Cross to meet Brigid’s in Club Final

AIB GAA All-Ireland Club Football Senior Championship Semi Final:
Crossmaglen (Armagh) 2-11 Kilmacud Crokes (Dublin) 1-12

Armagh’s Crossmaglen Rangers will meet St Brigid’s of Roscommon in the final of the AIB GAA All-Ireland Club Football Senior Championship after both were victorious in their semi-finals over the weekend.

On Sunday, Crossmaglen overcame the Dublin champions Kilmacud Crokes in Navan despite being down by six points at half-time, leaving them one game away from a fifth title.

Craig Dias’s goal shortly before half-time gave Crokes a 1-8 to 0-5 interval lead, though they had had Kevin Nolan sent off before the break for two bookings.

Two green flags, from Francis Hanratty and Jamie Clarke, turned the game on its head soon after the restart, however, but Crokes kept their noses in front, while Brian McGrath (Crokes) and Danny O’Callaghan (Crossmaglen) were shown straight red cards for separate incidents.

Cross didn’t actually lead until the 57th minute, when Kyle Carragher finally edged them ahead, and two points from Martin Aherne ensured that they won by 2-11 to 1-12.

The previous day, Brigid’s qualified for a first final after late points from Gearoid Cunniffe and Senan Kilbride gave them a 0-13 to 1-8 win over Cork’s Nemo Rangers.

Nemo led by 1-4 to 0-5 at half-time, Sean O’Brien with the goal, but inspired by Kilbride, Brigid’s got on top in the second half while David Niblock’s dismissal for two bookings hampered Nemo.

While James Masters put Nemo in front in the final quarter, two fine points from Kilbride and one from Frankie Dolan gave Brigid’s their biggest lead of the game with 10 minutes left.

Three points in as many minutes, from Masters, centre-back Brian O’Regan and sub Alan Morgan with his first touch, put Nemo back in front, though, but Kilbride’s fifth point, another excellent effort from the right sideline, tied matters with two minutes left.

The momentum was with Brigid’s now and Cunniffe and Kilbride gave them breathing space again, while Nemo finished with 13 men as Aidan O’Reilly was sent off in injury time.