MEATH DEFEATED LONGFORD 2-1 in a free-taking competition to book their place in the O’Byrne Cup final against Westmeath next Sunday.
The Royals and Longford were locked level at 2-16 to 1-19 after extra-time as Michael Quinn fired in a late 1-1 to bring the away side on level terms.
That forced a free-taking shoot-out rather than a replay, with five players from either team taking frees out of the hands from the 45m line.
Advertisement
The Meath venue was in near darkness by the time the frees were taken due to a lack of floodlights – Pairc Tailteann had its floodlights removed in 2015 when a fault was found in the foundations.
Mark McCabe and Cillian O’Sullivan converted their kicks for the Royals, while only Sean McCormack could find the target for Longford.
In the other semi-final, Westmeath were 1-9 to 1-7 winners over Offaly at TEG Cusack Park.
Colin Kelly’s side won their third game under the new management as Denis Corroon’s first-half goal proved decisive. The Lake County led by 1-7 to 1-2 after a wind-assisted opening 35 minutes, while Joey O’Connor found the net for Offaly.
Michael Brazil and Cian Johnson arrived off the bench to force the issue for the Faithful in the second period, but late scores from Luke Loughlin and Alex Gardiner sealed the Westmeath win.
The42 has just published its first book, Behind The Lines, a collection of some of the year’s best sports stories. Pick up your copy in Eason’s, or order it here today (€10):
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
3 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
Meath edge Longford in historic free-taking competition in near darkness
MEATH DEFEATED LONGFORD 2-1 in a free-taking competition to book their place in the O’Byrne Cup final against Westmeath next Sunday.
The Royals and Longford were locked level at 2-16 to 1-19 after extra-time as Michael Quinn fired in a late 1-1 to bring the away side on level terms.
That forced a free-taking shoot-out rather than a replay, with five players from either team taking frees out of the hands from the 45m line.
The Meath venue was in near darkness by the time the frees were taken due to a lack of floodlights – Pairc Tailteann had its floodlights removed in 2015 when a fault was found in the foundations.
Mark McCabe and Cillian O’Sullivan converted their kicks for the Royals, while only Sean McCormack could find the target for Longford.
In the other semi-final, Westmeath were 1-9 to 1-7 winners over Offaly at TEG Cusack Park.
Colin Kelly’s side won their third game under the new management as Denis Corroon’s first-half goal proved decisive. The Lake County led by 1-7 to 1-2 after a wind-assisted opening 35 minutes, while Joey O’Connor found the net for Offaly.
Michael Brazil and Cian Johnson arrived off the bench to force the issue for the Faithful in the second period, but late scores from Luke Loughlin and Alex Gardiner sealed the Westmeath win.
The42 has just published its first book, Behind The Lines, a collection of some of the year’s best sports stories. Pick up your copy in Eason’s, or order it here today (€10):
Tipperary star Callanan set to miss most of league campaign
Gaelic football’s longest-serving inter-county player calls it a day after 17 years
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Drama GAA O'Bryne Cup Longford Meath