All-Ireland Football quarter-finals: Galway beat Armagh on penalties as Kerry see off Mayo

Matthew Tierney struck the decisive penalty for Galway in the shootout

Armagh's All-Ireland dream is over for another year after they fell to a heartbreaking penalty shootout defeat by Galway with their riveting and tempestuous quarter-final having finished level after extra-time at Croke Park.

At the end of a ferocious and spellbinding contest played on the edge, Matthew Tierney struck the decisive penalty to send Galway into the last four where they will face Ulster champions Derry.

In Sunday's second game, Kerry saw off last year's beaten finalists Mayo 1-18 to 0-13 to complete the semi-final line-up and set up a mouthwatering heavyweight clash with Dublin.

Galway's shootout triumph was a suitably nerve-shredding climax to a game that displayed the best and worst elements of the sport, from Rian O'Neill's stunning last-gasp free to force extra-time to the shocking mass brawl that broke out seconds later.

There may well be sanctions to follow the scenes that followed the full-time whistle - which resulted in red cards for Aidan Nugent and Galway's Sean Kelly - but for now Galway will savour the feeling of having come out on top of a blood-and-thunder championship battle.

• Galway beat Armagh on penalties - as it happened

In contrast, it is a gut-wrenching end to a rollercoaster of a year for Armagh with the Orchard County bowing out after failing to back up their qualifier wins over Tyrone and Donegal by taking out the Connacht champions.

For a while, however, Armagh dared to dream of a semi-final place after fighting back from six points down to force extra-time thanks to late Nugent and Conor Turbitt goals despite Greg McCabe's 62nd-minute dismissal.

And when Rory Grugan scored Armagh's third goal early in the second period of extra time, Kieran McGeeney's side found themselves two points up only for Cillian McDaid to raise a Galway green flag three minutes later.

Jemar Hall's well-taken score edged Armagh ahead once again in the dying embers of extra-time before McDaid swung over another crucial score to set up the shootout which the Tribesmen won 4-1 after a head-spinning 90 minutes of action finished 3-18 to 2-21.

Galway nearly throw it all away

Armagh's late comeback was overshadowed by the mass brawl that broke out in front of the tunnel at full-time

While the sides were level at 0-7 apiece after a gripping first half, Galway seized control with Johnny Heaney's 40th-minute goal - which came just seconds after Tierney had rattled Ethan Rafferty's crossbar - quickly followed by a Shane Walsh point as the Tribesmen surged into a 1-9 to 0-8 lead.

Armagh's hopes of mounting a late comeback were seemingly dashed when McCabe was sent off by David Coldrick for a high shoulder on Tierney with 10 minutes remaining.

However, given renewed purpose with the announcement that eight minutes of additional time were to be played, Armagh went for broke and breathed new life into the Orchard County faithful on the terraces when Nugent palmed the ball into the net from close range.

That brought the Ulster side back to within three, and while Galway quickly responded to stretch their lead out to four through Damien Comer, the Connacht champions gifted Armagh a second goal when goalkeeeper Conor Gleeson's attempted clearance was booted into the net by Conor Turbitt, sparking pandemonium among the Orchard support.

Then, with 30 seconds remaining, Shane Walsh's wayward crossfield pass gave O'Neill the chance to deliver a hair-raising finale that was ultimately overshadowed by the unsavoury scenes that took place at the end of the regulation 70 minutes.

After two more goals in extra-time, the sides still couldn't be separated, paving the way for the first senior football championship shootout at Croke Park.

With Walsh, Damien Comer and Rob Finnerty converting Galway's first three kicks and O'Neill converting after Stefan Campbell's skied effort, Turbitt sent his effort onto the post.

That allowed Tierney to sweep the ball home from the spot and send Galway into the last four for the first time since 2018, the delirious Tribesmen celebrations contrasting starkly with the devastation etched on the faces of those in the Armagh camp.

Living up to the hype

A devastated Stephen Sheridan is consoled by Rian O'Neill after the penalty shootout

Many considered Sunday's first game to be the most evenly-matched quarter-final on paper and so it proved with nothing to separate the sides after an engrossing first half in which Armagh enjoyed plenty of ball but struggled to penetrate the Galway defence at times.

While Galway's protracted, deliberate and ultimately fruitless first spell in possession prompted early groans from those packed into Croke Park, the game opened up and progressed into the no-quarter-given battle everyone had been expecting.

Damien Comer landed a fine opening score moments after smothering a long Gleeson kick-out before exchanging passes with Rob Finnerty, but that proved only to spark Armagh into life as a dead-eyed O'Neill kick produced the first Orchard roar of the afternoon.

Galway looked vulnerable when Armagh flooded forward with Campbell, Grugan and Nugent all landing scores to give the Ulster side a three-point advantage with 13 minutes gone.

