Armagh ladies face Kerry in Division One League Final
It's the third occasion in four years that the counties have met in a league decider with Kerry winning the Division Two final in 2022.
The teams' rivalry in recent years also includes last year's All-Ireland semi-final when the Kingdom edged a 1-8 to 0-7 victory in Tullamore against an Armagh side that were minus influential attacker Aimee Mackin after she sustained a cruciate ligament injury in the Ulster Final.
Mackin's continuing recovery from the injury has meant she has played no part in this year's league campaign which makes Armagh's qualification for the decider even more impressive.
Her sister Blaithin has taken up some of the scoring mantle by tallying 2-6 during the campaign with free-taker Niamh Reel leading the stats with 0-27.
Armagh secured their final spot with two games to spare, which included a victory over Kerry, before losing their final two round-robin games against Waterford and Meath, with a number of regulars rested in the concluding dead rubbers.
The Orchard County women make three changes from the Meath game with Anna Carr returning in goal in place of Brianna Mathers, while there are starts for Cait Towe and Niamh Reel, who replace Grace Ferguson and Kelly Mallon.
Kerry no longer have the retired Louise Ni Mhuircheartaigh in their ranks but Siofra O'Shea has racked up 5-26 during the league so far with Danielle O'Leary notching 4-7.
The Kingdom selected an understrength line-up for their defeat by Dublin last time out and make seven changes with O'Shea, Roisin Rahilly, Deirdre Kearney, Aoife Dillane, captain Anna Galvin, last year's skipper Niamh Carmody and Jaydn Lucey returning to the starting line-up.
Saturday's curtain-raiser is the Division Two final between Cork and Galway which throws in at 15:00 BST.
The Division Three and Division Four finals take place on Sunday, with the latter game an all-Ulster contest between Antrim and Fermanagh at Clones (15:00).
Antrim will be aiming to repeat their 2023 Division Four final triumph as they face a Fermanagh side who secured the All-Junior title last year which moved them into the intermediate grade for this season.
Both sides can play with a degree of freedom at St Tiernach's Park with promotion to Division Three already secured.
Antrim won their round-robin encounter a few weeks ago but the margin couldn't have been closer as the Saffrons edged a 3-10 to 3-9 win as they went on to win all seven of their games.
Saturday's match will bring back memories of the 2022 All-Ireland Junior Final when Antrim secured the title after a replay.
Skipper Bronagh Devlin remains a key performer for Antrim as evidenced by her 2-3 tally in the semi-final win over Leitrim.
On the Fermanagh side, Eimear Smyth has carried her magnificent 2024 form into 2025 and she led the way with 1-8 in the semi-final win against Sligo.
There is also Ulster representation in Saturday's Division Three final at Drogheda (14:00) as Cavan face Wexford.
Once again, the pressure is off both sides with promotion to Division Two also secured.
Cavan's only defeat in the round-robin games was a 2-5 to 0-9 reverse against Wexford when Grace Donovan's goal proved crucial.
The Breffni County are aiming for a third Division Three title after their triumphs in 2008 and 2010 with Wexford last landing the title in 2018.
Armagh: A Carr; M Ferguson, C McCambridge (capt), L Kenny; L McConville, C Towe, R Mulligan; N Coleman, C O'Hanlon; E Druse, B Mackin, E Lavery; N Reel, A McCoy, N Henderson.
Kerry: ME Bolger; R Rahilly, D Kearney, E Lynch; A O'Connell, K Cronin, A Dillane; M O'Connell, A Galvin (capt); C Evans, N Ni Chonchuir, N Carmody; D O'Leary, S O'Shea, J Lucey.
Antrim: A Devlin; N McIntosh, M Blaney, M Mulholland; S O'Neill, C Brown, D Coleman; A Mulholland, A Tubridy; T Mellon, L Dahunsi, A Kelly; B Devlin (capt), N Jones, M O'Neill.
Fermanagh: A Haren; E Murphy, C Clarke, E Keenan; N Boyle, C Murphy, C Bogue; S Feeley, M McGloin; B Smyth, C Martin, L Maguire; J Doonan, E Smyth, A McCabe.
Cavan: E Baugh; L Crowe, S Kelly, E Corcoran; M Sheridan, S Lynch (capt), S Greene; M Fitzpatrick, E Brady; K McCormack, L McVeety, C Dolan; N Keenaghan, A Sheridan, A Gilsenan.
Wexford: S Cloake; S McCarthy, M Byrne, A Tormey; C Banville, A Halligan, K English; C Donnelly, R Murphy (capt); B McDonald, C Murray, O Byrne; A Neville, C Ni Nuallain, C Foxe.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
26 minutes ago
- USA Today
Where does Sixers legend Charles Barkley rank on all-time greats list?
