GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Qualifiers Round 4 – Down 1-13 Tipperary 0-11

Down end Tipperary’s fairytale run

Report from the GAA.ie web site

GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Round 4 Qualifier: Down 1-13 Tipperary 0-11

Down sealed their place in the quarter-finals of the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship with a five-point defeat of Tipperary at Cusack Park, Mullingar on Saturday. Down led by 1-6 to 0-4 at the break after Benny Coulter bundled home a crucial goal just on the stoke of half-time. Coulter was the Mourne County’s hero, scoring 1-2 from play, while Mark Poland pitched in with four points. Ambrose Rogers was superb in midfield for James McCartan’s side, who bounced back brilliantly from their big defeat to Donegal in last Sunday’s Ulster final.

Tipperary’s 2012 adventure under Peter Creedon came to a disappointing end, but they gave another heroic display and had the gap down to three points at one stage in the second half, but ultimately could not find the goal they needed. Two early Poland points, as well as efforts from Dan Gordon and Rogers, gave Down a 0-4 to 0-0 lead after 21 minutes, before Michael Quinlivan eventually got the Premier Men off the mark on 23 minutes. Poland then missed a great goal chance before Quinlivan and Tipp wing-back Brian Fox cut the gap to two points in first half added time. But the drama did not end there, as Kevin Duffin struck a post with a long-range effort and in the ensuing scrum Coulter poked the ball home to give his side a 1-6 to 0-4 lead at the break.

Philip Austin hit back early in the second half for Tipp, before Rogers, Coulter and Duffin all pointed as Down moved into a 1-9 to 0-5 lead. Again, Tipperary hit back in the final quarter with a pair of points from Maloney reducing the gap to three, 1-11 to 0-11, with five minutes left. However, Down showed their experience in the closing stages and Poland and Rogers sealed the win with late scores.

Down Scorers: B Coulter 1-2, M Poland, A Rogers 0-4 (0-1f) each, D Gordon, K Duffin (0-1f), B McArdle 0-1 each.

Tipperary Scorers: M Quinlivan 0-3 (0-2f), A Maloney 0-3 (0-1f), P Austin 0-2, B Mulvihill, P Acheson, B Fox 0-1 each.

Tipperary: P Fitzgerald: A Morrissey, P Codd, C McDonald; B Fox, R Kiely, A Campbell; G Hannigan, H Coghlan; R Ryan, P Austin, D Leahy; A Maloney, P Acheson, M Quinlivan.

Down: B McVeigh, D O’Hagan, D Gordon, C Garvey; A Brannigan, B McArdle, A Carr; A Rogers, K King; K Duffin, M Poland, C Maginn; E McCartan, C Laverty, B Coulter.

Coulter delivers as Down make little bit of history

Down 1-13 Tipperary 0-11

By Brendan O’Brien for the Irish Examiner newspaper

DOWN may have made history on Saturday, but manager James McCartan still believes the sooner the dreaded six-day turnaround is put out to grass the better – and fairer – it will be for losing provincial finalists. No team had ever managed to claim a qualifier win within six days of defeat in one of the four provincial finals, but the 2010 All-Ireland finalists managed it with a little bit to spare against Tipperary on Saturday. “The sooner it is gone the better,” said the winning coach.  “It is always going to be hard. We tried to chat to the guys Sunday night and Monday and let them home lunchtime to cocoon them away from the scribes that would be criticising them. We talked to them about the game (later in the week). “We showed them a lot of clips of things that they done well and we showed them the chances that, had they taken — I know I am talking about the wrong game here but even the first ten minutes we had four wides – but we didn’t want that to be the legacy of this team. “I have been in a lot of Down dressing rooms where we have been beaten in far off fields in the back door and so has Benny and Doyler and Big Dan, those guys. “We didn’t want this to be the place that we were put out of the championship.”

Down travelled to Mullingar a tad fragile after their loss to Donegal, with Danny Hughes unavailable through injury, Benny Coulter at less than 100% fitness and facing a side seeking to breach the last eight for the first time after three straight victories. It was, clearly, a date fraught with pitfalls but they made life easier for themselves by playing with the aid of a strong wind at their backs and duly amassed five unanswered points in the opening 23 minutes. At that stage, it looked every bit like a game between sides that had played Division One and Three football last spring, but the gap narrowed to six points to four before the game’s defining score was landed against the Munster side on the stroke of half-time. Kevin Duffin seemed to have misjudged the strength of the breeze when he launched in a long ball that bounced up and off one of the Tipp posts and back down into the danger area before Coulter applied the last touch amidst a confusing muddle.

