All-Ireland GAA Football Minor Championship Semi-Final – Tipperary 1-11 Roscommon 0-12

Tipp through to first Minor final since 1984

From the GAA.ie web site

GAA Football All-Ireland Minor Championship Semi-Final

Tipperary 1-11 Roscommon 0-12

Fourteen-man Tipperary hung on against a resilient Roscommon side to make it to their first Minor Football All-Ireland final in 27 years. Michael Quinlivan’s goal just moments after the restart proved costly for Roscommon and Ross Shannon’s men were unable to claw their way back. The Rossies did look out of contention until 10 minutes to go when Tipperary’s midfield stalwart Ian Fahey was given his second yellow of the game following a clash with Roscommon’s Shane Carty. But following some late pressure from Roscommon, Tipp managed to hang on for the win.

Tipperary started the brighter of the two teams and raced into an early three-point lead. Points from TJ Ryan and two from midfielder Fahey gave the Premier County a great start. The Rossies managed to muster up a response and got off the mark through Donie Smith and Liam Conlon with 12 minutes gone. But the scoreboard could have looked a lot better for Roscommon moments later. Lively full-forward Kevin Finn was sent in on goal but Tipperary ‘keeper Evan Comerford stood tall and kept his goal intact. That save seemed to have rallied the Tipperary troops and David Power’s men grew in stature. Fahey and Stephen O’Brien at centrefield were more than holding their own while the two man full-forward line of Ryan and Quinlivan started to use the space at their disposal.

Wing-back Colin O’Riordan also began to show his skills in front of the posts and slotted over a fine score which was followed up by a point from the Clonmel Commercials man Quinlivan. The midfield pairing of Fahey and O’Brien were really pulling the strings for Tipp and it showed when they combined for one of the scores of the game, O’Brien finishing off a well-worked move. The Munster men looked to be steadily pulling away until Thomas Corcoran slotted over a ‘45’ for the Rossies’ first score in 16 minutes. It looked to get even better before the break for Shannon’s men when Enda Smith left three between the sides. But wing-back O’Riordan got his second point of the game and left it at double scores at the interval, 0-8 to 0-4.

The game looked all but over as a contest a minute after the restart when Quinlivan strolled in for the only goal of the game. Fahey forced his way through the Roscommon defence, fist-passed it to Quinlivan and he directed his shot low across the ground and into the net. The game struggled to flow following the goal and it was not until 10 minutes later when Conor Daly and Fintan Kelly responded for Roscommon. These scores seemed to spur on the Roscommon players and further points from Conlon and a free from Smith narrowed Tipp’s lead to just four points. Things got better after the dismissal of Fahey with ten minutes remaining when two more scores from Smith, with his first point from play, and Conlon got his second to narrow the gap to just two points. Tipp second half sub Colman Kennedy managed to ease some of the pressure with his first touch of the game with five minutes to go and restore the goal lead. Michael Gunning brought it back to just a two point game for Roscommon but Tipp managed to hang on to reach their first Minor final since 1984.

Tipperary Scorers: M Quinlivan 1-1, I Fahey 0-3 (0-1f), C O’Riordan 0-2, S O’Brien 0-1, TJ Ryan 0-1,G Henry 0-1, L McGrath 0-1, C Kennedy 0-1.

Roscommon Scorers: L Conlon 0-3, D Smith 0-3 (0-2f), C Daly 0-2, T Corcoran 0-1, F Kelly, E Smith 0-1, M Gunning 0-1.

Tipperary: E Comerford; N O’Sullivan, J Meagher, C O’Sullivan; C O’Riordan, D Fitzelle, S Kennedy; S O’Brien, I Fahey; G Henry, P Quirke, B Maher; L McGrath, M Quinlivan, TJ Ryan. Subs: J McGrath for P Quirke(37), A McGuire for D Fitzelle (45), J Lonergan for G Henry (52) C Kennedy for TJ Ryan (54), T Kirwan for S O’Brien (62).

Roscommon: C Lavin; D Murray, R Timothy, S Carty; M Connaughton, J McManus, C Daly; F Kelly, T Corcoran; L Conlon, M Healy; E Smith; D Smith, K Finn, S Jordan. Subs: F Sweeney for S Jordan (37), D Brandon for F Kelly (51), M Gunning for K Finn (62).

Referee: Damien Brazil (Offaly)

Team News

The Tipperary minor football team to play Roscommon in the All Ireland minor semi- final at Croke Park on Sunday August 21 at 1.30pm is:

Evan Comerford (Clonmel Commercials)

Niall O’Sullivan (Moycarkey-Borris)

John Meagher (Loughmore Castleiney)

Conor O’Sullivan (Galtee Rovers)

Colin O’Riordan (JK Brackens)

Dylan Fitzelle (Cashel King Cormacs)

Seamus Kennedy (Clonmel Commercials)

Stephen O’Brien (Ballina)

Ian Fahey (Clonmel Commercials)

Greg Henry (Killenaule)

Philip Quirke (Moyle Rovers)

Bill Maher (Kilsheelan Kilcash)

Liam McGrath (Loughmore Castleiney) Captain

Michael Quinlivan (Clonmel Commercials)

TJ Ryan (Rockwell Rovers)