Gaelic Games

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Donegal have dropped into the All-Ireland Ladies Senior Football Championship relegation play-off after a 0-15 to 0-5 defeat by Armagh.

In a repeat of the Ulster final, which Armagh won, both sides dropped into the opening relegation play-off round after finishing bottom of their respective groups.

The Orchard County held a 0-11 to 0-1 lead at the break and their dominant first-half performance was enough to retain their top flight status.

Donegal will now face Leitrim in the relegation play-off and the loser will drop into the All-Ireland Intermediate Football Championship for next season.

Niamh Reel, Lauren McConville both hit two points and Caroline O'Hanlon struck her third score just before half-time as Armagh dominated proceedings, while Jodie McFadden recorded Donegal's sole point of the half.

McFadden and Cait Gillespie started chipping into Armagh's lead after the restart, but Catherine Marley, Reel and Katie Dowds helped the Ulster champions keep Donegal at arm's length in the second half.

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Eoin Cody and Shane Murphy have been restored to the Kilkenny line-up to face an unchanged Tipperary in Sunday's All-Ireland Hurling semi-final at Croke Park.

The match, which will throw in at 16:00 BST, will be shown live on BBC Two NI, the BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website. There will also be live text updates on the BBC Sport website.

Ballyhale Shamrocks club-man Cody returns to Derek Lyng's full-forward line after missing the Leinster final win over Galway on 8 June with a leg injury.

Tipperary boss Liam Cahill has opted to stick with the same 15 that beat Galway in the quarter-finals for the Munster county's first last-four appearance in six years.

Michael Breen, Ronan Maher, John McGrath and Jason Forde all started Tipp's 2019 All-Ireland final win over Kilkenny.

Kilkenny: Eoin Murphy; Mikey Butler, Huw Lawlor, Shane Murphy; Mikey Carey, Richie Reid, Paddy Deegan; Cian Kenny, Jordan Molloy; Adrian Mullen, John Donnelly, Billy Ryan; Martin Keoghan, TJ Reid, Eoin Cody.

Subs: Aidan Tallis, Tommy Walsh, David Blanchfield, Padraic Moylan, Killian Doyle, Zach Bay Hammond, Fionan Mackessy, Stephen Donnelly, Luke Hogan, Luke Connellan, Billy Drennan.

Tipperary: Rhys Shelly; Robert Doyle, Eoghan Connolly, Michael Breen; Craig Morgan, Ronan Maher, Bryan O'Mara; Willie Connors, Peter McGarry; Jake Morris, Andrew Ormond, Sam O'Farrell; Darragh McCarthy, John McGrath, Jason Forde.

Subs: Barry Hogan, Joe Caesar, Sean Kenneally, Seamus Kennedy, Brian McGrath, Noel McGrath, Oisin O'Donoghue, Johnny Ryan, Conor Stakelum, Darragh Stakelum, Alan Tynan.

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Both Cork and Dublin show changes to their teams for Saturday's All-Ireland hurling semi-final at Croke Park.

The game, with throw-in set for 17:00 BST, will be broadcast live on BBC Two NI, as well as the iPlayer and BBC Sport website.

The Munster champions welcome back team captain Rob Downey who has recovered from a hamstring injury to slot back in at centre-back as Cormac O'Brien drops out due to a quad injury.

In another of the three changes from their penalty shootout win in the provincial decider last month, Niall O'Leary returns at corner-back in place of Damien Cahalane with his groin injury cleared.

In attack, Declan Dalton is another coming back from injury having recovered from the hamstring problem that forced him out of the Limerick game, but a similar issue means Seamus Harnedy is absent for the weekend.

There is a further boost for Pat Ryan's team as Ger Mellerick is fit for a place on the bench, having been absent last month due to a fractured finger.

Dublin manager Niall O Ceallachain has also made changes for Saturday's semi-final as the red card picked up by team captain Chris Crummey in the win against Limerick in the quarter-final means he is suspended this week.

Conor Burke, who scored five points from midfield in the victory against the Treaty, deputises at centre-back, with Conor Donohoe returning from his own suspension to partner Brian Hayes at midfield.

In attack, Darragh Power is preferred to Diarmaid O'Dulaing and will start at wing-forward with Cian O'Sullivan moving into the corner.

John Hetherton - who found the net as a second-half substitute against Limerick - is again held in reserve, while Donal Burke is another named on the bench and will provide a noted attacking option for Dublin if called upon.

Cork: Patrick Collins; Niall O'Leary, Eoin Downey, Sean O'Donoghue; Ciarán Joyce, Rob Downey, Mark Coleman; Tim O'Mahony, Darragh Fitzgibbon; Diarmuid Healy, Shane Barrett, Declan Dalton; Patrick Horgan, Alan Connolly, Brian Hayes.