Suddenly, a two-point deficit stood at five and, with the elements playing less of a role in the second period, Tipp failed to make a charge until the last dozen or so minutes when a seven-point deficit was cut briefly to three. That was as close as they would get. Down had done enough if not a lot more but McCartan was glad simply to tick the one box that mattered and return home in time for the quarter-final draw and start building towards Croke Park next week.

“Relief, mixed with being glad that the boys showed a wee bit of pride,” he said. “Everybody was tipping this as the shock of the weekend. We were determined that wasn’t going to be the case even if it wasn’t pretty at times. “We said going into this game that it was all going to be about character and mental strength and the goal at half-time turned it in our favour and gave us that wee bit of a leg up that we needed. Playing well wasn’t really part of the occasion. “We obviously shipped a lot of criticism last week. “We felt for three-quarters of the game that we got a whole lot right but they got no credit for that. “It is the last quarter that everybody remembers and rightly so. We have another opportunity to put that right again next week (against Mayo). We’ll obviously be underdogs but we will go in and have a puncher’s chance.” They would have a better shot if Hughes were fit but McCartan claimed that was a “long shot” given he aggravated his injury when brought on against Donegal in the Ulster final.

Scorers for Down: B Coulter (1-2); M Poland (0-4, 1 free); A Rogers (0-4, 1 free); D Gordon (0-1); B McArdle (0-1); K Duffin (0-1 free).

Scorers for Tipperary: A Maloney (0-3, 2 frees); M Quinlivan (0-3, 2 frees); P Austin (0-2); B Fox (0-1); P Acheson (0-1); B Mulvihill (0-1).

Subs for Down: K McKernan for Carr (48); L Doyle for McParland (52); D O’Hare for McCartan (56); A Brannigan for Duffin (60).

Subs for Tipperary: B O’Brien for Ryan (35); B Mulvihill for Austin (54); R Costigan for Hannigan (54); M Dunne for Coghlan (62); J O’Callaghan for Kiely (62).

Referee: C Reilly (Meath)

Team News

The Tipperary senior football team to play Down in the GAA football championship round 4 at Mullingar on Saturday shows no changes in personnel from the team which started against Antrim last Saturday. The team is

1. Paul Fitzgerald (Fethard) Pól MacGearailt
2. Andrew Morrissey (Galtee Rovers) Andreis O Moiriosa
3. Paddy Codd (Killeneule) Padraig O Coda
4. Ciarán McDonald (Aherlow) Ciarán MacDomhnaill
5. Brian Fox (Éire Óg Annacarty) Briain Ó Sionnaigh
6. Robbie Kiely (Arravale Rovers) Roibeard Ó Cadhla
7. Alan Campbell (Moyle Rovers) Ailin Mac Cathmhaoil
8. George Hannigan (Shannon Rovers) Seoirse Ó hAnnagáin
9. Hugh Coghlan (Portlaoise, Laois) Aodh Ó Cochláin
10. Richie Ryan (Eire Og Annacarty) Ristread O Riain
11. Philip Austin (Borrisokane) CAPTAIN Pilib MacAbhistín
12. Donagh Leahy (Arravale Rovers) Donacha O Laocha
13. Alan Maloney (Rockwell Rovers) Alein O Maoldomhnaigh
14. Peter Acheson (Moyle Rovers) Peadar Acheson
15. Michael Quinlivan (Clonmel Commercials) Micheál Ó Caoindealbháin

Match Preview

DOWN v TIPPERARY, MULLINGAR, SATURDAY, 4.00pm

They meet for the first time in the championship after Down lost last Sunday’s Ulster final to Donegal while Tipperary won their third qualifier, beating Antrim by two points. Tipperary will be attempting to reach the All-Ireland quarter-finals for the first time while Down’s last appearance in the quarterfinal was in 2010.

Down and Tipperary met three times in the Allianz Football League in 2009/2010. In 2009, Down beat Tipperary by 0-18 to 1-9 in Thurles in a Division 3 group game but after both won promotion, Tipperary turned the tables on Down in the final, winning by 0-18 to 1-14 after extra-time in Pearse Park. The sides drew in Newry (Down 0-14 Tipperary 1-11) in the 2010 Division 2 campaign.

2012 Championship

Down 2-10 Fermanagh 1-8; Down 1-14 Monaghan 1-13; Donegal 2-18 Down 0-13 (Ulster final).

Kerry 0-16 Tipperary 0-10 (Munster quarter-final); Tipperary 1-12 Offaly 0-10; Tipperary 1-13 Wexford 0-15; Tipperary 0-10 Antrim 0-8 (Qualifier Round 3).