Connaght Championship

Galway 3-24 Leitrim 3-5

Match Report

Galway annihilated Leitrim in the Connacht Senior Football Championship to set up a semi final clash with Roscommon one June 3rd.
A much stiffer examination awaits the Tribesmen in a fortnight's time against John Tobin's Roscommon.
A man of the match display from Padraig Joyce who contributed three goals and three points was today's main talking point.
Leitrim's championship preparations had been badly hit through emigration and injury problems. Joy Reynolds' side began the game with only eight players who started in last summer's Connacht final.
Galway's preparations hadn't gone to plan either, and the Donnelan controversy dominated the pre-game headlines.
Top-class intercounty hurler, Alan Kerins, was given his first competitive footballing outing for the county. Kerins captained Trinity College in this year's Sigerson Cup and also impressed for Salthill in the county senior football league recently.
Two goals arrived in the opening four minutes. Leitrim drew first blood when Shane Canning took full advantage of a mix up in the Galway rear guard to goal following Padraig McLoughlin's high delivery.
Padraig Joyce scored his first goal on four minutes when he fired home after a long Sean O'Domhnaill pass. Galway took control, and with Ja Fallon, Joyce and Kerins all impressing in the forward line, scores were inevitable.
Joyce bagged his second goal in the 23rd minute, following an excellent move that involved Shay Walsh and Lorcan Colleran.
Galway reigned supreme and led by 10 points at the break. It could have been more as Galway hit seven first half wides.
Joyce completed his hat trick following the resumption after combining with, captain, Kieran Comer.
Leitrim manfully kept battling and left corner forward, Shane Canning, scored his second opportunist goal on 48 minutes.
Six minutes later, Johnny Guckian palmed home Leitrim's third goal, but Galway's lethal forward line continued to wreak havoc with a litany of classy points. Out of Galway's final tally of 3-24, an amazing 3-22 were scored from play from 11 different players.
Galway fared well on Sunday without the mighty Donnelan brothers. However, one got the feeling that their brilliance may be needed later this summer if Galway are to reclaim a much-coveted Sam Maguire.

Back to top

Crunch Ulster Match

Armagh 1-09 Tyrone 1-14

Armagh are no longer the Ulster champions after they were dethroned by Tyrone at Clones on Sunday afternoon. They were defeated in the Bank of Ireland Ulster Senior Football Championship 1-14 to 1-09.
A goal, 15 seconds into the match, from Eoin Mulligan set this match up perfectly. The following 70 minutes proved to be full of drama, as both teams remained close until the closing stages.
Oisin McConville got the defending champions on the scoring board, with a fine point three minutes into the match. However, Tyrone continued to dominate the opening minutes as they score two more points to lead 1-02 to 0-01, before Cathal O'Rourke grabbed a point for Armagh.
The remainder of the first half was a tight affair, as both sides exchanged points, but it was Tyrone who held the advantage at half time as they led 1-06 to 0-06.
The second half started brightly, with Steven MacDonald grabbing a goal, to level the match, less than a minute after the restart. Two morepoints from Oisin McConville and Steven MacDonald saw Armagh move into the lead for the first time in the match.
However, Tyrone were not finished and produced a terrific comeback. Three points, without reply, from Stephen O'Neill, Cormac McAnallen and Brian Dooher saw the eventual winners move back into the lead.
Armagh needed to score a goal in the closing stages, but they were unable to find a way through the tough Tyrone defence, and they eventually succumbed to a 1-09 to 1-14 defeat.

Back to top

Currane.net is the community web site for people of Currane, their friends and relatives, and anyone with an interest in the Currane area.
Currane is near Achill Sound, Co Mayo in the west of Ireland and is also known as Corraun or Corrán.