At that stage, it looked as though Armagh had grown into the game and were dictating terms, which is why McGeeney perhaps would have been aggrieved that his side were pegged back before half-time.

Galway's Walsh was kept quiet at times by James Morgan in the first half, but the uber-talented forward demonstrated his skill level with two perfectly measured frees in the space of five minutes, one a long-ranged right-footed effort and the second a nailed left-footer from a tight angle.

But the first half was a relatively subdued prelude to what was to follow after the resumption as the third quarter-final of the weekend developed into a thrill-a-minute rollercoaster that will live long in the memory.

While Galway can look forward to a semi-final tussle with Derry, Armagh will struggle to come to terms with the manner of the defeat as their hopes of marking the 20th anniversary of the county's only All-Ireland triumph were shattered in the most dramatic circumstances.

Armagh: E Rafferty; J Morgan, A Forker, C O'Neill (0-1); A McKay, G McCabe, J Og Burns (0-1); S Sheridan, B Crealey; R Grugan (1-3, 2f), S Campbell (0-3), A Murnin; A Nugent (1-2 0-1 mark), R O'Neill (0-4, 3f), J Duffy.

Subs: Connaire Mackin for Sheridan '43, Conor Turbitt (1-1) for Murnin '43, Ciaran Mackin for McKay '56, Eoin Woods (0-1) for Duffy '68, Justin Kieran (0-1) for Burns '68, Niall Rowland for McCabe (red card) extra-time, Burns for Nugent (red card) extra-time, Mark Shields for Forker '75, Jemar Hall (0-1) for Grugan '83, Duffy for Crealey '85, Ciaran Higgins for McKay '90.

Galway: C Gleeson; L Silke, S Kelly, J Glynn; D McHugh, J Daly, K Molloy (0-1); P Conroy (0-1), C McDaid (1-2); P Kelly (0-1), M Tierney (0-2), J Heaney (1-0); R Finnerty (0-4), D Comer (0-3), S Walsh (0-6, 5f).

Subs: Finnian O Laoi (0-1) for McDaid (50-54), O Laoi for Tierney (62-69, blood) O Laoi for Patrick Kelly '70, Niall Daly for Finnerty '74, Owen Gallagher for Walsh '79, Billy Mannion for Sean Kelly (red card, start of extra-time), Walsh for Gallagher 'start of extra-time, Finnerty for Daly '75, Gallagher for Heaney '83, James Foley for Silke '84, Cathal Sweeney for McHugh '90.

Referee: David Coldrick (Meath).

Kerry set up Dublin semi-final

David Clifford hit 1-3 to send Kerry into another All-Ireland semi-final

Following the first game's heart-stopping drama, Sunday's later contest between Mayo and Kerry was always going to feel like a comedown, not that the Kingdom will care as they secured an eight-point win to move into the last four.

It was the third instalment of this rivalry in 2022 and it went the same way as the league meeting in Tralee and the one-sided Division One final with Kerry celebrating at full-time.

Mayo actually led by a point until David Clifford's 28th-minute goal and Aidan O'Shea's black card a minute later swung momentum in the Munster champions' favour.

And while Kevin McLoughlin's score kept Mayo well within striking distance at the interval, trailing by a point, James Horan's side lost their way halfway through the second period, kicking eight second-half wides in an increasingly wasteful display.

In contrast, Kerry hit seven without reply after James Carr's 48th-minute score for Mayo to move eight clear and put the Connacht side's hopes to bed for another year.

For Kerry, who won without ever really hitting top gear, the considerable challenge of Dublin lies in wait as Jack O'Connor's side bid to end their eight-year wait for a return to football's seat of power.

Kerry: S. Ryan; T O'Sullivan (0-3), J Foley, G O'Sullivan (0-1), B O Beaglaoich, T Morley, G White; D Moran (0-2), D O'Connor; D Moynihan, S O'Shea (0-3), S O'Brien; P Clifford, D Clifford (1-3), P Geaney (0-4).

Subs: K Spillane (0-1) for Moynihan '48, P Murphy for O Beaglaoich '58, M Burns for O'Brien '59), J O'Connor for D O'Connor '64, T Brosnan for D Clifford '67, G Crowley for J Foley '72.

Mayo: R Hennelly (0-1); E Hession, O Mullin, L Keegan; P Durcan, S Coen (0-1), E McLaughlin; A O'Shea (0-1), M Ruane (0-1); J Flynn (0-2), D O'Connor, C Loftus (0-1); K McLoughlin (0-1), J Carney (0-1), C O'Connor (0-3).

Subs: J Carr for Carney half-time, F Boland for Loftus '52, A Orme for K McLoughlin '58, P O'Hora for A O'Shea '64, J Doherty for C O'Connor '70, P Towey for Orme '73.

Referee: David Gough (Meath).