This weekend’s LGFA action

Compiled by Jackie Cahill

The 2025 TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship roars into life this weekend – with four key fixtures down for decision.

2024 runners-up Galway entertain Tipperary on Saturday, as holders Kerry play host to Mayo, while Armagh make the trip to Meath.

On Sunday, Waterford will have home advantage against Dublin, with all four Senior Championship fixtures slated for live coverage.

The Galway-Tipperary and Kerry-Mayo ties will be available to watch on the Spórt TG4 YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@SportTG4/streams, while Armagh v Meath and Waterford v Dublin are both live TV fixtures on TG4, and also available online via the TG4 Player: https://www.tg4.ie/en/player/watch-live/home/

There’s also a schedule of TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate and Junior Championship fixtures over the coming weekend.

The Carlow v London and Limerick v Louth ties are both available to view as live-streams.

Saturday

TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship

Group 1: Galway v Tipperary; Tuam Stadium, 2pm – Live on Spórt TG4 YouTube

In-form Galway enter the All-Ireland series as one of the leading contenders for glory.

Beaten finalists last year, the Tribeswomen will feel confident of going one step further this time.

The Connacht champions are up against a Tipperary side that didn’t reach a Munster final but did achieve a draw with Kerry in the final round of provincial group fixtures.

It’s a first championship meeting between the sides since Galway won comfortably in 2023, while they were also victorious in Division 2 of the Lidl National League this year, en route to second tier silverware.

There are three changes to the Galway team that beat Mayo in the Connacht Final – and all in attack.

Shauna Hynes, Leanne Coen and Eva Noone are named to start this one, with Lynsey Noone, Ailbhe Davoren and Róisín Leonard held in reserve.

Tipp, meanwhile, have made three changes to the side that drew with Kerry, as Lucy Spillane, Anna Rose Kennedy and Angela McGuigan come in for Kate Cashman, Heather Spillane and Eva Cremins.

Galway: D Gower; B Quinn, S Ní Loingsigh, K Geraghty (capt.); H Noone, N Ward, C Trill; L Ward, S Divilly; K Thompson, S Hynes, L Coen; E Noone, O Divilly, K Slevin.

Tipperary: L Fitzpatrick (capt.); N Martin, L Spillane, E Cronin; S English, M Curley, I Carr; L Morrissey, C Kennedy; N Towey, A.R. Kennedy, A Ryan; A McGuigan, A Moloney, A Fennessy.

Group 2: Kerry v Mayo; Austin Stack Park, Tralee, 2pm – Live on Spórt TG4 YouTube

Kerry, the holders, begin the defence of their TG4 All-Ireland Senior crown with a home tie against Mayo.

The Kingdom will be hoping for improved performances in the All-Ireland series, having survived a stern test from Waterford in the recent TG4 Munster Final.

Waterford also pushed Kerry hard in the round-robin phase of the competition but the champions dug deep to win that tie also.

Mayo, in contrast, were well beaten by Galway in the TG4 Connacht Final, and also by Kerry when the sides met in Division 1 of the Lidl National League.

It’s a first championship meeting between the sides since the 2023 TG4 All-Ireland semi-final, won by Kerry, who have named an unchanged team following their Munster Final win.

Mayo have made two changes following the Connacht Final reverse, with Clodagh Keane and Alannah Devereux replacing Kathryn Sullivan and Chelsea Doherty.

Kerry: M.E. Bolger; E Lynch, D Kearney, F O’Donoghue; A O’Connell, E Costello, A Dillane; M O’Connell, A Galvin (capt.); N Carmody, N Ní Chonchúir, C Evans; D O’Leary, R Dwyer, S O’Shea.

Mayo: J Gawalkiewicz; L Wallace, N O’Malley, C Durkan; D Caldwell (capt.), E Brennan, S El Massry; H Reape, S Lally; C Whyte, S Walsh, A McDonnell; E Murray, C Keane, A Devereux.

Group 3: Meath v Armagh; Páirc Tailteann, Navan, 3pm – Live on TG4

This one will revive memories of the meeting between the counties in the group phase last year, won narrowly by Armagh.

Games between these two are generally close affairs and Meath won the Lidl NFL Division 1 clash earlier in the year.

Meath produced an encouraging Leinster Final display against Dublin which will have fuelled confidence levels ahead of the All-Ireland series, even though they left Croke Park empty-handed.

Armagh, meanwhile, were busy retaining their TG4 Ulster Senior title against Donegal, and there’s one change to the team that lined out in Clones, with Róisín Mulligan coming in for Megan McCann.

Ace forward Aimee Mackin is named on the bench again as she nears a return to competitive action following a serious knee injury.

The availability of a fully-fit and firing Mackin would be a huge fillip to Armagh in the quest for TG4 All-Ireland Senior glory – but the Orchard County will be keen not to rush her back too early.

Meath are unchanged following the TG4 Leinster Final as they aim to make home advantage count.

