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Irish Times
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Cork hang on to hold off late Roscommon surge and keep their summer alive
All-Ireland SFC: Cork 0-19 Roscommon 0-17 It ended on a knife-edge. Needing just a draw to put them through, Roscommon were camped in the Cork half when the hooter sounded, scouting for a two-point shot. After the usual over-and-back Diarmuid Murtagh engineered a shaft of daylight outside the arc, but as soon as he put boot to ball Daniel O'Mahony executed a diving block. Seán Powter picked up the pieces and Cork's hearts slinked back down their throats. It was a dramatic finish to a pulsating second half. Having led by four points at the break, Cork extended their lead to six midway through the second half. But Roscommon took over after that and Cork were pushed into the last ditch. When Cork lost their footing at centrefield cracks started to appear in their defence and Micheál Aodh Martin in the Cork goal came to their rescue twice in the closing stages. With 12 minutes to go Daire Cregg was put clean through with a raking diagonal pass, a goal at his mercy. Martin rushed from his line and deflected Cregg's shot, one-handed, from point-blank range. READ MORE The ball, though, carried on at a reduced rate of knots towards the Cork goal-line. The Cork full back Seán Brady and the Roscommon substitute Ciarán Lennon thundered towards the loose ball, and Brady just got there first. The difference was inches. A few minutes later, Martin was called upon again when he burst through a crowded goalmouth to get his fists to a treacherous dropping ball. By then Cork were hanging by a thread. In the end, the problem for Roscommon were two-pointers. They didn't even attempt one for an hour, but in the closing 10 minutes they tried four shots from outside the arc, none of which hit the target. Cork will wonder how they nearly let it slip. For the guts of half an hour in the middle of the game they utterly dominated centrefield and ran at Roscommon in waves. Colm O'Callaghan and Ian Maguire were superb around the middle, Paul Walsh and Seán O'Donnell mopped up breaks, and even though Cork were getting very little from their inside forwards, they were picking off scores from outside. But when Roscommon got their hands on a succession of Cork's restarts the tide turned. The outstanding Cregg kicked three second-half points to add to his two in the first half, Diarmuid Murtagh landed a couple of beauties and Cork went 15 excruciating minutes without a score. All bets were off. Cork's Seán Brady tackles Ben O'Carroll of Roscommon during the game in Portlaoise. Photograph: Leah Scholes/Inpho Cork's four-point lead at the break was at odds with the opening 25 minutes when neither team was able to assert control. Roscommon led by two points early on, but that advantage was wiped out by a two-pointer from Brian O'Driscoll, Cork's most bountiful source of shots from outside the arc all season. The surface was greasy from downpours earlier in the afternoon and both teams were guilty of handling errors and debilitating turnovers. Cork, though, were more dangerous on the break, and though neither goalkeeper was forced into a save in the first half, Cork had three goal chances. Two of them fell to a resurgent Maguire who fired over the bar twice from no more than 10 yards out. Seán McDonnell had a whiff of a goal chance too but eschewed the space in front of him took a handy point – the first of his three. The sides were level four times in the first 24 minutes, but the impetus of the game changed when Cork got a grip on Roscommon's kick-outs. O'Callaghan and Maguire repeatedly got a fist to the ball and Cork were sharp on the breaks. Seán Walsh's direct running punched holes in the Roscommon defence and Cork were able to develop shooting opportunities. In a nine-minute spell late in the first half Cork kicked five points without reply and led by 0-10 to 0-6 at the break. Roscommon made a bright start to the second period and cut Cork's lead in half within a couple of minutes. But then Cork settled again and surged again. A run of four points without reply at the end of the second quarter, two of them by O'Callaghan, put Cork 0-17 to 0-11 in front and seemingly in control. All that changed, though. In the end, anything could have happened. Having won just one competitive game since they beat Cork on March 1st, Roscommon's season is over. Having been beaten three times in the championship already, Cork will continue for another week at least. They will take something from this, even if a late-season transformation is surely out of the question. CORK: M A Martin; S Meehan, S Brady, M Shanley; B O'Driscoll (0-1-0), D O'Mahony, M Taylor; I Magure (0-0-2), C O'Callaghan (0-0-2); P Walsh (0-0-2), S Walsh, S McDonnell (0-0-3); M Cronin (0-0-5, 2f), B Hurley (0-0-1), C Óg Jones Subs: R Maguire for Meehan (h-t); E McSweeney (0-0-1) for S Walsh (42 mins); S Powter for P Walsh (55); Deane for Taylor (59); C O'Mahony (0-0-1) for Jones (61). ROSCOMMON: C Carroll (0-0-1,45); P Frost, B Stack, D Murray; R Daly, S Cunnane, S Lambe (0-0-1); E Nolan (0-0-1), E Smith (0-0-1); D Ruane (0-0-1), D Smith (0-0-1), D Cregg (0-0-5); D Murtagh (0-0-2), B O'Carroll (0-0-1), C Murtagh (0-0-1). Subs: C Neary for D Smith (50 mins); C McKeon (0-0-2) for Ruane (52); C Hand for Daly (54); C Lennon for O'Carroll (56); D Kenny for Lambe (66). Referee: M McNally (Monaghan).