The Philadelphia 76ers selected Auburn star Charles Barkley with the No. 5 overall pick in the 1984 NBA draft as they continued to build a strong roster around Julius Erving and Moses Malone. While the Sixers were focused on those two, Barkley made a big impact in Philadelphia right away. In eight seasons with the Sixers, Barkley averaged 23.3 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks while being named an All-Star six times. He's third in franchise history in rebounds and fifth in scoring before he was traded to the Phoenix Suns after the 1991-92 season. Bleacher Report ranked the top 100 players of all-time and Barkley came in ranked No. 25 on the list: Charles Barkley's resume feels incomplete without a title. Over time, it feels like the absence of one has eroded his standing in these all-time discussions. And yet, you don't win an MVP award during Michael Jordan's prime (1992-93) by some fluke. Barkley was a superstar, with one of the most well-rounded games to ever grace the hardwood. The range of his skill set is reflected in the list of contemporary players for whom he's used as a comparison. Blake Griffin, Zion Williamson, Draymond Green, Julius Randle—they have all been considered, to some degree, facsimiles of Barkley. Heck, even The Chuckster's intangibles are versatile. His Basketball-Reference page is inundated with what might be a record number of nicknames, and he can be first and foremost associated with any of the franchises he suited up for: the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns and Houston Rockets. Barkley has his No. 34 uniform hanging from the rafters at the Wells Fargo Center as his impact on the Sixers was obvious. While he went on to win the MVP award for the Suns and led them to the finals, he is still one of the best ever to throw on a Sixers uniform. The franchise has honored him with a statue on their "legenda way" outside of their practice facility in Camden, NJ.
Forbes
28 minutes ago
- Forbes
The Miami Marlins Need To Be Buyers And Sellers Simultaneously
Miami Marlins' Agustin Ramirez, left, celebrates in the dugout with Eury Perez, right, after hitting ... More a two-run home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Minnesota Twins, Thursday, July 3, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) Most MLB teams fall into one of two categories at the trade deadline—the good teams are buyers and the bad teams are sellers. For the Miami Marlins, the line is blurred. They aren't contenders this year, but their up-and-coming young talent could put them in that category in the near future. The Marlins are 48-53 this year, sitting in third place in the National League East. They're six games out of the final playoff spot and would need to leapfrog five teams to get there, so a big push down the stretch isn't likely. However, they've been red hot lately, winning 23 of their last 35 since June 13, so it's not impossible either. The average age of their hitters is 26.0, which is the youngest in MLB. Their pitchers have an average age of 27.5, which is the third-youngest. This is a club that appears to be on the verge of making noise as soon as next season, and the moves they make this week could be focused on propping open their window. Marlins Hitters Miami made a few trades at last year's deadline that netted them a pair of building blocks for their lineup. They dealt Trevor Rogers to the Baltimore Orioles for Kyle Stowers and Connor Norby, and they shipped Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the New York Yankees for Agustín Ramírez and two minor leaguers. While Rogers has pitched well for Baltimore this year after a disastrous second half last season, Stowers has blossomed into one of the best hitters in baseball. He made his first All-Star appearance this season, and he's hitting .295/.373/.566 with 22 home runs and a 156 OPS+, indicating his offense has been 56% above the league average. His 3.0 WAR (Baseball-Reference version) leads all Marlins players. Ramírez made his MLB debut earlier this season, and while he doesn't have Chisholm's track record of success, he's under club control for a lot longer. He can also absolutely smoke the ball, posting consistently excellent exit velocity metrics with a manageable 19.3% strikeout rate, and his average swing speed of 74.9 mph is in the 89th percentile. He's rough around the edges as a catcher, but his power bat will work at designated hitter if necessary. A handful of their existing players in their mid-20s look like everyday contributors too. Middle infielders Xavier Edwards and Otto Lopez combine roughly average offense with exceptional defense. Liam Hicks is hitting .276/.367/.403 as a catcher and first baseman, and right fielder Jesús Sánchez has an .817 OPS against right-handed pitching. The Marlins picked seventh overall in the MLB draft this year, and they selected Oregon State infielder Aiva Arquette, making him the first collegiate hitter chosen. He's an athletic 6-foot-5 shortstop with power, who could fill an obvious hole for the club by moving to third base. That underscores their need for hitting, as well as the fact that they expect to compete in the near future. Miami's lineup is still incomplete. They could use another impact