Subs: Brion Saunderson, Damien Cahalane, Ger Millerick, Tommy O'Connell, Ethan Twomey, Luke Meade, Brian Roche, Jack O'Connor, Shane Kingston, Robbie O'Flynn, Conor Lehane.

Dublin: Sean Brennan; John Bellew, Paddy Smyth, Conor McHugh; Paddy Doyle, Conor Burke, Andrew Dunphy; Conor Donohoe, Brian Hayes; Rian McBride, Fergal Whitely, Darragh Power; Sean Currie, Ronan Hayes, Cian O'Sullivan.

Subs: Eddie Gibbons, Donal Burke, Colin Currie, Paddy Dunleavy, Daire Gray, John Hetherton, AJ Murphy, David Lucey, Paul O'Dea, Diarmaid O Dulaing, Conal O Riain.

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Ger Brennan has departed his role as Louth manager after two seasons in charge.

The former Dublin two-time All-Ireland winner guided the 'Wee County' to their first Leinster SFC title in 68 years earlier this year with victory over Meath.

Louth's 2025 season ultimately ended with a 2-22 to 0-12 defeat by Donegal in Ballybofey at the preliminary quarter-final stage on 22 June.

The St Vincent's club-man's decision will intensify links to his native county following Dessie Farrell's decision to end his six-year reign as manager following Saturday's quarter-final loss to Tyrone.

In a statement confirming his decision to step down, Louth GAA thanked Brennan and his backroom team for their efforts.

"With Ger's expert guidance and the invaluable support of his outstanding management team, our squad achieved remarkable success – including maintaining our Division Two status and the momentous achievement of bringing the Delaney Cup home to Louth for the first time in 68 years, a truly historic milestone for the county," said county chairman Sean McClean.

"On behalf of everyone at Louth GAA, we want to express our profound gratitude to Ger for the transformative influence he has had during his time with us. The high standards he established, the ambitious vision he shared with us all, and the truly memorable experiences he created will continue to inspire and guide us for years to come."

In his own statement Brennan thanked the Louth county board and his players.

"Most importantly, I want to express my profound gratitude to the Louth senior footballers," he said.

"It has been an absolute privilege to be part of your journey these past two years. What you have accomplished for the Gaels of County Louth will be remembered and celebrated for generations to come. Your dedication, heart, and commitment have made history.

"As you embark on the next chapter of your journey, I have complete confidence that fresh perspectives will bring new energy and insights to your honest and hardworking team. The future is bright for Louth football."

Image source, Thomas Niblock

This week's GAA Social podcast sees Oisin and Thomas joined by Louth goalkeeper Niall McDonnell.

McDonnell helped his county to win the Leinster title for the first time in 68 years in May as they beat Meath in the final.

In the podcast, he discusses his breakthrough into the Louth panel under Ger Brennan, the goalkeeping position under the new rules and that memorable Leinster final at Croke Park.

You can download and listen to the GAA Social on BBC Sounds here.

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The fixture details for this year's All-Ireland SFC semi-finals have been confirmed as the race for the 2025 Sam Maguire reaches its final stages.

Kerry will face Tyrone at Croke Park on Saturday 12 July, with a 17:00 BST throw-in.

On Sunday 13 July, Meath play Donegal in the second semi-final at the same venue, with a 16:00 BST start.

Both matches will be broadcast live on BBC Two NI, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website.

The semi-finalists secured their last-four berths on a dramatic weekend of quarter-final action.

Kerry blasted past last year's All-Ireland winners Armagh while Tyrone toppled Dublin, Meath upset 2024 runners-up Galway and Donegal recovered from a sizeable deficit to overcome Ulster rivals Monaghan.

The All-Ireland Football final will take place on Sunday, 27 July and will also be broadcast live by BBC Sport NI.

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Kerry boss Jack O'Connor hit back at his team's detractors after the Kingdom surged into the All-Ireland semi-finals in spectacular style with a 0-32 to 1-21 win over Armagh at Croke Park.

The Munster champions breathed new life into their bid for a 39th Sam Maguire Cup by knocking out the holders with a performance that extinguished the hurt of their shock group stage defeat by Meath.

While O'Connor praised his side's performance, he took aim at a Sunday Independent column written by former Derry footballer Joe Brolly that clearly irked him in the lead-up to the quarter-final.

"One of the great motivators in life is trying to prove people wrong. We were being portrayed as a one-man team," said O'Connor.

"I saw somebody writing this morning that said the only Kerry player worthy of being called a Kerry player was David Clifford.

"Now, David is a great player but David will tell you that there was a fair supporting cast there today.

"We think we have a lot of good footballers but I think sometimes we're being judged on different criteria to other teams."

O'Connor, who has led Kerry to four All-Ireland titles across three spells in charge, added he "didn't see any ex-Dublin players coming out slating the team" after their shock Leinster semi-final loss to Meath.

