WHILE there were several key interventions – most notably a goal from top forward Amy O’Shea in each half – Cork’s character in the face of their biggest challenge since getting to the top in the TG4-sponsored Ladies Football All-Ireland senior championship in 2005 kept their five-in-a-row quest alive in Nenagh on Saturday.

Cork 3-10 Mayo 1-9

THE two counties that have dominated ladies football at senior level this decade come face to face in Nenagh for the first of the All-Ireland semi-finals.

THE TG4 All-Ireland Ladies SFC semi-final draw has pitted holders Cork against beaten Connacht finalists Mayo.

The draw for the semi-finals of the TG4 All-Ireland Ladies senior football championship has pitted holders Cork against beaten Connacht finalists Mayo.

CORK retained their Bord Gáis Energy Ladies National Football League Division 1 crown with a devastating performance against Mayo in Saturday’s Kiltoom decider.

Cork 1-20 Mayo 0-11

Valerie Mulcahy kicked a match-winning 3-02 as Cork claimed their fourth All-Ireland Senior Ladies Football title in succession, following a 4-13 to 0-11 victory over Monaghan.

PREDICTABLY, the plaudits which holders Cork earned from another top-class display in the TG4 All-Ireland Ladies SFC were lost in the after-shock surrounding Valerie Mulcahy’s sending-off and the speculation on how much more difficult it would be to beat Monaghan in her absence.

GAELIC football is not one of my preferred sports and hasn’t been for some time. There are still a few teams who play it in the right spirit, Cork and Kerry among those, as are Galway, but for the most part I’ve grown sick of the cynicism.

Cork 2-11 Mayo 2-6, Croke Park