bat or two, especially at the corner infield spots, but they have several key players already in place. Marlins Pitchers Starting pitching has been a strength of the Marlins for the last several years, even when the overall ballclub wasn't performing well. They may even have the best young pitcher in baseball. Eury Pérez was on a rocket to stardom two years ago. Prior to the 2023 season, he was named one of the top pitching prospects in the game by every scout and prospect-ranking outlet—and he wouldn't even turn 20 until April of that year. He debuted in May and compiled a 3.15 ERA over 19 starts, but ruptured his elbow ligament in the spring of 2024 and underwent Tommy John surgery. He returned to Miami this past June, and was shaky in his first four starts back, as can often happen when coming off of that kind of injury. In his four starts in July, he has allowed just three runs on 11 hits in 23 innings. He has Cy Young-caliber stuff, and appears to have resumed his development where he left off—and he's still just 22 years old. Their best starter all year long has been Edward Cabrera, who has a 3.48 ERA in 17 starts. Even though he has appeared for the Marlins every year since 2021, he has three more seasons of arbitration eligibility remaining. Like Pérez, former Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara also returned to action after missing the entire 2024 campaign due to an elbow injury, but he has struggled mightily. He has a 6.66 ERA in 20 starts and his 77 earned runs allowed are the most in MLB. Still, he allowed just one unearned run over seven innings in his last start, and he's under contract for at least one more season with a club option for 2027. Max Meyer is a former top prospect who looked great early in the season, but is out for the rest of the year with a torn labrum. He had a 2.10 ERA after his April 21 outing in which he struck out 14 batters in six innings, but went downhill thereafter, likely due in some measure to his injury. With a normal recovery, he should be healthy at the beginning of next season. Marlins On The Move Miami should be dealing away players with limited team control remaining and acquiring talent that can help them next year. However, they're short on expendable guys who other clubs would want. The Marlins only have one player with an expiring contract. Cal Quantrill has been a below-average innings eater for them this season, posting a 5.24 ERA over 19 starts and 87 2/3 innings. He's on a reasonable one-year, $3.5 million deal, so a team that's hard-up for cheap starting pitching could take a shot on him. The fact that every other player on the Marlins roster is under club control next year speaks to the youth and future of the organization, but makes this trade deadline complicated. They need to thread the needle of trading away expendable resources while improving next year's club, setting themselves up for success in 2026.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Donegal name unchanged team for All-Ireland final
Donegal boss Jim McGuinness has named an unchanged team for Sunday's All-Ireland Football final against Kerry (15:30 BST). The Ulster champions are chasing their third Sam Maguire Cup, 13 years after last winning Gaelic football's most coveted prize. The decider against Kerry, which is a repeat of the 2014 final won by the Kingdom, is live on BBC Two NI, the BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website from 15:00 BST. Unsurprisingly, McGuinness has stuck with the same line-up which started the emphatic semi-final win over Meath a fortnight ago. Ryan McHugh and Michael Murphy, who both started the 2014 final, are named at right wing-back and full-forward respectively. Team captain Patrick McBrearty, who came off the bench in the 2014 final, is expected to start the game among the substitutes again, having been used a second-half impact player in each of Donegal's past four games. On Thursday, Kerry are also named an unchanged team from their semi-final win over Tyrone. Neither team have listed their substitutes. Kerry's 28-man squad will be trimmed to 26 in time for the game, while McGuinness will cut nine players from his 35-man panel. Donegal: Shaun Patton; Finnbarr Roarty, Brendan McCole, Peadar Morgan; Ryan McHugh, Eoghan Ban Gallagher, Caolan McColgan; Hugh McFadden, Michael Langan; Shane O'Donnell, Ciaran Thompson, Ciaran Moore; Conor O'Donnell, Micheal Murphy, Oisin Gallen. Extended panel: Caolan Ward, Jamie Brennan, Eoin McHugh, Jason McGee, Patrick McBrearty (capt), Aaron Doherty, Niall O'Donnell, Odhran Doherty, Stephen McMenamin, Daire O Baoill, Charles McGuinness, Jeaic Mac Ceallabhui, Jonny Carlin, Gavin Mulreany, Kevin McGettigan, Caolan McGonagle, Mark Curran, Eoghan McGettigan, Domhnall Mac Giolla Bhride, Odhran McFadden Ferry. Kerry team: Shane Ryan; Paul Murphy, Jason Foley, Dylan Casey; Brian O Beaglaoich, Mike Breen, Gavin White, Sean O'Brien, Mark O'Shea; Joe O'Connor, Sean O'Shea , Graham O'Sullivan; David Clifford, Paudie Clifford, Dylan Geaney. Extended panel: Shane Murphy, Killian Spillane, Evan Looney, Tom Leo O'Sullivan, Tadhg Morley, Paul Geaney, Micheal Burns, Tony Brosnan, Armin Heinrich, Tomas Kennedy, Diarmuid O'Connor, Conor Geaney, Dara Moynihan.
