16 July 2008 Ladies Gaelic Weekly Article Share this Article 0 0 0 Shares! 0 Shares! Ladies Gaelic Weekly Article Tyrone and Monaghan are two counties on the rise in the ladies game with these two counties recently contesting the Ulster Championship final. The two counties go head to head again this weekend in the semi-final of the All Ireland Minor Championship.This game is not only a repeat of the senior final but a repeat of the Ulster Minor final which took place in May. Tyrone won out by a point on that occasion, winning 3-16 to 4-12, but had led the Farney women by seven points at one stage during that game. Tyrone won the Ulster minor title for the first time last year and Tyrone Manager, Martina Dillon believes the O’Neill County are on their way to becoming a serious force in Ladies Gaelic and have begun to mimic Cork’s talent conveyor belt. “The senior side reached the All Ireland semi-finals and many people were shocked by how well they did against Mayo. There are a lot of talented young girls playing around the county and these players are starting to progress through the county system. Four of last year’s minor side are regulars in the senior side and we have another four from this year’s minor panel who are breaking into the senior set-up,” opined Dillon Dillon says they have no injury worries ahead of Sunday’s clash but that these two sides know each other very well and have got very used to each other over the last 4-5 years as they compete for provincial and national titles. Tyrone’s minor side boasts four players in the Tyrone senior panel with two, Sinead McVeigh and Shannon Quinn, regular starters for the senior side. Clodagh Pontz another minor star scored two points in the Ulster Senior final and Dillon believes the senior loss has been a huge motivational factor for her young charges. “The four girls involved in the senior panel were very disappointed after the Ulster final, but they are now fully focused on the minor game and they have been training with us full time for the last fortnight,” said Dillon. Monaghan however are still seething from the one point loss in the Ulster Minor final and have since knocked reigning champions Cork out of the Minor Championship. The Monaghan minors boast a formidable line up with three senior players in their ranks including the McAnespie twins, Ciara and Aoife. Nicola Fahy is another minor who lines out for the senior side while former All Star Ray McCarron’s daughter Ellen also plays a central role and Laura Boylan at right half forward is the latest star to emerge from the Aghabog club. In the other semi-final, last year’s beaten finalists Dublin take on Mayo at Pairc Ciaran. This year the All Ireland minor final will be televised for the very first time by TG4 as part of a double header with a senior qualifier so the chance of playing in front of a live television audience awaits the winners of this weekend’s semi-finals. Fixtures Saturday, 19th July, 2008 Minor All-Ireland Semi Final Dublin v Mayo, Pairc Ciarain, 3.00pm, (E. O’Hare) Sunday, 20th July, 2008 Minor All-Ireland Semi Final Monaghan v Tyrone, Kinawley, 7.00pm, (L. McDonagh) Share this Article 0 0