TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship
ULSTER champions Tyrone will face 2021 beaten finalists Wexford in the TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship quarter-finals at the end of the month.
Theirs was the pick of the four fixtures that were unveiled following Sunday’s final round of group fixtures. Tyrone finished group runners-up after a 3-14 to 3-6 defeat to Laois. Both teams had already qualified for the knockout stages with the result simply determining group winner and runner-up.
Laois pulled away from their opponents in the second half, Erone Fitzpatrick’s 39th minute goal opening up a five-point gap and with Tyrone scoreless for the last 20-odd minutes, Laois finished up comfortable winners by eight points.
The sides were level three times in the opening half with Tyrone battling back well after finding themselves seven adrift after just 13 minutes, but it was Laois who took in a slender one point lead, 1-9 to 2-5, at half-time.
Emma Brennan was first on the scoreboard in the opening minute, but 1-5 without reply from the home side saw them build up a 1-5 to 0-1 lead, Sarah Ann Fitzgerald with a fifth minute goal.
Tyrone hit an unanswered 1-3 to bring them to within a point, Niamh Hughes with the goal in the 20th minute and when Brennan grabbed their second goal in the 24th minute it was was enough to put them into the lead, 2-4 to 1-6 but points from Jane Moore, Emma Lawlor (free) and Shifra Havill ensured Laois led by the minimum at the end of the half.
Tyrone retook the lead three minutes after the resumption when Sasha Byrne found the back of the net to make it 3-5 to 1-10 but almost immediately Laois wiped that out with their second goal, this one courtesy of Havill and Lawlor moved them three ahead, 2-11 to 3-5.
Chloe McCaffrey (free) made it a two-point game but that would be Tyrone’s last score as Laois made sure of the win with Fitzpatrick’s goal and further points from Mo Nerney (0-2) and Lawlor.
Laois’s win sees them pitted against Wicklow in the quarter-finals with Louth facing Roscommon and Longford going up against Clare.
TG4 All-Ireland Junior Championship
ANTRIM made a winning start to their All-Ireland Junior Championship campaign with a hard fought 0-12 to 1-7 win over Limerick in Bruff on Sunday.
The victory puts the Saffrons in the driving seat as they aim to reach back-to-back finals and a win over New York this weekend will see them safely through to the semi-finals.
They had to come from behind, trailing by five points after 13 minutes, 1-3 to 0-1, with captain Cathy Carey’s accuracy from frees, with three of their five points, putting them back in contention and by half-time they trailed by just two, 1-4 to 0-5.
The sides traded points at the beginning of the second half and when Antrim lost Molly Woulahan to the sin bin in the 47th minute and Cathy Mee put Limerick three ahead it looked like the home side had the momentum. However, Antrim reeled off five unanswered points, Grainne McLaughlin (2), substitute Lara Dahunsi, Orlaith Prenter and Carey (free) all on target as Antrim led for the first time, 0-11 to 1-6 with three minutes remaining. Mee made it a one point game in injury time but Prenter and Antrim had the final say with the last point.
IN the other group, Fermanagh put themselves back in semi-final contention with a 2-15 to 2-7 win over London in Brewster Park.
The sides were level at the break at 0-6 apiece, Eimear Smyth with half of her side’s first half total and Blaithin Bogue with two points.
A goal on the resumption for Fermanagh put some breathing space between them but London were back on level terms by the 36th minute. However, 1-5 without reply from the Erne County and it was just too much for London to claw back as Fermanagh stretched their lead to 2-12 to 1-7. London did grab a second goal to reduce the arrears to five but Fermanagh finished strong with another three points as Smyth took her tally to 1-4 and Fermanagh’s other goal came courtesy of Laura Grew.
Derry’s 2-16 to 0-4 defeat to Carlow in Celtic Park means they will not be able to qualify for the semi-finals despite still having Fermanagh to play.
Carlow, who have now qualified for the semis with two wins from two grabbed two early goals through Rachel Sawyer and Sara Doyle and were 2-3 to no score ahead before Leah McGonagle (free) got Derry off the mark in the 14th minute. That was their only score of the half with Carlow leading 2-6 to 0-1.
Carlow’s dominance continued in the second half with Doyle finishing with 1-5 while Derry’s points came from Amy Rose Mulligan and two McGonagle frees.