Irish Independent
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Daniel O'Mahony's diving block saves Cork's season to knock Roscommon out of All-Ireland running
All-Ireland SFC Group 2 round 3: Cork 0-19 Roscommon 0-17 Daniel O'Mahony's diving block kept Cork's season alive as the Rebels held on to eliminate Roscommon for the second time in three years. A draw would've been good enough for the Rossies to pip Cork for third place in Group 2. But their chances ended when the full-back got his hands to Diarmuid Murtagh's outside-the-arc attempt.
The 42
31-05-2025
- Sport
- The 42
Roscommon-Meath draw rollercoaster contest, Down edge Louth
All-Ireland SFC Results Roscommon 2-15 (2-5-5) Meath 0-21 (0-5-11) Down 0-25 (0-4-17) Louth 0-24 (0-6-12) THERE WERE two thrilling and high-scoring contests played in Páirc Esler and Dr Hyde Park this evening, and in both cases, it was defenders who came up with the big plays that made all the difference. In a roller-coaster of a contest in Roscommon, the Rossies started with two early goals but were outscored by a wind-assisted Meath team by 0-12 to 0-4 in the second quarter, meaning they had a five-point lead to chase at the interval. Thanks to five second-half two-pointers, three of them from the outstanding Enda Smith, they looked like the more likely winners with 10 minutes to play. But instead, Rúairi Kinsella hit an equaliser, Roscommon missed three excellent chances, and after the hooter sounded, Ben O'Carroll had the goal at his mercy, only for Seán Rafferty to spring out of nowhere to touch the ball away from the diminutive attacker, and prevent a certain winner. O'Carroll and Diarmuid Murtagh were on the mark with first-quarter goals for the Rossies, both brilliant finishes, but at the other end of the pitch, James Conlon was on fire. Meath, as they have done in several games this year, controlled a huge amount of possession, and they hit four first-half two-pointers of their own, with Conlon putting his name on one of them and adding three more white flags into the bargain. Meath started well after half-time with points from Seán Coffey and Eoghan Frayne, but two doubles from Enda Smith, either side of a meek penalty that was easily smothered by Billy Hogan, quickly ate into the lead. The Royals defended well for most of the second half and prevented Roscommon from raising any white flags, though there were several near misses. Ciarán Caulfield and Rúairí Kinsella were hugely influential in carrying the ball forward and winding down the clock, and even after Diarmuid Murtagh's free gave Roscommon the lead with 10 minutes to play, they kept their patience and drew level through a clever Kinsella finish, setting the stage for Rafferty to keep their fate in their own hands in advance of their final round clash with Kerry. In the local derby in Newry, Down had a one-point lead on the last attack, and it was Adam Crimmins who was their hero, blocking down Tommy Durning to preserve their win. Advertisement Pat Havern (0-6), Danny Magill (0-6) and Odhrán Murdock (0-5) all had big nights for the Mourne men, who led by 0-11 to 0-1 after making a sensational start. Conall McKeever, Conor Grimes and Ryan Burns got scores that left it a bit more manageable at the break, 0-16 to 0-7, and they leaned heavily on two-point kicks in the second period, landing six with the breeze. A run of them from Sam Mulroy, Craig Lennon and Durnin had it down to a one-score game with just under 10 minutes to play, but Shay Millar and Havern (two) got the points that Down needed to keep their noses in front and set the stage for Crimmins to deliver the match-winning play. ***** In the Christy Ring Cup final, London ran out 1-27 to 1-24 victors over Derry. David Devine scored 1-12 for the winners, while Cormac O'Doherty (0-9) and Thomas Brady (1-1) were the main scorers for Derry. The Nickey Rackard Cup final saw Roscommon defeat Mayo 3-16 to 1-21. Roscommon forward Brendan Mulry hit the match-winning point in this meeting of the Connacht rivals. Mulry, Sean Canning, and Robbie Fallon raised green flags for Roscommon, while Eoin Delaney scored Mayo's goal. In the Lory Meagher Cup final, New York triumphed 4-17 to 2-17 against Cavan. David Mangan, Dara Walsh, AJ Willis, and Tomas O'Connor all grabbed goals for New York, while Liam O'Brien and Nicky Kenny found the net for Cavan. In the Tailteann Cup today, Limerick defeated Westmeath by 0-19 to 0-18 in Portlaoise, while Wicklow saw off Waterford by 3-19 to 0-21 in Wexford. Laois took down Offaly this evening in Newbridge by 3-18 to 3-16.
