Gaelic Games

John McGovern
BBC Sport NI contributor

Image source, Inpho

Meath manager Robbie Brennan hailed his side's resilience and composure after they edged past Derry in a dramatic All-Ireland SFC Round 2B clash at Celtic Park.

The Royals boss said post-match that he "knew we were at that level" despite recent provincial and All-Ireland championship defeats to Westmeath and Cork.

Meath won a chaotic encounter 1-24 to 1-20 after a tense second half that saw both sides reduced to 13 men following a flurry of black cards, but Brennan said his players had already proven their quality before arriving in Derry.

Brennan's charges were defeated by the Rebels by three points after being reduced to 14 men following Colm O'Callaghan's dismissal after 50 minutes, and the Meath boss believes the result was not a fair reflection of their ability.

"Cork have proven today they are a top-quality team by beating Donegal away from home," Brennan told BBC Sport NI.

"We held our hands up that we didn't control the Cork game the way we should have, with the red cards we were given."

"But other areas of the game we went after today, and I thought the lads did a lot in spades. So we knew the form was there and we weren't a bad team, and delighted the lads were able to do that today."

Brennan admitted the margins were again decisive in a tight Championship clash, with Meath making key interventions at crucial moments.

"They are tiny margins," he said.

"It's not easy to come up here and win a championship game against a really good Derry team."

"We're proud to have got the result today, but it only counts for today. We'll see what the draw brings on Monday and then turn our attention to next week."

Brennan also praised the influence of experienced players such as defender Donal Keogan, who scored Meath's sole goal of the match.

"When you come into a cauldron like this, they're the lads you hope can stand up," he said.

"Keoghan, I thought, was probably as good as I've ever seen him play. He was exceptional, and you need that to happen. Bryan Menton was the same — he put in a massive shift."

Looking ahead, Brennan admitted the short turnaround presents challenges but said his side will embrace the uncertainty of the draw as his side progress to round three of the All-Ireland Championship.

"I'm delighted with the result, but it's on to the bus and down the road and try and recover now for next week."

"There's no hiding place. Whoever we get on Monday, we'll be back in on Tuesday night to try and prepare as best we can."

"No matter who you get, your analysis will be small, and it's about recovery. Championship games are a different level. It's very difficult to go back-to-back, but that's the hand we're dealt. We just have to get on with it."

Lauren McCann
BBC Sport NI Journalist

Image source, Inpho

Monaghan progressed to round three of the All-Ireland SFC as they eased to a 1-20 to 0-14 victory over Roscommon at St Tiernach's Park.

Gabriel Bannigan's side were wasteful in the first half, hitting eight wides, although they did fight back from being four points down at one stage to lead 1-9 to 0-7.

Stephen Mooney scored the goal and was denied a second by a smart save from Rossies' goalkeeper Conor Carroll.

The Farney men managed the second half well despite facing a stiff breeze, producing an efficient display as they again finished strongly to win by nine points.

The two sides exchanged early points at Clones before the Connacht winners moved ahead as they hit four successive points, with Daire Cregg scoring three of them.

Monaghan's wayward shooting with the breeze behind them was proving costly as they went 15 minutes without another point after their early two scores.

They finally found their shooting boots midway through the first half and got back into the game with a fine two-pointer from Jack McCarron.

Two more points from McCarron and Conor McCarthy quickly drew them level before the Farney men took the lead through Mooney, who fired beyond Carroll from close range.

McCarthy tagged on another point before Mooney was denied a second goal by the foot of the goalkeeper just before half-time.

Rory Beggan took the resulting 45 quickly to McCarron, who nailed his second two-pointer to give Monaghan a five-point advantage as the hooter sounded.

Roscommon started the second half well with a two-pointer from Diarmuid Murtagh and another from Dylan Ruane cutting the gap to two.

Monaghan then regained control again as they stretched their advantage back to five with three points in a row.

An off-colour Roscommon struggled to respond, despite having the wind behind them, as Monaghan kept the scoreboard ticking over in a well-managed second half to seal a comfortable victory.

