the visitors who trailed by 2-5 to 0-7 at the interval.
'It's probably small margins,' said Kildare manager Pat Sullivan. 'We had two chances for goals in the first half, and we didn't take them. We again missed a good chance of a goal just after half-time. We were pushing then, and got caught for a third goal.
'Overall, I'm very proud of the group. We had no player here today that has ever played in an All-Ireland quarter-final.'
Meath manager Shane McCormack, after seeing off Tipperary by 2-17 to 1-6, said they won't lack incentive against Kerry in the last four after going out at the quarter-final stage to the Kingdom in Tralee in each of the last two seasons. Goals from Vikki Wall and Niamh Gallogly put Meath into a commanding 2-9 to 0-2 interval lead in Navan.
'I'm very proud of the girls. They've gotten a lot of criticism over the last year and a half,' said McCormack. 'The last time they won the All-Ireland was in '22. We've brought in a lot of girls and they've been working extremely hard. Very disappointed with the last two years down in Tralee, so we have them in a couple of weeks' time and we'll be ready for it.
'I have mentioned the last couple of months, we've been playing in patches. The last 15, 20 minutes we've been going out of games. It wasn't lack of fitness, it was just managing it. In fairness to the girls, there was a lot of composure shown there and we kept going for the 60 minutes. Even the girls who came on, they finished the job. Super, delighted for them.'
Tipperary never looked like catching them after the break although Aishling Moloney found the net in the closing stages.
'Meath came out of the blocks far quicker in the first half,' said Tipperary manager Ed Burke. 'I think physically they were just far stronger and they dominated us. When that comes at you in one burst, I think for 10 minutes there they scored 2-5 and that's the game in a nutshell. I thought the second half in fairness, I thought we came out and we battled well. We gave a bit of a better account of ourselves. Look, Meath are deserving winners.'
Meanwhile, Armagh and Mayo ensured survival in the senior grade for 2026.
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Donegal and Leitrim both have a second chance next Saturday, July 12, but the losers of that tie will be relegated to the intermediate grade for next season.
In the Intermediate Championship, Wicklow were victorious by 3-11 to 3-8 after extra-time over Offaly on Sunday in an all-Leinster relegation clash, to ensure survival.
Wicklow can look forward to intermediate fare again next year, with Offaly relegated to the junior ranks.