Armagh City Hotel Ulster Minor Championship semi-final
Derry 5-9 Armagh 0-2
Down 0-4 Antrim 2-19
FOR the sixth successive season Antrim and Derry will meet in the Ulster minor final, both teams easing to victory on similar score-lines against Down and Armagh respectively.
The Owenbeg game was over by half-time with a Connie McBride hat-trick sending Derry in at the break 4-4 to 0-1 leaders.The Armagh point came from Eimear McGeary.
McBride was also involved in the fourth Derry goal when she took a pass from Emma Quinn after 24 minutes and laid off the sliotar for Jemma Shivers to hit the net.
There were just four Derry points during the third quarter, three of them from the excellent Emma Quinn, with McGeary responding with a pointed free for Armagh. Then, two minutes from time, Jemma Shivers stroked a ground shot to the net to complete the scoring.
Down started the semi-final in Ballela with the opening two points from Daire O’Shea but they then hit several wides as Antrim built up a head of steam to lead by 0-12 to 0-3 at half-time. Eva McNeill led the scoring with five points and there were two each for captain Kady McNeill and Aimee Ferris.
Ferris grabbed an Antrim goal in the 33rd minute, but Down worked hard to contain them for the rest of the third quarter and, with 10 minutes to go, it was 1-13 to 0-4.
However, the Saffrons then took off again, hitting an unanswered 1-6 in the time remaining, with Eva McNeill leading the way with a goal and four points in a player-of-the-match performance.
Derry C McBride 3-0; J Shivers 2-1; E Quinn (2f) & L Cassidy 0-3 each; B Bradley & G McCartney 0-1 each
Armagh E McGeary 0-2 (0-1f)
Antrim E McNeill 1-9; A Ferris 1-2; É McAllister 0-5; K McNeill 0-2
Down D O’Shea 0-3 (0-2f); K Quinn 0-1
Armagh City Hotel Ulster Minor Shield semi-final
Tyrone 3-15 Cavan 5-5
THERE were plenty of scores in this game at the Mid Ulster Arena in Cookstown yesterday morning, with Tyrone’s ability to push on at the end of each half crucial to seeing them through to next Sunday’s final with Donegal.
The game got off to a cracking start with a goal for each side, Emer Cunningham’ strike followed by one from Sarah Devine in the opening five minutes.
Tyrone then went four points clear, three of those coming from the stick of Catherine Moohan.
However, Kate Mac Seáin with a point and Sarah Devine with a goal levelled for Cavan before Siún O’Sullivan and Moohan exchanged goals.
Bronagh Tully goaled for Cavan in the next attack, but Tyrone finished the half strongly with three more points from Moohan and the teams were level at the break, 2-8 to 4-2.
Although Cunningham opened the second half with a Tyrone point, Siún O’Sullivan grabbed her second goal of the contest in the 35th minute. The Red Hands hit back with a goal from Clare McKee, but entering the final 10 minutes the teams were level at 5-5 to 3-11.
However, as they had done during the opening half, Tyrone finished strongly with points from Catherine Moohan, Cunningham (two) and Ellen Gillen to progress.
Tyrone C Moohan 1-8; E Cunningham 1-3; C McKee 1-0; N McElduff 0-2; É Coyle & E Gillan 0-1 each
Cavan S O’Sullivan 2-1; S Devine 2-0; B Tully 1-1; C Gaffney,
A O’Sullivan & K MacSeáin 0-1 each