Holders Kerry also booked their place in round three as they dispatched Kildare 3-22 to 0-17 at St Conleth's Park.

David Clifford, Diarmuid O'Connnor and Gavin White scored the goals for the Kingdom as they sailed into the next round.

Odhran Crumley
BBC Sport NI journalist at MacCumhaill Park

Image source, Inpho

Donegal boss Jim McGuinness admitted "there wasn't enough energy" in his side as they let slip a seven-point lead to lose 0-17 to 1-13 to Cork in their All-Ireland SFC round 2A game in Ballybofey.

McGuinness' side had been heavily fancied for Saturday's game as they looked to secure passage to the quarter-finals.

But Cork staged a comeback to reach the last eight, leaving Donegal with an unwanted extra game in round three next week.

"There wasn't enough energy in us, there wasn't enough fire, there wasn't enough spark in us," said McGuinness.

"It's really disappointing to be honest with you, we didn't do enough in the game.

"Cork came and they had the game plan to try and slow the game and take the sting out of the game but from our own point of view we just didn't do enough.

Donegal looked comfortable early in the second half as they led by seven, but six two-pointers - including four from Steven Sherlock who finished with 0-9 - sealed a famous comeback win for the Rebel County.

"I think just a couple of moments here and there that kind of cost us. We conceded a couple of free kicks, a couple of two-point free kicks, put them back into it," added McGuinness.

"The game changes very quickly then. Once that gap closes, in seven to five it really makes a difference on the scoreboard and the mentality and Cork sensed it then and you could sense that in the stadium that they sensed it and they kind of got after it more."

This was Donegal's third home championship loss in the past 12 months after their Ulster SFC quarter-final defeat by Down in Letterkenny in April and last year's reverse to Tyrone.

Although the blow is not fatal, it makes the road towards winning the Sam Maguire Cup a lot more difficult.

"It feels that way at the moment to be very honest with you. It's a really, really tough blow for us. We were very, very happy with our performance the last day.

"We're coming home, it's our second championship match this season we've lost at home, we lost last year as well against Tyrone.

"That's three home games in a row. That's not good enough, that just can't happen."

McGuinness added: "We had a long road last year. We had four games in Ulster and we had three games in a group. We still went into the preliminary quarter-final because we lost a game against Tyrone.

"We've only played half the games that we played last year. That shouldn't be an issue, really. We just have to dust ourselves down.

"We've got to go again. When we wake up tomorrow morning and realise that we're still in the Championship, even though we wanted to be heading to Croke Park on the back of this victory, particularly when you're playing at home in front of your own supporters, that's the part that gets stuck in your throat, really."

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Antrim will host Oisin McConville's Wicklow in the quarter-final of the Tailteann Cup as all of the Ulster sides were kept apart in Monday's draw.

Mark Doran's Saffrons will have the home comforts of Corrigan Park thanks to their win over Tipperary in Round 2A and will take on the Garden County who eliminated Tipperary in Round Three with an eight-point win on Saturday in Aughrim.

Antrim had a seven-point win when the teams met in the league earlier this year.

Fermanagh are also at home for their quarter-final against Sligo due to their winning run in the competition, but were tasked with an additional preliminary quarter-final at the weekend due to New York's inclusion in the competition at this stage.

Still, Declan Bonner's men romped to a 20-point win to move into the last eight and they will take on a Sligo side that have recovered from an opening round defeat by Tipperary to overcome Waterford and London with goals from Canice Mulligan and Gavin Gorman proving the difference against the Exiles in Ruislip at the weekend.

Sligo were winners when the sides met in Division Three back in February.

Down bounced back from their Round 2B defeat by Offaly with an impressive away win in Longford at the weekend and their reward is another away day as they will travel to face Laois.

Conor Laverty's side lost to the same opposition in the final round of the league, but had already qualified for the Division Three final at this stage.

All games take place this Saturday, 13 June.

