MAGNIFICENT ARMAGH MARCH PAST MAYO
ARMAGH 2-11 MAYO 0-11
Richard Bullick at the Athletic Grounds
Blaithin Mackin led the way with a superb Player of the Match performance as Armagh reached only the fifth All Ireland semi-final in their history with an impressive victory over Mayo at the Athletic Grounds on Sunday evening.
The Orchard crew will now face Kerry in a repeat of April’s National League final, which Armagh won, while the other semi will be between Munster champions Cork and Galway, who dethroned Dublin with a shock extra-time victory at Parnell Park the night before.
Ulster champions Armagh went into this tie not only without ace markswoman Aimee Mackin following her cruciate rupture in the provincial final but also missing former skipper Kelly Mallon through injury on the eve of her 35th birthday.
But Armagh made light of the absence of their top two forwards against the women from the west, with Blaithin Mackin taking responsibility for the right-footed frees in place of Mallon and converting two to go with her 1-1 from play.
That tally was matched by stalwart Aoife McCoy, while Ballyhegan’s Eve Lavery took her personal haul to 11 points in three matches since the Clones showpiece win against Donegal when she just came off the bench for the second period of extra-time.
Niamh Henderson’s dream return to Orchard duty after a nine-year absence continued as the Clann Eireann captain weighed in with two points while there was one apiece courtesy of Crossmaglen legend Lauren McConville and sub Niamh Reel.
Saturday night’s shock defeat for favourites and reigning All Ireland champions Dublin at the hands of Galway, who scored the winning goal late in extra-time at Parnell Park, had thrown the competition wide open but Armagh had a big job of their own to do against Mayo.
Although Armagh had narrowly won all four encounters with Mayo this decade, they have always been very tough opponents and would have travelled to the cathedral city determined to end that losing sequence against the Orchard crew.
However, the hosts were well worth what was a comparatively comfortable victory against a visiting side who kicked twice as many wides as Armagh and never really looked like emulating Galway’s away win in Dublin the night before.
Six ahead at the break, the Orchard crew effectively controlled this contest throughout but Armagh manager Greg McGonigle was taking no chances, keeping evergreen veteran Caroline O’Hanlon on the field right until the end despite her nursing a significant injury.
Making her first appearance since the Ulster final, O’Hanlon played with her left calf heavily strapped so didn’t cover quite as much ground as sometimes and kicked a couple of wides but her hugely experienced, composed presence was still invaluable.
Despite pain and discomfort, the 39-year-old kept putting her body on the line for the Orchard cause which she has served with such commitment and distinction for an astonishing 23 seasons now, even getting back to manage one brave, valuable block.
At the other end of the age scale, the youngest team member, Roisin Mulligan, continues to have a brilliant first season while livewire fellow corner back Grace Ferguson scampered everywhere on an increasingly pleasant summer’s evening.
Last year’s quarter-final in the same stadium had ended in Orchard defeat to Cork, with a downpour of biblical proportions at the final whistle but the torrential shower on matchday this time had cleared before throw-in.
On that occasion, one recalls Armagh’s breakout star of last season Emily Druse signing autographs in the rain with a badly swollen face after a sickening collision late on, but here she could smile freely while facilitating young fans and contemplating a semi-final ahead.
Mayo’s most recent visit to the Athletic Grounds had been last summer when Aimee Mackin’s penalty with virtually the last kick of the match secured Armagh top place in their group and set up that home match against Cork in the last eight.
But O’Hanlon had stepped away from Orchard duty after that spring’s NFL Division Two title triumph and also losing Aimee Mackin ahead of facing Cork proved too much of a setback for Armagh to deal with as they went down narrowly to the Rebelettes.
Armagh’s last defeat against Mayo came in the 2019 All Ireland quarter-final, two weeks after Aimee Mackin had sustained the first cruciate rupture of her decorated career and there is no doubt that she would be a big loss, practically and psychologically, to any team.
However, Armagh have had a little more time to plan on being without their chief weapon for an All Ireland quarter-final than on those two previous occasions and they came through the group phase without her, overcoming Meath and drawing with Tipperary in Thurles.
They have now won 10 of their 12 matches under McGonigle, with the only defeat coming when he fielded a largely second string team against Dublin ahead of the Orchard outfit’s first ever NFL final appearance.
After building a healthy lead against Mayo in the National League game in Ballina on St Patrick’s Day, Armagh were left hanging on desperately near the end for the win which booked their ticket to the final in Croke Park.
But Mayo weren’t allowed to get back into Sunday’s contest as Ulster champions Armagh maintained their scoreboard cushion through determined defending, breaking forward with conviction and generally making their chances count.
Notwithstanding the palpably bogus side Armagh had named in advance of this tie, the Orchard’s only personnel change compared to the Tipperary match last time out saw O’Hanlon come in for Mallon.
