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All-Ireland Senior Football Semi-Final – Kerry 1-16 Mayo 1-16
Kerry and Mayo finished in a draw (1-16 to 1-16) in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Semi-Final on Sunday August 24th at Croke Park. The replay will take place on Saturday August 30th at 5:00pm in the Gaelic Grounds Limerick.
Detailed statistical breakdown of Sunday's drawn All-Ireland SFC semi-final between @Kerry_Official and @MayoGAA: http://t.co/ICNdjSBQHv
— The GAA (@officialgaa) August 26, 2014
@Kerry_Official & @MayoGAA will meet again after their #GAA All-Ireland S-Final finished level http://t.co/ZSSlEeZr33 pic.twitter.com/jBF5SDljBw
— The GAA (@officialgaa) August 24, 2014
All-Ireland SFC: Kerry and Mayo level after epic
ALL-IRELAND SFC SEMI-FINAL: KERRY 1-16 MAYO 1-16
Report from GAA.ie
A brilliant All-Ireland semi-final between Kerry and Mayo finished level at Croke Park on Sunday, with a late Kerry comeback denying Mayo after a tremendous second half display from the Connacht champions. The replay is scheduled to take place next Saturday evening at the Gaelic Grounds in Limerick.
Mayo looked dead and buried at the interval. Down to 14 men following the sending off of Lee Keegan, and trailing by four points after an excellent first-half Kerry display, it looked as though James Horan’s side’s quest to reach a third successive All-Ireland final was over. But Mayo, written off many times in the past for a supposed lack of stomach at key moments, produced one of the all-time great comebacks in a magnificent, gusty second half display which thrilled their supporters.
They started to run at Kerry more and more, and with Cillian O’Connor, Alan Dillon and Andy Moran all on song, they overturned the deficit and were level at 0-13 apiece with 15 minutes to go. Then, O’Connor smashed in a penalty to send a resurgent Mayo three clear. Mayo looked set for victory when they went five clear with five minutes to go but Kerry introduced Kieran Donaghy, and his knockdown set up a late goal for James O’Donoghue to turn the game around.
Kerry pressed forward in injury-time in search of an equaliser, and it arrived from substitute Kieran O’Leary, who kicked a brilliant point under pressure to bring a conclusion to a great game of football. Kerry led 0-9 to 0-5 at half-time, but the most significant moment of the opening 35 minutes was the sending off of Keegan just before the break. Referee David Coldrick dismissed the Westport defender after he appeared to kick out at Johnny Buckley, and the red compounded a difficult situation for Mayo after Kerry had dominated the second quarter.
The opening 15 minutes saw the sides trade four points each, with Stephen O’Brien and Dillon scoring the openers, before points from O’Connor (free), O’Donoghue, David Moran and O’Connor again had it at 0-3 apiece after 10 minutes. Mayo were double marking O’Donoghue with Keith Higgins his direct opponent, and Tom Cunniffe operating as a sweeper, but Kerry’s other players were flourishing, and they had eight different scorers in the first half.
After a lengthy scoreless spell for both sides, points from Donnchadh Walsh, Paul Geaney and Michael Geaney had Kerry 0-7 to 0-4 ahead with five minutes to go before the break, and although Keegan ended a 17 minute scoreless spell for Mayo with a good score, Kerry were getting on top, and a superb point from David Moran, his second, edged them three clear again.
The sending off of Keegan just before the break was a huge blow to Mayo and even the most optimistic of Mayo fans would have found it hard to see a way back for their team at half-time. But they started the second half very well, and points from Dillon (2), O’Connor (2) and Colm Boyle had them level at 0-11 apiece just 10 minutes after the restart.
Mayo had emerged as a totally different force; they were winning all their individual battles, and the introduction of folk hero Andy Moran only served to further stir a simmering and increasingly enthused Mayo support in Croke Park. Kerry retook the lead twice through Donnchadh Walsh and O’Donoghue, the latter score coming when the Legion man was clean through and should have buried to the net, but Mayo equalised both times through Jason Doherty and Moran.
Then on 58 minutes, Donal Vaughan surged towards the Kerry goal and was pushed in the back by Peter Crowley. O’Connor showed nerves of steel to drive the resulting penalty to the roof of the net, and when the goal was followed by two superb O’Connor points, Mayo led by five, 1-15 to 0-13.
However, having completely gone out of the game, Kerry roused themselves and rescued a draw in the dying minutes. Peter Crowley and Andy Moran exchanged points, but a Bryan Sheehan free cut the gap to four with five minutes to go.
Then Donaghy, on as a sub, broke the ball to O’Donoghue, who buried to the net to leave one between them with a minute of normal time remaining. Kerry poured forward in search of the equaliser, and it came from the boot of O’Leary, whose brilliant kick from well out on the right was as fitting a way as any to end an outstanding game of Gaelic football.
***
Scorers for Kerry: J O’Donoghue 1-3, D Moran 0-2, D Walsh 0-2, S O’Brien 0-1, J Buckley 0-1, P Geaney 0-1 (1f), M Geaney 0-1, F Fitzgerald 0-1, P Murphy 0-1, P Crowley 0-1, K O’Leary 0-1, B Sheehan 0-1 (1f)
Scorers for Mayo: C O’Connor 1-8 (1-0 pen, 5f), A Dillon 0-3, A Moran 0-2, L Keegan 0-1, C Boyle 0-1, J Doherty 0-1
KERRY: Brian Kelly; Marc Ó Sé, Aidan O’Mahony, Shane Enright; Paul Murphy, Peter Crowley, Fionn Fitzgerald; Anthony Maher, David Moran; Michael Geaney, Johnny Buckley, Donnchadh Walsh; Stephen O’Brien, Paul Geaney, James O’Donoghue. Subs: Declan O’Sullivan for O’Brien (20), Bryan Sheehan for M Geaney (43), Killian Young for A O’Mahony (52), Kieran Donaghy for Maher (59), Barry John Keane for J Buckley (63), Kieran O’Leary for D Walsh (67).
MAYO: Robert Hennelly; Donal Vaughan, Ger Cafferkey, Keith Higgins; Lee Keegan, Tom Cunniffe, Colm Boyle; Jason Gibbons, Seamus O’Shea; Kevin McLoughlin, Aidan O’Shea, Jason Doherty; Cillian O’Connor, Alan Freeman, Alan Dillon. Subs: Tom Parsons for J Gibbons (HT), Andy Moran for A Freeman (48), Michael Conroy for J Doherty (54), Mickey Sweeney for A Dillon (64), Kevin Keane for G Cafferkey (70).
Referee: David Coldrick (Meath)
Attendance: 52,495
***
Report: Arthur Sullivan
Team News
KERRY (SF v Mayo): Brian Kelly; Marc Ó Sé, Aidan O’Mahony, Shane Enright; Paul Murphy, Peter Crowley, Fionn Fitzgerald; Anthony Maher, David Moran; Michael Geaney, Johnny Buckley, Donnchadh Walsh; Stephen O’Brien, Paul Geaney, James O’Donoghue.