Following Kerry's 1-22 to 0-16 loss to Meath in Tullamore, the Kingdom's six-time All-Ireland winner Darragh O Se was critical of O'Connor's team in the Irish Times, writing they didn't take the game "seriously enough".

"Unfortunately a few pundits down our way let themselves down in that regard," added the Kerry boss.

"I'm not giving out about it from my own point of view. What's to be gained by slating people? It's the easiest thing in the world. I'm in the business of building people up. I'm not in the business of knocking people."

O'Connor outlined that he has "spent all my life coaching underage school kids, minors, Under-21s, seniors, at every level".

"I'd ask people who are knocking that group and knocking people involved with the group to look in the mirror and say, 'What have you contributed?

"What have you contributed to Kerry football off the field?

"Go away and coach a team. Go away and coach a development squad. Go away and coach a minor team. That's how you help Kerry football, not knocking people."

Matt Gault
BBC Sport NI senior journalist at Croke Park

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Armagh boss Kieran McGeeney was coy about his future after his side's All-Ireland reign was ended in devastating fashion by Kerry in Sunday's quarter-final.

The Orchardmen beat Kerry in last year's semi-final, but were no match for the Kingdom this time around as Jack O'Connor's side struck 14 unanswered points in an inspired second-half display to win 0-32 to 1-21.

McGeeney, who was appointed Armagh boss in 2014, said his future is "hard to know" in the immediate aftermath of his team's championship exit.

"I sit down every year [to reflect], and my thing is always about players," said McGeeney.

"It's all about the players first and foremost and what they want and how much they want to push on.

"My appetite for football has always been the same. I love it, I enjoy it despite the abuse, it's just one of those things - maybe it's an addiction. I haven't even thought about that [the future], to be honest."

Having masterminded Armagh's 2024 triumph, McGeeney is in rarefied air as someone who has captained and managed his native county to the Sam Maguire Cup.

Despite his success, however, the 53-year-old says he is not immune to criticism, which he feels is primarily aimed at managers in the GAA world.

"Whether it's the GAA themselves or the supporters, the GAA manager is the person who gets blamed for everything," added McGeeney.

"I always find it amusing from the outside looking in at people doing their jobs and how they're graded and nobody ever looks in the mirror too much."

While admitting he has made his fair share of "mistakes", McGeeney added: "It's amazing how everybody else tends to have a mirror that goes out the ways rather than looking back at themselves."

Armagh led Sunday's quarter-final by a point at the break and extended their advantage to five before Kerry took over in unstoppable fashion.

The Kingdom's 14-point salvo was delivered in a 13-minute spell when the Munster men destroyed Armagh in the middle of the field and scored everything they looked at.

"We had 11 out of our 13 kick-outs we lost," observed McGeeney.

"It's one of those days. Seanie, no matter what he hit, was putting them over and everybody else was joining.

"It's 15 minutes you'd like to forget, but it happens in sport. We've done it to other teams, so you have to take it on the chin and move on."

Matt Gault
BBC Sport NI senior journalist at Croke Park

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Meath progressed to the last four of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship for the first time since 2009 with a 2-16 to 2-15 win over Galway in a slow-burn thriller at Croke Park on Sunday.

After a forgettable first 35 minutes that ended with Galway leading 0-7 to 0-6, this weekend's third quarter-final burst into life in the second half with all four goals scored in a breathless 12-minute spell.

Conor Gray and the brilliant Jordan Morris scored Meath's goals, and while Cillian McDaid and Liam Silke found the net for Galway, the beaten Leinster finalists finished strongly to join Donegal and Tyrone in the last four.

While Meath can look forward to another trip to Croke Park in a fortnight, defeat represents a bitter end to 2025 for last year's beaten All-Ireland finalists Galway.

Galway, pushed all the way by Down in last week's preliminary quarter-final, led by a point at the break despite trailing for much of the first half in the counties' first Croke Park meeting since the 2001 final.

Their midway lead would have been greater, too, had it not been for Meath keeper Billy Hogan, who did enough to put off Galway wing-back Dylan McHugh and force his shot wide.

In a madcap second half, it was Meath who struck first. After Morris (two) and Matthew Costello (three) combined for five points, substitute Gray poked home the game's first goal to put Robbie Brennan's side 1-11 to 0-9 ahead.

Morris quickly added to Meath's tally, but after Shane Walsh nailed a much-needed two-point free for Galway, the Tribesmen roared into a three-point lead with a couple of finely worked goals.

First, Matthew Tierney teed up McDaid to fire high into Hogan's net, before Maher drove at the Meath defence and set up Silke, who rolled a low shot into the corner to put Galway three up.

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While understandably shellshocked, Meath refused to give in, and after captain Eoghan Frayne sent over a much-needed score, Morris fisted home Meath's second goal after Galway coughed up possession in a dangerous position.

