Kerry clinch home quarter-final with another impressive win

TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship

Kerry 2-21

Cavan 2-5

By Dan Kearney

Cáit Lynch led the way as table-toppers Kerry booked a home quarter-final in the race for the TG4 All-Ireland title when they had 16 points to spare at Austin Stack Park in Tralee.

The lethal Kerry full forward line of Siofra O’Shea, Caoimhe Evans and Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh contributed 1-9 to Kerry’s total on a day when Lynch was the player in a match where both sides struggled with the strong wind.

Cavan played with the breeze in the first-half but with Kerry building a 1-10 to 1-4 interval lead, it was always going to be a difficult task for the Breffni side to get back into contention.

Two early Ní Mhuircheartaigh points and a good effort from O’Shea pushed Kerry into a 0-3 to 0-2 lead after eight minutes with Aisling Walls and Emma Halton replying for the visitors. Kerry’s Danielle O’Leary scored the first of her four points from play but the Kingdom were rocked when the dangerous Geraldine Sheridan struck for a goal after nine minutes.

Aisling Sheridan added a point but Kerry corner back Ciara Murphy struck a well worked goal for Kerry in the 14^th minute to bring her side right back into the contest.

Kerry outscored Cavan by 0-6 to 0-1 for the remainder of the first half though with Ní Mhuircheartaigh, Louise Galvin, Niamh Carmody, Anna Galvin, Amy Harrington and O’Leary doing the damage, and although O’Shea was unlucky to spurn a goal chance, Kerry took a 1-10 to 1-4 lead in at half time.

Aisling Gilsenan got Cavan off the mark 40 seconds into the second half with a free but by the 46^th minute Kerry had raced 1-16 to 1-5 lead. A minute later O’Shea then lobbed Roisin O’Reilly with a deft flick after a fine ball from substitute Fiadhna Tangney and at 2-16 to 1-5 it really was game over.

Geraldine Smith scored a consolation goal in the 31^st minute for Cavan but the last score of the game fell to Kerry’s Erica McGlynn and Kerry march forward to a home All Ireland quarter final whilst it’s a relegation play-off that awaits Cavan.

Scorers – Kerry: L Ní Mhuircheartaigh 0-5 (2f), S O’Shea 1-2, D O’Leary 0-4, R Dwyer 0-3 (1f), C Murphy 1-0, C Evans 0-2, L Galvin 0-1, A Harrington 0-1, N Carmody 0-1, A Galvin-0-1, E McGlynn 0-1.

Cavan: G Sheridan 1-1, G Smith 1-0, E Madden 0-1 E Halton 0-1, A Sheridan 0-1, A Gilsenan 0-1f.

Kerry: C Butler; A Doherty, K Cronin, C Murphy; C Lynch, E Costello, C McCarthy; L Galvin, A Harrington; N Carmody, D O’Leary, A Galvin; S O’Shea, C Evans, L Ní Mhuircheartaigh. Subs: N Broderick for McCarthy (42), R Dwyer for Ní Mhuircheartaigh (46), F Tangney for L Galvin (47), S Fitzpatrick for Murphy (52), E McGlynn for A Galvin (51).

 Cavan: R O’Reilly; C Madden S Lynch, C Charters; E Madden, C Brady, R O’Reilly; N Byrd, M Cusack; A Walls, A Sheridan, E Halton; G Smith, G Sheridan, A Gilsenan. Subs: N Keenaghan for Halton (36), K McCormack for Walls (46), A Cahill for Madden (47), C McCaffrey for Cusack (47), A Smith for R O’Reilly (59).

Referee: Patrick Smith (Waterford)