Late Tipp rally comes up short as relegation battle to come

Tipperary missed out on a place in the quarter-finals of the All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football Championship as a late rally ran out of time against Meath on Sunday.

LADIES FOOTBALL: TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship Group 1 Round 3

Meath 2-15

Tipperary 2-12

Report: Kevin Fallon at Pairc Tailteann, Navan

MATCH DIGEST

Player of the Match: Marion Farrelly (Meath).

SCORERS - Meath: Emma Duggan 0-6 (1 free); Marion Farrelly 1-3; Meadhbh Byrne 1-2; Kerrie Cole 0-2, Niamh Gallogly, Rachel Casserly 0-1 each.

Tipperary: Aishling Moloney 0-9 (3 frees), Anna Rose Kennedy 1-1; Neassa Towey 1-0; Emma Morrissey 0-2.

Marion Farrelly, Emma Duggan and Meadhbh Byrne led the way as Meath did enough to advance to the last eight and send Tipperary crashing out. Aishling Moloney did most to keep Tipperary in contention, shooting nine points, six from play.

Meath led by 1-11 to 1-4 at the end of an entertaining opening half in which five players found the target for them.

Moloney got Tipperary off the mark, but Meath responded with two efforts from Duggan and one from Farrelly.

Anna Rose Kennedy got the game’s opening goal after ten minutes when she finished a rebound to the net after Meath goalkeeper Monica McGuirk saved her initial effort.

But the Meath response was good, reeling off four points without reply and they built a healthy interval lead when Farrelly finished to the net after being set up by Byrne.

Emma Morrissey and Kennedy cut the gap to five points two minutes after the restart, but their comeback suffered a massive blow when a high delivery from Farrelly fell for Byrne, and she tapped home to the net to lead by 2-11 to 1-6 after 33 minutes.

Moloney and Duggan swapped points, but Meath took their lead out to nine points with thirteen minutes remaining before Neassa Towey found the net for Tipperary.

Both sides finished with fourteen players as first Tipperary’s Cliona O’Dwyer and later Meath’s Mary Kate Lynch picked up yellow cards.

Three late points from Aisling Moloney brought Tipperary within striking distance but Meath held on to book their place in the last eight while for Tipperary it is the relegation playoffs for the fourth year in a row where they will play Laois in a semi-final with the winner securing their status while the loser will have a second chance against the loser of Donegal v Kildare.

TEAMS – Meath: Monica McGuirk; Sarah Wall, Mary Kate Lynch, Nicole Troy; Niamh Gallogly, Kerrie Cole, Katie Newe; Maire O’Shaughnessy, Aoibhín Cleary; Megan Thynne, Shelly Melia, Ciara Smyth; Meadhbh Byrne, Marion Farrelly, Emma Duggan.

Subs: Aine Sheridan for Newe (43); Rachel Casserly for Cole (43); Aisling McCabe for Smyth (47); Ciara Lawlor for Melia (54).

Tipperary: Lauren Fitzpatrick (Ballymacarbry); Elaine Kelly (Cappawhite), Lucy Spillane (Fethard), Emma Cronin (Moyle Rovers); Cliona O’Dwyer (Brian Borus), Maria Curley (Templemore, Capt), Sarah English (Ardfinnan); Laura Morrissey (Brian Borus), Anna Rose Kennedy (Aherlow); Clara English (Ardfinnan), Aishling Moloney (Cahir), Emma Morrissey (Aherlow); Marie Creedon (Thurles Sarsfields), Angela McGuigan (Sliabh na mBan), Emer McCarthy (Galtee Rovers).

Subs: Neassa Towey (Templemore) for McCarthy (36), Katelyn Downey (Boherlahan-Dualla) for L Morrissey (45), Ciara O’Hora (Arravale Rovers) for Creedon (45), Kate Delaney (Templemore) for English (51), Laura Dillon (Ardfinnan) for Morrissey (51).

Referee: Philip Conway (Armagh).