On the day she got engaged, Armagh goalkeeper Anna Carr had to do well in the opening minute to keep out a shot which dipped dangerously under her crossbar, Henderson slipped after receiving a sublime ball by O’Hanlon and the teams traded long-range wides.
However, Armagh got their noses in front in the fourth minute, Ferguson winning a turnover and McCoy scooting forward to drive the ball over the bar, with a successful free from Lavery soon following after a dancing O’Hanlon was pulled down.
A long shot from Blaithin Mackin fell into goalkeeper Laura Brennan’s arms and Lucy Wallace pointed off the inside of a post at the other end before O’Hanlon hit her first wide of the afternoon.
But Blaithin Mackin blasted a thunderbolt to the net in the 10th minute after being brought through by Henderson and she quickly added a free when McCoy was knocked over to end a nice attack which began when Mayo were penalised for charging against O’Hanlon.
The admirable Aoife Geraghty pointed for Mayo but it was cancelled out by Henderson raising her first white flag before the end of the first quarter and Armagh almost got a second goal when Henderson sent McConville through and Lavery’s rebound effort was blocked.
Mayo were wasteful in possession and wayward with shots, though Armagh gifted possession back to them at times and a Lavery wide was followed by the visitors being off target twice before Geraghty got another nice score.
A great run by Blaithin Mackin led to a Lavery point after McCoy and Henderson had helped link the attack and the blonde left-footer kicked a free to make it 1-6 to 0-3 at the break, though McCoy might have been through on goal if the referee had played advantage.
Out first for the second half, Mayo would have wanted a fast start, but instead it was the marauding McConville who increased Armagh’s lead within a minute of the resumption and Henderson hit the Orchard outfit’s fourth wide shortly afterwards.
Lavery hooked into the keeper’s arms and there were good intercepts by Blaithin Mackin and Dearbhla Coleman at the other end but Armagh gave the ball away again and Annie Gough raised a white flag for Mayo.
Mayo’s next shot was straight at Carr but another McConville foray in the opposite direction resulted in a wide followed by O’Hanlon drawing a blank before the ailing legend managed to get back into defence to charge down an opposition shot.
From the Mayo wide which followed, Druse won her own kickout, McConville scorched down the middle and the accomplished Henderson deftly played in McCoy for a glorious second Armagh goal on 38 minutes.
Orchard captain Clodagh McCambridge cut out an opposition ball, broke at pace up the left and released Mackin who found McCoy and Henderson pointed to extend Armagh’s advantage to double digits.
The visitors reduced the arrears to eight with a Lisa Cafferky point and Maria Cannon free before Fiona McHale came on for possibly her last Mayo appearance and Clonmore’s Sarah Quigley replaced Meabh McCambridge midway through the half.
Lisa Cafferky kicked a point, then Mackin and Cannon traded frees, but further wides undermined Mayo’s hopes of fighting back and sub Reel, on for Lavery early in the final quarter, pointed in the 53rd minute.
Another break down the middle by Blaithin Mackin brought her a point and, although it was quickly cancelled out by Lisa Cafferky, Mayo were struggling to make much inroads into the deficit faced.
Louise Kenny made a welcome return from the shoulder injury sustained early on in May’s Ulster final, replacing Druse, and Mayo pointed twice through Staunton and another Cannon free before the former was sinbinned by Brendan Rice for catching Cait Towe high.
The irrepressible Ferguson hit her shot wide after a fleet-footed break and there were no further scores before the final hooter officially confirmed the semi-final place which Armagh had had in the bag for some time.
However, the fact the orangewomen won well shouldn’t diminish the achievement of knocking out a formidable Mayo team who had reached the All Ireland semi-finals in each of the past three seasons.
ARMAGH: A Carr; G Ferguson, C McCambridge (capt), R Mulligan; C Towe, L McConville (0-1), D Coleman; N Coleman, B Mackin (1-3; 2f); E Druse, C O’Hanlon, M McCambridge, E Lavery (0-3; 2f), N Henderson (0-2), A McCoy (1-1). Subs used: S Quigley for M McCambridge (47), N Reel (0-1) for Lavery (49), L Kenny for Druse (56).
MAYO: L Brennan; S Lally (capt), N O’Malley, K Sullivan; E Ronayne, C Durkan, D Caldwell; A Geraghty (0-2), E Murray; L Wallace (0-1), A Gough (0-1), S Cafferky; S Walsh, M Cannon (0-3; 3f), L Cafferky (0-3). Subs used: A Staunton (0-1) for Murray (ht), F McLaughlin for Sullivan (39), F McHale for Gough (45), C Needham for Durkan (49), M Reilly for S Cafferky (54).
Referee: Brendan Rice (Down).
