Kerry 0-15

Galway 0-13

DARREN KELLY AT SEMPLE STADIUM

GALWAY’S intermediate camogie team suffered a surprise defeat to Kerry last Saturday as their All-Ireland championship aspirations concluded at the quarter-final stage.

Usually rivals in football, meetings between the counties with sliotars are a rarity but the growth in Kerry camogie was on show as they qualified for a first ever national semi-final in the sport’s second tier.

Jackie Horgan was the victors’ standout performer with nine scores over the hour, and three direct assists. And when she got the break with a late free following a challenge from Galway’s Ava Crowe, the Clanmaurice forward converted her 48th point of the championship to secure a historic success.

In general play, the Tribeswomen can have no complaints as they struggled to hit the heights that saw impressive wins over Wexford, Westmeath and Offaly. Kerry were sharper from the start when Patrice Diggin pointed inside 10 seconds and always seemed to have an answer at critical stages.

That being said, manager Conor Dolan and his troops will know they left this game behind. Twelve wides were very costly. And had one of their goal chances either side of half-time being registered, this could have been a different contest.

Kerry played in Division 1B of the league this season and it showed from the start as midfielders Ruth O’Connor and Caoimhe Spillane set up Diggin for that first score.

And Brian D’Arcy’s side doubled their advantage 60 seconds later when Horgan found the lively Amy O’Sullivan. The latter had a major duel with Kilconieron’s Ellen Burke and even though three points were conceded, the Galway corner back was among her team’s top players.

The Tribeswomen got off the mark on three minutes as Katie Donohue did the work for Ava Bloomer to score.  But they found themselves four behind by the 10-minute mark as Horgan was accurate from three Kerry placed balls, making it 0-5 to 0-1.

After their All-Ireland intermediate success in 2022, Galway had to start again with a brand new squad and the overall year assessment of this young side full of under-21s with only half a dozen players older will be positive.  Their character in staying in contact was testament to that.

Pictured: Galway’s Aoibheann Barry eyes up the target against Kerry’s Sara Murphy during Saturday’s All-Ireland Intermediate camogie quarter-final at Semple Stadium. Photos: INPHO/Ken Sutton.