Kerry SFC Quarter-Finals:
Rathmore 0-14 Spa 1-8
East Kerry 4-19 St Kieran’s 0-12
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RATHMORE AND DEFENDING champions East Kerry are the first two teams to qualify for the Kerry Senior Football Championship semi-finals after respective quarter-final wins over Spa and St Kierans respectively on Saturday afternoon.
While East Kerry were comfortable 19-point winners over another divisional team, St Kierans, Rathmore’s three-point win over another East Kerry District Board club, Spa, looks to have come at a heavy price.
Leading by four points at half time, 0-9 to 0-5, Rathmore lost Kerry defender Paul Murphy to an injury just before the interval, and there will be considerable anxiety in the camp as to his fitness ahead of next weekend’s semi-finals.
Worse was to come, however, late in the match when midfielder Mark Ryan – who has also been part of Jack O’Connor’s extended Kerry panel – was sent off on a straight red card.
Rathmore were always fairly much in control at Fitzgerald Stadium, and the 2022 All-Ireland intermediate champions opened up a 0-4 to 0-1 lead after 10 minutes.
James Darmody and Dara Moynihan led the charge for Spa, but Murphy and the three Ryan brothers, Shane, Cathal and Mark, were central to Rathmore’s four-point lead at the break.
Rathmore continued to be the better side into the second half and opened up a 0-12 to 0-6 lead by the 50th minute, but Spa, to the credit, hit back with a cracking goal from substitute Ciaran Spillane, followed by a Cian Murphy point, to make it a two-point game by the 55th minute.
It all led to a frantic finish and with Spa looking for an equalising goal five minutes into injury-time, Mark Ryan clumsily caught Eoin Fitzgerald with a high tackle leaving referee Sean Joy reaching for the red card.
It is likely Rathmore will appeal Ryan’s suspension, and they will certainly need him and Paul Murphy if they hope to make it back to another county championship final, twelve months after winning the county Intermediate championship final.
Rathmore: William Casey; Cian Dineen, Alan Dineen, TJ Friel; Brian Friel 0-1, Paul Murphy 0-1, Fionn Holohan; Mark Ryan 0-1, Cathal Ryan 0-1; Brendan O’Keeffe, Fionn Murphy, James Darmody 0-1; John Moynihan 0-4, Shane Ryan 0-5 (1m, 2f), Dan Murphy.
Subs: Timmy O’Doherty for P Murphy (inj, 30+2), Ciaran Collins for F Murphy (50), Mark Reen for Moynihan (60+1), Anthony Darmody for J Darmody (60+4).
SPA: James Devane; Eric O’Donoghue, Eoin Fitzgerald, Brian Lynch; Liam Spillane, Shane Cronin, Michael McCarthy 0-2; Gary Vaughan, Dan O’Donoghue; Timmy Moynihan, Evan Cronin 0-2, Dara Moynihan 0-1; Cian Murphy 0-3 (2f), Cian Tobin, Michael O’Donoghue.
Subs: Ciaran Spillane 1-0 for Tobin (ht), Shane Lynch for E O’Donoghue (ht), Luke O’Neill for M O’Donoghue (39), Ryan O’Carroll for Vaughan (59).
REFEREE: Sean Joy (Laune Rangers)
East Kerry remain on track for a successful title defence – and a fourth title in five years – after a comfortable win over St Kierans in their quarter-final clash at Austin Stack Park in Tralee.
Having rested David and Paudie Clifford for all bar ten minutes of their three group phase games, East Kerry brought the Fossa brothers into the starting team for this knock-out fixture against divisional team St Kierans. The pair scored 1-8 between them (1-5 for David) but neither they nor their teammates had to be at much more than seventy-five per cent to get the job done.
That in itself make them clear favourites, still, to lift the Bishop Moynihan Cup early next month, and manager Jerry O’Sullivan will possibly have to guard against complacency as much as anything else among the group over the next few weeks.
Not that that looked an issue in this game: East Kerry were on point from the throw-in and never looked anything but easy winners against a St Kierans side that did well to reach the last eight but ran up against a red brick wall here.
Paudie Clifford set up Darragh Roche for a 26th minute goal to help East Kerry to a 1-7 to 0-4 half time lead, and with the wind advantage with the champions for the second half there was an inevitability about the result at the interval.
Twelve second half points were interspersed with three more East Kerry goals, the first coming from Patrick D’Arcy after a David Clifford assist in the 34th minute.
The younger Clifford then raised a green flag in the 53rd minute as the champions wrapped up the result, with East Kerry’s fourth goal made and finished in Fossa; Paudie Clifford setting up club mate Tadhg O’Shea for the finish.
The other two quarter-finals will be played on Sunday afternoon in Killarney, with Dingle taking on Templenoe followed by the meeting of Mid Kerry and Na Gaeil.
Meanwhile in Ladies Football, Mourneabbey secured a ninth senior county title in Cork after a narrow 2-12 to 2-11 victory over Éire Óg. Bríd O’Sullivan scored the winning point in injury time with their goals coming from Laura Walsh and a Clara Lynch penalty. Eimear Scally grabbed nine points for Éire Óg while Sadbh McGoldrick and Kerry footballer Aishling O’Connell provided the goals.
In Meath, Dunshaughlin Royal Gaels emerged as county champions after emphatically dethroning Dunboyne in the final by 4-14 to 0-9.
EAST KERRY: Brian Kelly (Legion), Cian Lynch (Glenflesk), Chris O’Leary (Kilcummin), Dara Callaghan (Kilcummin), Cian Gammell (Legion), Jack Sherwood (Firies), Dan O’Brien (Glenflesk), Kieran Murphy (0-1) (Kilcummin), Ronan Buckley (0-1) (Listry), Darragh Lyne (Legion), Paudie Clifford 0-3 (1 ‘45′) (Fossa), Patrick D’Arcy (1-0) (Glenflesk), David Clifford 1-5 (0-3f) (Fossa), Darragh Roche 1-5 (0-2f) (Glenflesk), Dónal O’Sullivan ‘Down’ (0-3) (Kilgarvan).
Subs: Matt Rennie (Fossa) for K Murphy, 44, Emmett O’Shea (1-1) (Fossa) for D Lyne, 47, Luke Crowley (Glenflesk) for P D’Arcy, 47, Finbarr Murphy (Legion) for D O’Sullivan, 51, Niall Donohue (Firies) for D Callaghan, 51
ST KIERANS: Seán Óg Ó Ciardubháin (Cordal), Jack McElligott (Knocknagoshel), Luka Brosnan (Castleisland Desmonds), Brian Leonard (Castleisland Desmonds), Maurice Hickey (0-3) (Castleisland Desmonds), Tadhg Brick (Ballymacelligott), Seán Horan 0-1 (Scartaglen), Adam Donoghue (Castleisland Desmonds), Eddie Horan (0-1) (Scartaglen), Philip O’Connor 0-1 (f) (Cordal), Daire Keane (Ballymacelligott), Niall Collins (Ballymacelligott), Paul Walsh 0-2 (1f) (Brosna), Adam Barry 0-3 (3f) (Brosna), Tomás Lynch (Castleisland Desmonds).
Subs: Cathal Brosnan (Knocknagoshel) for D Keane, half-time, Thomas Hickey (0-1) (Castleisland Desmonds) for N Collins, half-time, Cathal McElligott (Knocknagoshel) for P O’Connor, 45, Seán O’Connell (Cordal) for A Barry, 51, Tom Fitzgerald (Brosna) for J McElligott, 51
Referee: Jonathan Griffin (Glenbeigh/Glencar)
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