Ring/Rackard/Meagher Cups Round-Up

By Colm Shalvey

Kildare and Down advanced to the Christy Ring Cup semi-finals on Saturday, while Armagh and Roscommon set up a Nicky Rackard Cup Final meeting and Fermanagh became the first team to qualify for next month's Lory Meagher Cup decider.

CHRISTY RING CUP

Meath 2-18 Kildare 3-23

Christy Ring Cup holders Kildare are back in the semi-finals after they won a high-scoring derby against Meath in Trim. Meath got off to a flying start, hitting the first five points, and a Jack Regan goal made it 1-6 to 0-1 by the end of the opening quarter. Gerry Keegan got a much-needed goal to bring Kildare back into it and he repeated the trick on the half-hour mark, before Bernard Deay lobbed the Meath keeper to edge the visitors ahead in a remarkable turnaround.

Meath hit the last three points of the first half to lead by 1-13 to 3-6, but their wides tally was already in double figures by then. Scores were harder earned in the third quarter, but Kildare found an extra gear in the last 15 minutes after Meath had Kevin Keoghan sent off for a second booking.

Down 1-22 London 1-13

Down completed the semi-final line-up with a comfortable win over London at Ballycran. Danny Toner, Conor Woods and Gareth Johnson were on target as Down put wind advantage to good use in the first half. Johnson's goal made it 1-5 to 0-1 and the gap had increased to 13 before Bernard Gaffney netted a penalty for London to make the half-time score 1-14 to 1-4.

An entertaining start to the second half saw both sides add to their tallies, with Fintan Conway and Stephen Dineen helping keep Down well clear. London had ten scorers, led by Peter Phelan, but their main marksman Martin Duggan was restricted to a 15-minute cameo as a substitute and they had Conor Hickey dismissed for a second yellow card with eight minutes left. Johnson finished with 1-9 as Down moved into the last four.

Due to avoidance of repeat pairings, a draw for next Saturday's Christy Ring Cup semi-finals is not required. Kildare will host Kerry at Newbridge in a repeat of last year's final, while the other game will be an all-Ulster clash between Derry and Down at Owenbeg.

Wicklow 1-18 Mayo 1-11

Wicklow retained their Christy Ring Cup status when they won the relegation play-off against Mayo at Cusack Park, Mullingar. Defences were on top for most of the first half, with Kenny Feeney's scores keeping Mayo in touch until Wicklow pulled away, with a goal by Enan Glynn doubling their lead to 1-7 to 0-4 at the interval.

Feeney's points and a David Kenny goal gave Mayo hope, but Christy Moorehouse, Andy O'Brien, Jonathan O'Neill and Leighton Glynn helped keep Wicklow well clear throughout the second half. Mayo will play the Nicky Rackard Cup winners in another play-off on June 13.

NICKY RACKARD CUP

Tyrone 0-14 Roscommon 1-16

Tyrone's reign as Nicky Rackard Cup champions ended with a five-point defeat against Roscommon in Carrickmore.The first scores for both teams came from predictable sources, with Damian Casey getting Tyrone up and running, only for a hat-trick of points from Jerry Fallon to hand Roscommon the initiative. Ronan O'Meara and Cillian Egan added their names to the scoresheet as Roscommon threatened to pull away, but Tyrone hit six of the last seven points of the first half.

Matthew Mulgrew and Conor Grogan kept the hosts in contention and Casey added three in a row to leave it level at 0-9 each at the interval. Points by O'Meara and Micheál Kelly, either side of the only goal of the game from Adrian Murphy, saw Roscommon take charge after the restart and Tyrone were never able to close the gap to less than four from there to the finish. Casey and Fallon's duel ended level at 0-8 apiece, but 2013 runners-up Roscommon had done enough to make it through to a second final in three years.

Armagh 1-20 Donegal 1-11

Their opponents on June 6 will be Armagh, who proved too strong for Donegal at the Athletic Grounds.

Nathan Gaffney opened the scoring for Armagh from a long-range free and although a Ciarán Matthewson brace kept Donegal in touch, 1-1 by Eoin McGuinness moved the hosts ahead. Ryan Gaffney, Martin Moan and Conor Corvan were all on target for Armagh in the first half, with Donegal over-reliant on Mathewson as they turned around with the score at 1-10 to 0-6.

Ronan McDermott's seventh goal in three games gave Donegal renewed hope, but with Gaffney running up a total of 0-8 and John Corvan, David Carvill and sub Patrick Kelly on the mark, Armagh were never going to be caught.

Longford 2-20 Louth 2-16

Longford secured their place in the Nicky Rackard for 2016 with an extra-time win over Louth at St. Loman's, Mullingar. Liam Dwan hit an early goal for Louth, but Joe O'Brien and Cathal Mullane helped Longford change ends level at 0-8 to 1-5. O'Brien helped Longford push ahead in the second half, but Louth hit three late points to make it all-square (1-12 to 0-15) after 70 minutes.

O'Brien added a goal in the extra 20 minutes on his way to a 1-9 tally and although Dwan, who hit 2-8, netted a penalty to set up a nervy finish, Longford's main marksman turned provider for Eoin Donnellan to hit a late major and leave the 2014 Lory Meagher winners with four points to spare. Louth will face this year's Lory Meagher champions in three weeks' time.

LORY MEAGHER CUP

Fermanagh 2-14 Leitrim 1-14

Fermanagh are through to the Lory Meagher Cup Final after they picked up a third consecutive victory at the expense of Leitrim in Enniskillen. Pádraig O'Donnell hit all nine of Leitrim's first-half points as they turned around with a one-point lead (0-9 to 1-5), despite Karl Kehoe scoring the only goal for Fermanagh, who also had John Duffy and JP and Kevin McGarry among their scorers.

Leitrim made a bright start to the second half with a John Ryan point and a goal from Zak Moradi, but even though he sent a penalty wide, Duffy's free-taking, along with a couple of points from sub Seán Corrigan on his first appearance of 2015, brought Fermanagh back into it. Kevin Ward came off the bench to regain the lead for Leitrim with a quick brace, but a Kevin McGarry goal edged Fermanagh ahead. Thomas Cleary, Ciarán Corrigan and Duffy added late points to see Fermanagh through to a third final in four years.

Lancashire 0-13 Sligo 3-21

Sligo have joined Leitrim in second place, with a game still to play, after their comfortable victory over Lancashire at Páirc na hÉireann. Two first-half goals by Gary Cadden helped Sligo take a double-scores (2-10 to 0-8) advantage, by which stage Lancashire were down to 14 men. The Exiles' search for a first win in the competition goes on after Gerard O'Kelly-Lynch and Keith Raymond kept the scoreboard ticking over for Sligo, whose third goal came from sub Aidan Walsh.

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RESULTS:

Saturday, May 23

Christy Ring Cup Quarter-Finals

Meath 2-18 Kildare 3-23Down 1-22 London 1-13

Relegation Play-Off: Mayo 1-11 Wicklow 1-18

Nicky Rackard Cup Semi-Finals

Armagh 1-20 Donegal 1-11Tyrone 0-14 Roscommon 1-16

Relegation Play-Off: Longford 2-20 Louth 2-16

Lory Meagher Cup Round 4

Lancashire 0-13 Sligo 3-21Fermanagh 2-14 Leitrim 1-14

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