Connacht SFC semi-final: Leitrim 0-13 Mayo 0-20
After a battle royal with Leitrim in the opening half, Mayo – who only led by a single point at the break – upped their game after the break to claim a clearcut but less than impressive seven-point win over the home side at Carrick-on-Shannon.
Mayo drew first blood when Mathew Ruane fired over a well-hit point in the second minute. After conceding the early score Leitrim settled down and got on level terms when Darren Cox split the Mayo posts six minutes later.
Almost immediately Leitrim was awarded a two-point free, which Barry McNulty drove over the crossbar to put the home side into an unexpected early lead. But Mayo got back on level terms by the 13-minute mark after Ryan O’Donoghue and Aidan O’Shea converted a free apiece.
McNulty put Leitrim ahead again when he put over another two-pointer from a placed ball in the 20th minute.
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Mayo then edged ahead with points from Darren McHale and Jack Carney, but McNulty brought Leitrim back on level terms with a 29th-minute free.
Mayo goalkeeper Colm Reape converted a 45 and Ryan O’Donoghue a free to keep Mayo’s noses in front, while Cox split the posts before the break for the home side to leave the Green and Red leading by 0-8 to 0-7 at the interval.
In the opening 10 minutes of the second half Leitrim continued to keep it a nip and tuck affair. Ryan O’Donoghue fired over two Mayo points and Jordan Flynn added a point, while Leitrim hit back with points from McNulty, Riordan O’Rourke (free) and Tom Prior.
Mayo then found an extra gear and put the game out of Leitrim’s reach when knocking over five unanswered points on the trot by the 54th minute. O’Donoghue scored two, while Stephen Coen, Paul Towey and Jack Carney also split the Leitrim uprights.
From then to the finish Leitrim’s brave challenge ran out of steam and Mayo marched into a Connacht final with some degree of ease. Ryan added two points to his Mayo tally while Towey and Flynn chipped in with one each with McNulty and Prior answering with a point apiece for Leitrim.
LEITRIM: D O’Shea; K Clancy, D Casey, É McNamara; J Rooney, M Diffley, J Foley; B McNulty (0-2-4, 2 tpf), C McGloin; J Flynn, K Keegan, B Guckian; D Cox (0-0-2), R O’Rourke (0-0–1, f), T Prior (0-0-2).
Subs: P Honeyman for Keegan (60 mins); T Hughes for Casey (68).
MAYO: C Reape (0-0-1, 45); J Coyne, D McHugh, E Hession; S Callinan, D McBrien, S Coen (0-0-1); J Carney (0-0-2), M Ruane (0-0-1); D Neary, D McHale (0-0-1), J Flynn (0-0-2); A O’Shea (0-0-1, f), D Thornton, R O’Donoghue (0-0–9, 5f).
Subs: D O’Connor for Neary (ht), S Akram for Callinan (ht), E McLaughlin for Ruane (ht), P Towey (0-0-2) for McHale (51), F Irwin for Coen (66).
Referee: Niall Cullen (Fermanagh).
