EAMONN RYAN’S TG4 All-Ireland ladies senior football champions Cork will face Armagh in the last four of this year’s competition.
The semi-final pairings were confirmed on Saturday after Dublin and Galway, champions in Leinster and Connacht respecitvely, advanced to the last four.
With the race for the Brendan Martin Cup reaching a gripping conclusion, the semi-finals will be contested by the four provincial winners.
Cork face off against Armagh in a repeat of last year’s qualifier, which the Rebelettes won narrowly by a point.
And Dublin will face Galway in the other semi-final, after both teams won their quarter-finals at St Brendan’s Park, Birr, on Saturday.
Galway edged past last year’s beaten finalists Monaghan by three points, 0-17 to 0-14, with ten different players getting on the scoresheet.
Monaghan goalkeeper Linda Martin missed a first half penalty for the beaten Ulster finalists.
Galway led by 0-7 to 0-6 at half-time but the introduction of Caoimhe Mohan provided Monaghan with fresh impetus, and the Westerners suffered a major injury blow when captain Sinead Burke limped off with an ankle problem.
The sides were level at 0-10 apiece but Galway finished strongly to collect the win.
Meanwhile, goals in either half from Niamh McEvoy and Noelle Healy proved crucial for Dublin as they ensured that Kerry lost a quarter-final for the very first time under William O’Sullivan’s stewardship.
Sinead Aherne was also very much to the fore for Dublin, scoring 0-8 for the 2010 champions, as they ran out 2-12 to 1-10 winners.
Dublin moved into a 0-6 to 0-1 lead and McEvoy’s goal ensured a commanding 1-9 to 0-3 half-time advantage.
Kerry launched something of a revival after the restart but Healy’s goal put Dublin firmly in the driving seat again.
The Kingdom did score a late consolation goal through Deirdre Corridan, with the ball slipping through Cliodhna O’Connor’s fingertips from a long-range free, but Dublin had little difficulty in closing the game out.
Results:
Dublin 2-12 Kerry 1-10
Galway 0-17 Monaghan 0-14