Irish Times
31-05-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Second-half Roscommon revival salvages a draw against Meath
All-Ireland SFC: Roscommon 2-15 Meath 0-21 Enda Smith spearheaded Roscommon's revival as Davy Burke's men overturned a five-point interval deficit to keep their chances of progression from Group 2 alive. A pulsating game between two evenly-matched teams saw both sides spurn chances to win it after Ruairí Kinsella brought the sides level with six minutes remaining. All of Roscommon's five second-half scores with the wind at their backs came from two-pointers, with Smith kicking three of them, while top scorer Diarmuid Murtagh added another brace. James Conlon was superb for the visitors in the opening half with 0-6, including a two-pointer, but Smith was his side's hero after the break. READ MORE Ruairí Kinsella raised his side's first orange flag with the outside of his right boot in the fifth minute before Eoghan Frayne opened up a three-point gap after the visitors capitalised on a Roscommon turnover But Roscommon wiped out that deficit when Senan Lambe set up Diarmuid Murtagh for a well-taken goal after seven minutes. Dylan Ruane nudged his side in front after Roscommon worked the ball upfield from goalkeeper Conor Carroll but the excellent James Conlon – who scored 0-5 from play during a productive opening 35 minutes – got off the mark to bring the sides level. Meath's Jordan Morris and Roscommon's Senan Lambe. Photograph: Evan Logan/Inpho In the 15th minute, Roscommon struck for a second goal when Shane Cunnane found Ben O'Carroll raiding in behind the Meath rearguard, and the St Brigid's forward produced an assured finish past Billy Hogan. Meath began to win the midfield battle, and Roscommon's cause wasn't helped by the loss of Niall Higgins to injury. Conlon added a couple of rapid-fire points before Daire Cregg replied for the Rossies after Lambe grabbed primary possession in the middle of the park. But Meath began to flex their muscles, mostly off Roscommon turnovers and their dominance around the middle. Conlon and Conor Duke sent over a couple of two-pointers in jig time, while Jordan Morris also found the range to open up a 0-12 to 2-3 gap. Menton arced over the Royals' fourth two-pointer of the half, and Conlon soon added to his tally to stretch his side's buffer to six points. Cregg grabbed a much-needed score for Roscommon before Morris and Ciaráin Murtagh – a free on the hooter – left it 0-16 to 2-5 in favour of Meath at the change of ends. Meath's Bryan Menton and Roscommon's Pearse Frost. Photograph: Evan Logan/Inpho The second half was laden with drama as Smith put a missed 41st-minute penalty behind him to lead his side's charge. Billy Hogan's 46th-minute two-point free from 45 metres, following earlier points from Seán Coffey and Frayne, left Meath 0-20 to 2-9 ahead, but Robbie Brennan's side would only trouble the scoreboard once more. Diarmuid Murtagh kicked a couple of two-pointers, while Smith added another to leave the Rossies ahead by the bare minimum with nine minutes remaining. Kinsella restored parity, and it took a last-ditch block from Seán Rafferty to deny Ben O'Carroll after Mathew Costello had hit the post at the other end. ROSCOMMON: C Carroll, N Higgins, C Neary, D Murray; R Daly, B Stack, S Lambe (0-0-1); E Nolan, S Cunnane; D Ruane (0-0-1), C Murtagh (0-0-1, 1f), E Smith (0-3-0); D Murtagh (1-2-0), D Cregg (0-0-2), B O'Carroll (1-0-0). Subs: P Frost for Higgins (14), D Smith for C Murtagh (49), C McKeon for Ruane (49), K Doyle for Nolan (57), R Fallon for Lambe (64). MEATH: B Hogan (0-1-0, 1tpf); S Lavin, S Rafferty, B O'Halloran; D Keogan, S Coffey (0-0-1), C Caulfield; A O'Neill, B Menton (0-1-0); C Duke (0-1-0), R Kinsella (0-1-1), M Costello (0-0-1, 1f); J Morris (0-0-2), J Conlon (0-1-4), E Frayne (0-0-2). Subs: C Hickey for Duke (55), K Curtis for Frayne (59), C Gray for Menton (64), J McEntee for Lavin (65), E Harkin for O'Neill (67). Referee: P Faloon (Down).