Tailteann Cup quarter-final draw (all times BST)

Offaly v Wexford (13:00)

Antrim v Wicklow (14:00)

Laois v Down (16:00)

Fermanagh v Sligo (17:00)

Image source, Inpho

Aimee Mackin scored a first-half hat-trick which helped Armagh get their LGFA All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Group One campaign off to a flying start with a 4-10 to 1-9 win over Cork in Páirc Uí Rinn.

The goals helped the Ulster champions into an eight-point lead at the break and although Cork halved that deficit entering the home straight, Armagh had an answer to claim the points.

Armagh couldn't have wished for a better start as after Aoife McCoy opened the scoring, Aimee Mackin was in for the first of her three first-half goals.

Mackin added a point before Cork rallied with three points on the spin - two from Aine O'Sullivan - but the Orchard would enjoy a purple parch midway through the half.

After a McCoy point, Mackin scored two goals in the space of a minute with Kelly Mallon also slinging over a score, and while Cork steadied with scores through Emma Cleary and O'Sullivan, Armagh enjoyed a 3-4 to 0-5 lead at the half.

Cork enjoyed a good start to the second period with three of the opening four scores to reduce the gap to six, but points by Cassie Henderson and Mallon restored the eight-point margin entering the final quarter.

A Leah Hallihan goal helped Cork back to within four as the Rebels threatened a late comeback, but a two-pointer by Blaithin Mackin saw Armagh respond, with a point by Henderson and goal by Caoimhe McNally putting the issue beyond doubt.

Lauren McCann
BBC Sport NI Journalist

Image source, Inpho

Antrim camogie captain Lucia McNaughton hopes her side can overcome Kerry in round two of the All-Ireland Intermediate Championship on Saturday (15:30 BST) to avoid a quarter-final tie that would clash with her wedding.

McNaughton is due to tie the knot with St John's hurler and fiance Conal Morgan on Saturday, 4 July, the same day as a potential quarter-final for the Saffrons.

After a comfortable victory over Derry in round one, a second win in the group would almost certainly guarantee Antrim's place in the last four of the competition.

McNaughton said that taking the more direct route has always been Antrim's aim, but she now has a bit of extra motivation to ensure they make it straight through to the semi-finals.

"I am trying not to think about what might happen if Antrim had to go the quarter-final route," said the Loughgiel stalwart.

"Our focus as a team is always on putting into operation a gameplan that will get us through to winning each game.

"If you go back to the start of the year, our goal for this competition was to top the group and get into a semi-final. That would be the direct route. Our preparation for the actual game won't really have changed because there is a wedding in the middle of that.

"[Kerry] are a formidable outfit and we will have to work very hard to beat them. Hopefully it all works out for us."

Making it through to the semi-finals would also have implications for McNaughton's potential honeymoon plans, which the centre-forward admits have been shelved for now.

"There are no plans yet for the honeymoon. We will just have to look at things and figure that out a little closer to the time," she added.

"I think those of us who commit to camogie or hurling, or any sport indeed, are used to the idea of booking last-minute holidays and working around key fixtures."

Image source, Inpho

Inniskeen will host the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Round 2A clash between Louth and Armagh on Sunday, 14 June at 13:00 BST.

Debate has swirled around where the fixture would take place following Tuesday morning's draw that gave Gavin Devlin's side home advantage against the Ulster champions.

With construction work taking place on a new home in Dundalk, Louth have hosted 'home' championship games outside the county.

In 2024, Inniskeen was the venue for their home wins against Meath and Cork, while last year they nominated Newbridge as a home venue when they faced Monaghan at the same stage.

Following Tuesday's draw, GAA president Jarlath Burns told BBC Sport NI that while Croke Park would make sense for the game, "it's a home game for Louth and if they want it in Inniskeen, then it will be in Inniskeen", while Armagh captain Aidan Forker insisted "it doesn't really matter to use" where the game takes place.

On Wednesday, the GAA confirmed the game will take place at the County Monaghan venue which has a capacity of around 6,000.