With Damien Comer introduced during the second half, Galway looked to their big guns for a rescue act.

Comer did indeed chip in with a fine score from play, but it was not enough to save the Connacht kingpins as Meath backed up their second green flag through Cathal Hickey and another two from Morris - who finished with 1-6 - to add Galway to their Dublin and Kerry scalps from earlier in the championship.

For Galway - whose last Sam Maguire triumph came in 2001 - it is another difficult period of soul-searching ahead, but this was unquestionably Meath's day as Brennan's side ensured Leinster representation in the semi-finals after Dublin's exit.

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Tyrone boss Malachy O'Rourke praised the attitude of his players in their 0-23 to 0-16 All-Ireland quarter-final win against Dublin.

In a tight and tense affair, the Red Hands' substitutes made the difference with the likes of Ruairi Canavan and Eoin McElholm scoring late to help them pull away from the Dubs.

And O'Rourke was pleased that his side kept going until the end as they booked their place in a first All-Ireland semi-final since 2021 and secured a first championship win over Dublin since 2008.

"Delighted for them all to get over the line and get through. It wasn't a brilliant game to watch, but you have to acknowledge you're up against a quality opposition and you're not going to have it all your own way," he told BBC Sport NI.

"I'm delighted with the way the boys dug, defended really well and scored some good scores."

O'Rourke said the conditions made the game even harder but that he was happy with the contributions of the whole squad, particularly in the second half.

"In the first half we were a bit disappointed with how we played and the two- pointers kept us in it and we went in a point ahead.

"We felt there was more in us, we gave the ball away cheaply with unforced errors and Dublin putting us under pressure. We wanted to turn the table second half and play with more urgency and more pressure on them, and we achieved that fairly well, "he added.

"It was tit for tat, we made a few wrong choices, and our execution shots weren't as good as what they could have been, but the boys kept going as we knew they would, they were hungry to win the game and we finished really strongly."

Dublin manager Dessie Farrell has stepped down from his role after the county's All-Ireland quarter-final defeat against Tyrone.

Farrell spent six years at the helm, guiding the Dubs to two All-Ireland titles as well as five Leinster Senior Football titles.

An All-Ireland winner in his playing days, Farrell leaves his role after a second successive last eight exit in the Sam Maguire for Dublin after they lost 0-23 to 0-16 against the Red Hands on Saturday.

"I would have informed the county board at the start of the season that this was my last one, I let the players know there now as well, it was always going to come to an end," he told BBC Sport NI.

"It was a privilege to work with so many great people, players, coaches and backroom team over the years, tremendous servants to Dublin football and I am very grateful for all they have given in service to the county, some special relationships and memories along the way."

Farrell succeeded Jim Gavin as Dublin manager in 2020 and led the county to a sixth successive Sam Maguire win in his first season.

They then beat Kerry in the 2023 final for their second All-Ireland success under his stewardship.

Farrell admitted that the seven-point defeat by Tyrone was a tough way for him to bow out.

"We're very disappointed with the level of performance, you put a lot into this and you hope on the big days it goes well, we were out of sync, created some good shooting opportunities but our actual shooting efficiency was well below par and won't be good enough on days like this."

Donegal boss Jim McGuinness has said that he "didn't agree" with Monday's statement issued by his county board criticising his side's six-day turnaround before their All-Ireland quarter-final against Monaghan at Croke Park on Saturday.

In their statement earlier this week, Donegal's county board said that it was "most regrettable" and "very disappointing" that their request to play their All-Ireland quarter-final against their Ulster rivals on Sunday was denied.

McGuinness' side ended up beating Monaghan 1-26 to 1-20 in Saturday's last-eight tie after a superb second half performance, but the manager said he was not consulted before the statement went out on Monday.

"I was unaware of the statement the county board was putting out, the first I saw of it was on my phone," he told BBC Sport NI.

"We knew where we were and what we had to do. The golden rule of coaching is you don't complain or gripe about something before the match, if we lost in the game in Roscommon there wouldn't have been a word about that situation.

"I don't agree the statement should have gone out, there was a lot of focus on it. The county board have their job to do and I have my job. We were really busy trying to prepare for the game the county board were under a lot of pressure, there was a lot of people and clubs not happy with the turnaround and the welfare of the players," he continued.

"We didn't want to be in any way disrespectful to Monaghan of making excuses before a game had happened."

After a slow start in Croke Park against their Ulster rivals, Donegal fought back and took control in the second half to book their place in the last four of the All-Ireland series.

McGuinness was pleased with their response in the second half after an honest half-time team talk.

"Nothing changed in the game plan, we had to find a different gear and dig deep. We met the challenge head on which I'm delighted with," he added.

"We're the first team there and we can go watch the other games over the course of the weekend, it's what we wanted to do."