Kerry and Kildare secure home Christy Ring Cup semis

Kerry hurlers secured home advantage for the semi-final of the Christy Ring Cup following their comprehensive defeat of Westmeath at Tralee this afternoon.

3-14 to 2-11 it finished up in the end and little wonder Manager John Meyler was thrilled at the final whistle.

Meyler said: "We’ve a home semi-final in three weeks time here again in Tralee so that’s the benefit of winning today and that’s the important thing."

He admitted his side, despite not playing as “fluently” as they did against Down last weekend were impressive.

"There was probably more expectation and more pressure because we were at home but the fact we’ve got over today has set us up nicely. There’s a greater work rate about the team and they’ve worked on every aspect of their game."

Meyler agreed that the ability to raise their game at will was one of the most pleasing aspects today.

"When Westmeath came back at us we were able to go back down the field and get a point, even when we were ten points up with ten minutes remaining, Westmeath got a couple of goals but we finished off with four or five points and that was good from our perspective."

The Kingdom led by 2-8 to 0-10 points at half-time after a goal each from wing-forward Darragh O’Connell and corner forward Shane Nolan.

O’Connell’s expertly taken goal came after only eight minutes following good play from wing-back James Godley while Nolan’s came just before the break after John Egan sent him clean through for the easiest of finishes.

In between they had points from midfielder John Griffin which had them leading by four at the interval, and turning to play with the breeze.

The game looked to be beyond doubt when John-Michael Dooley slammed home an early goal, making it 3-10 to 10 points but the Lake County responded in gritty fashion.

Brendan Murtagh - their ace wing-forward - chipped into the Kerry lead with a series of converted frees and a goal each from wing-forward Joe Clarke and another from last year’s minor star Stephen Bardon.

That tour-de-force brought them back to within three points but Kerry kicked ahead again with two points from JM Dooley before Westmeath were then presented with a golden opportunity when they were awarded a penalty.

However, when that was saved at the expense of a fruitless 65’, Kerry were allowed breath.

Kildare v Wicklow, Newbridge, 3.30pm

The sending off of Tom Doyle and the loss of Don Highland through injury were the key factors which decided this enthralling Christy Ring Cup Round 2A clash at Newbridge today.

Kildare ensured a home semi-final following their 1-19 to 1-16 win, fashioning a remarkable win with a late burst which saw them come from two points down with six minutes remaining to win by three.

David Harney was the top scorer for Kildare with 1-4, his goal coming late in the game while for Wicklow, they had Andy O’Brien in fine form, his first-half goal giving them the lead at the break.

The Garden County will now go into the hat for the quarter final, to be played next weekend against either Down, Meath or Westmeath.

Derry v Meath, Banagher, 3.30pm

Meath maintained their interest in the competition with a narrow win over Derry at Banagher this afternoon, winning on a score line of 2-16 to 0-15.

Crucial to the outcome were the two goals scored by Noel Kirby in the 31st and 45th minutes respectively.

The Northern men started brighter and led after 20 minutes by 0-7 points to 0-4 following a few good points from Alan Grant.

However after Kirby goaled and Peter Durnon tacked on a point, it was Meath who held the slight 1-7 to 0-9 points interval lead.

Niall Hackett was once again unerring from frees for Meath and his total of 0-8 points helped the victors enormously. Kevin Fagan and a second Noel Kirby goal put them into a 2-11 to 0-14 points lead after 55 minutes.

It was still the two-goal advantage with ten minutes remaining, and late scores from Hackett and Mark Mullally ensured a quarter-final with either Down/ Westmeath or Wicklow next weekend.

Mayo v Down, Charlestown, 2.30pm

Following their respective opening round defeats, this one was billed a cliffhanger all week but it needn’t have been because Down won it in a canter to end Mayo’s season for another year.

Played on home soil in Charlestown, the Connaught side were expected to put up a decent fight but such never materialised as they were well beaten by their Northern counterparts.

3-19 to 2-12 it finished up and even though Down had Rory McGrath sent off after only five minutes following a wreckless pull, their numerical disadvantage had little bearing on the outcome.

James Coyle at corner forward was once again the Down ace as he finished the game with a magnificent tally of 1-12. Coyle’s goal came in the first half to give them a deserved 1-7 to 0-4 points half-time advantage and they maintained that lead for the early part of the second half against a poor Mayo side.

Substitute Ronan Cullinane scored 1-1 after just coming onto the pitch but that didn’t prove to be a catalyst for anything besides a Down master class.

Andy Savage had a second goal for Down and Paul Braniff followed it with a third and that put them into an unassailable 3-16 to 1-11 lead with ten minutes remaining. Derek McDonald got a late Mayo consolation goal but the game and their season was long finished by then.