An Ghaeltacht and Glenullin to contest AIB All-Ireland Intermediate Club football final
Aidan Walsh of An Ghaeltacht celebrates after scoring a two-pointer during the AIB GAA Football All-Ireland Intermediate Club Championship semi-final match between An Ghaeltacht of Kerry and Sallins of Kildare at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh in Cork. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile.
AIB All-Ireland Club Intermediate Football semi-finals
An Ghaeltacht 0-18 Sallins 1-14 (AET)
Glenullin 5-8 Strokestown 2-8
Pilgrimages will be made to Croke Park from the north west and south west corners of Ireland next Sunday after An Ghaeltacht (Kerry) and Glenullin (Derry) secured their spots in the AIB All-Ireland Intermediate final with thrilling wins this afternoon.
Éanna Ó Conchúir was the match-winning hero for An Ghaeltacht against Sallins in SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, hoisting over a two-point free with the last kick of the game to secure an 0-18 to 1-14 win after 80 minutes of action.
Leinster clubs have a surprisingly poor record in this competition with just three semi-final wins and no All-Ireland victories in the history of the intermediate All-Ireland series, but such was Sallins' dominance in Kildare and in Leinster, with no team getting within two goals of them in any championship match this year, they were expected to go very close against their talented West Kerry opponents.
Operating without four starters from the Munster final, An Ghaeltacht were efficient and controlled in the first half, hitting just one wide while exerting huge pressure on the Sallins kickout.
Luke Killian kept the Leinster side in the game but former Cork star Aodán Breathnach was thriving on familiar soil to control the game at midfield, with Pádraig Óg Ó Sé and Seán Ó Gairbhí also thriving in the middle.
It looked like the Kerry side’s path to Croke Park was secured when they led by four with ten minutes to play, but a Stephen Kelly’s fisted goal, which was quickly followed by another Killian point, tied the game up.
Éanna Ó Conchúir split the posts from a very tight angle to nudge An Ghaeltacht back into the lead but the contest was sent to extra-time by James Dalton in the third minute of stoppage time.
Sallins played some of their best football in the additional 20, Luke Kelly scoring a fine point and Seán Ó Domhnaill making a heroic block to deny a likely Ghaeltacht goal, but a couple of wides once again left the door open, and the bravery shown by Ó Conchúir to kick the winner will be celebrated for generations around the Dingle peninsula.
With Sallins one point ahead, a free at midfield was brought forward and the attacker had the option of shooting for an equaliser from less than 30 metres out, or coming back out to try and take all the marbles.
On a pitch with 30 exhausted legs, Ó Conchúir’s right peg had the power and precision to steer the kick through the posts for the win.
In the other semi-final, an explosive start to the second half and a strong finish were key for Glenullin as they edged out Strokestown by 5-8 to 2-8 at Fr. Tierney Park, Ballyshannon.
Ryan McNicholl got the Derry and Ulster champions out to a strong start with an early goal but Strokestown responded well through Diarmuid McGann, who found the net after he latched on to Ciarán Regan’s delivery in the ninth minute.
Cillian Bradley and former Derry senior star Eoin Bradley were on the scoresheet in a game that was fiercely contested with a high turnover count, but points from Regan, McGann and impressive young corner forward Shane McGinley put the game on level terms by half-time, 1-4 apiece.
Fearghal Close came off the bench to make an immediate impact, putting Glenullin in front with his first touch and McNicholl was to be pivotal in the next three scores, striking 1-1 himself either side of Traglach Bradley fisting his attempt at a point to the net, to put his side very much in the driving seat eight points in front.
McGinley, who caught the eye of the country when playing a key role for Roscommon in their 2024 Connacht U-20 championship win, got the pivotal green flag as Strokestown hit back with 1-3 on the spin, but a handful of missed chances when they had the wind in their sails were to prove very costly.
Glenullin finished with a flourish as once again their bench came to the fore, Willie John Bradley and Joe McNicholl both coming onto the field to add goals that stretched the lead out to nine, a deceptively large tally given how tight the contest was for the majority of the game.