It will be the first of three Round 2A games set for Sunday with Galway's home clash with Westmeath and Tyrone's home fixture against Mayo to follow.

The other Round 2A game between Donegal and Cork will take place in the reopened MacCumhaill Park in Ballybofey on Saturday at 15:00.

Also on Saturday, there will be three Round 2B games, beginning with Monaghan v Roscommon in Clones at 16:30, while Kildare's home fixture against Kerry throws-in an hour later and Derry will take on Meath at Celtic Park at 19:00.

On Sunday, Cavan will welcome Dublin to Kingspan Breffni with Dubs' boss Ger Brennan set to return to the sideline following the end of his 12-week ban.

All-Ireland SFC fixtures

Saturday, 13 June

Round 2A

Donegal v Cork (Ballybofey, 15:00)

Round 2B

Monaghan v Roscommon (Clones, 16:30)

Kildare v Kerry (Newbridge, 17:30)

Derry v Meath (Celtic Park, 19:00)

Sunday, 14 June

Round 2A

Louth v Armagh (Inniskeen, 13:00)

Galway v Westmeath (Salthill, 14:00)

Tyrone v Mayo (Omagh, 15:30)

Round 2B

Cavan v Dublin (Breffni Park, 14:00)

Image source, Getty Images

Kilkenny are searching for a new senior hurling manager with Derek Lyng ending his four-year tenure.

A six-time All-Ireland winner with the Cats as a player, Lyng took over when Brian Cody's 24-year reign ended in 2022 having led his native county to that year's All-Ireland U20 title.

In his first season, Lyng guided Kilkenny to an All-Ireland final where they were beaten by Limerick, while the would suffer back-to-back semi-final losses in 2024 and 2025 by eventual winners Clare and Tipperary respectively.

Although he also secured three provincial titles, this season saw Kilkenny finish fourth in the Leinster round robin, exiting the championship before the start of the All-Ireland series for the first time since the new format was introduced in 2018.

Despite having one year of a new two-year term remaining, the 47-year-old informed the Kilkenny County Board of his decision to step down with county chair PJ Kenny paying tribute to the "immense" contribution made by Lyng.

"Derek's contribution to Kilkenny hurling over almost three decades has been immense," Kenny said in a statement.

"His commitment to the county has never been in question, and he has always carried out his role with honesty, integrity and pride.

"On behalf of Kilkenny County Board and the people of Kilkenny, I would like to sincerely thank Derek for his outstanding service as a player, selector and manager.

"We are deeply grateful for everything he has done for Kilkenny hurling and wish him and his family every success in the future."

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Monaghan manager Gabriel Bannigan praised his side's character and spirit during their narrow 1-24 to 2-20 All-Ireland SFC first-round defeat by Mayo at Clones.

Mayo had an 11-point lead at the break after a ruthless display in the first half which included six two-pointers.

However, Monaghan fought back after the restart and were able to close the gap to just a point, but couldn't find the crucial score before the final whistle.

"The character and the spirit in those lads, they're just brilliant" Bannigan said.

"It's remarkable, no matter what's thrown at them, because we had lost a couple of big men with injuries. We lost Stephen O'Hanlon during the week in training and then we lost Bobby McCaul with that very nasty injury.

"So, for the boys to gather themselves together and produce what they did in that second half, I'm very, very proud of them. They put everything on the line again."

Bannigan made a double change at the break which included Bobby McCaul, who was returning from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury which sidelined him for a year.

The teenager made an instant impact and scored a goal and added a point to Monaghan's tally as they aimed to produce a late comeback.

However, he was stretchered off the field later in the half with Bannigan adding that the injury "doesn't look good".

"I'm particularly gutted for young Bobby," he continued.

"He's came off with a bad knee injury, just back after over 12 months out. It's an emotional dressing room, mainly because of that. He was brilliant. He was causing havoc.

"Whatever about the game, it's just such a shame to see a young lad like that coming off with a bad injury a second year in a row. It's a big blow. But he's made of good stuff and he'll be back."