All-Ireland semi-final bound Limerick Ladies lose out to Down

“A HUGE disappointment.” After surprising Sligo to qualify for the TG4 All-Ireland junior semi-final a week earlier, Limerick Ladies football manager Graham Shine was rueing his side's failure to reproduce that form when losing out to Down 1-13 to 1-8 in their final group stage outing in Newcastle West on Sunday.

Although the result didn't matter as both teams had already qualified for the knockout phase, finishing second meant that Limerick now meet bogey team Fermanagh rather than Carlow on Sunday week in the All-Ireland semi-finals.

“We played well against the wind in the first half, but we failed to carry it into the third quarter which is usually when we are at our best”, was how Shine summed up a game dominated by the finishing of Natasha Ferris whose personal tally of 1-8 left her as the top scorer after the group phase.

Down were off the blocks within seconds as Ferris hit the target and was followed by Laoise Duffy before Kathy Mee replied with a point for Limerick.

Then, after Niamh Scullion restored the Mourne girls' two-point advantage, fortunes changed when Amy Ryan collected a long delivery out on the right to turn and float the ball over the advancing Amy McGivern and into the corner of her net for a tonic Limerick goal.

The Shannonsiders were motoring when Ryan followed up with a point but the scoring rate dropped after the hectic eight opening minutes.

Down got back into business as Ferris punished a pair of fouls to equalise. Coming up to the break, Iris Kennelly restored Limerick's advantage, but the Ulster side finished strongly as Ferris and Aimee O'Higgins pointed to leave their side leading 0-7 to 1-3.

On the resumption, Ferris followed up by sending an effort over the goal-line defenders and into the net for a Down goal.

Down added points from a free and from play before Kennelly replied off off a power run through the defence.

Limerick's composure rediscovered itself when she struck again despite coming under under severe pressure, but then lost then lost Grace Lee to a yellow card.

Down used the numerical advantage for sub Eimear Fitzpatrick with a point from her first touch of the ball and Ferris restored Down's advantage to six. However, a pair of Caoimhe McGrath pointed frees kept the home side in touch.

Just before Lee returned, Ferris struck back with a free and then added another point as the clock slipped into the three added minutes before McGrath sent one over in reply for Limerick to close off the scoring.

SCORERS: DOWN: Natasha Ferris 1-8 (1-6 frees), Louise Duffy, Niamh Scullion, Aimee O'Higgins, Eimear Fitzpatrick 0-1 each; LIMERICK: Amy Ryan 1-1, Iris Kennelly 0-3, Caoimhe McGrath (3 frees) 0-3 each, Cathy Mee 0-1 (free).

DOWN: Amy McGivern; Aimee Greene; Ciara Byrne, Orla Boyle; Natalie McKibbin, Meghan Doherty, Orla Duffy; Aoife Laverty, Aoife Keown; Niamh Scullion, Vivienne McCormack, Laoise Duffy; Aimee O'Higgins, Natasha Ferris, Orla Swail. SUBS: Niamh King for Aimee O'Higgins (48 minutes), Eimear Fitzpatrick for Orla Swail (48 minutes), Aisling Cull for Natalie McKibbin (56 minutes), Clara Mulvenna for Laoise Duffy (57 minutes), Emily Martin for Aoife Laverty (60 minutes),

LIMERICK: Carol Bateman; Maedhbh McNamara, Yvonne Lee, Alva Quaid; Grace Lee, Laura Walshe, Lauren Ryan; Róisín Ambrose, Karen Ó 'Leary; Deborah Murphy, Cathy Mee, Iris Kennelly; Leah Coughlan. Amy Ryan, Andrea O'Sullivan. SUBS: Caoimhe McGrath for Andrea O'Sullivan (47 minutes), Róisín Breedy for Amy Ryan (55 minutes), Laoise Browne for Karen O'Leary (55 minutes), Chloe brosnahan for Cathy Mee (56 minutes), Fiona Bradshaw for Grace Lee (60 minutes).

REFEREE: Paul McCaughey (Westmeath).