Meath: R Murray; A Sheridan, M.K. Lynch, K Newe; A Cleary (capt.), S Wall, K Kealy; O Sheehy, M Farrelly; M Thynne, N Gallogly, C Smyth; E Duggan, V Wall, K Cole.

Armagh: A Carr; M Ferguson, C McCambridge (capt.), R Mulligan; E Druse, C Towe, G Ferguson; N Coleman, C O’Hanlon; L McConville, A McCoy, B Mackin; E Lavery, N Henderson, N Reel.

TG4 All-Ireland Junior Championship

Group B: Carlow v London; Whitehall Colmcille, Collins Ave, Dublin, 1pm – Live stream at: https://bit.ly/4kw524s

Antrim top the Group B standings following last weekend’s victory over Longford.

Now it’s over to Carlow and London to see who can challenge for a semi-final spot.

This is the first game of the campaign for Carlow and London – and it’s a crucial tie for both sides.

Carlow: N Hanley; S McCullagh, A Carroll, A Tunstead; T Lyons, B Nolan, R Bermingham; R Bailey (capt.), E Ware; B Nolan, E Hayden, E Molloy; A Webb, C Ní Shé, K Burke.

London: E Mooney; O Reilly (capt.), A Nagle, L Harrold; C Flanagan, A Spain, R McKegney; E McCarthy, A Healy; E Gray, E Creedon, S Munnelly; E Bartley, A Ryan, M Harney-Nolan.

Sunday

TG4 All-Ireland Senior Championship

Group 4: Waterford v Dublin; Dungarvan GAA, 1.30pm– Live on TG4

An interesting game lies in store in Dungarvan.

Waterford were hugely competitive in both ties against Kerry in Munster, including the recent provincial final when they could have come away with the win.

Dublin, meanwhile, had to come from behind against Meath to claim a 12th successive Leinster senior crown.

Dublin will have to be at their best on the trip South to come away with the win here, although Kellyann Hogan’s departure for Australia is a big setback for Waterford.

Caragh McCarthy’s inclusion in place of Hogan is the only change to the Waterford team that started the Munster Final against Kerry.

For Dublin, there are four changes from the Leinster Final, with Niamh Crowley, Sinéad Goldrick, captain Carla Rowe and Kate Sullivan all listed to start.

Niamh Donlon, Grace Kós, Chloe Darby and Annabelle Timothy drop out of the side, with Kós now in Australia with GWS Giants, as Donlon nurses an injury sustained in the provincial decider.

The last Senior championship meeting between Dublin and Waterford was won well by the Sky Blues in 2021, while the sides drew in Division 1 of the Lidl NFL earlier this year.

Waterford: K Gardiner; A Murray, R Casey, C Murray; K McGrath, E Power, H Power; E Murray (capt.), Á O’Neill; K Murray, C Fennell, C McCarthy; C Walsh, B McMaugh, L McGregor.

Dublin: A Shiels; J Tobin, L Caffrey, N Crowley; S Goldrick, M Byrne, H McGinnis; É O’Dowd, L Magee; C O’Connor, C Rowe (capt.), S McIntyre; H Tyrrell, N Hetherton, K Sullivan.

TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Championship

Group 1: Fermanagh v Laois; Lisnaskea, 2pm

Laois, relegated from the Senior grade last year, got off to a winning start last weekend against Roscommon.

A second victory in the group stages will secure a place in the quarter-finals – and a home tie in the last eight for the O’Moore County.

Fermanagh come into this one on the back of a narrow Ulster championship preliminary round loss to Tyrone in April.

Fermanagh: A Haren; S McQuade (capt.), C Clarke, E Keenan; A O’Brien, C Murphy, C Bogue; S Feeley, M McGloin; B Bogue, C Martin, L Maguire; J Doonan, E Smyth, N McManus.

Laois: E Barry; S Farrelly, F McEvoy, C Dunne; A Gorman, A Moore, A Moran; F Dooley, J Moore; S Havill, C Burke, C Crowley; E Lacey, E Lawlor, M Nerney.

Group 2: Down v Tyrone; Páirc Esler, 2pm

After losing to Westmeath last weekend, Down have no margin for error as they prepare to face Ulster rivals Tyrone.

This one should be a cracker, with Tyrone keen to avenge their defeat to Down, after extra-time, in the Ulster semi-final.

The sides last met in the All-Ireland series at the semi-final stage last year, when Tyrone won before losing out to Leitrim in the Croke Park decider.

Down: C Byrne; A Greene, C McCreanor, N McClory; C Mulvenna (capt.), A Brogan, E Sands; M Doherty, A Laverty; E Fitzpatrick, L Duffy, Á Smyth; N King, N Rice, E Hicks.

Tyrone: A Coyle; J Lyons, G McKenna, E Quinn; S McCarroll, M Moore, C Canavan; A McHugh (capt.), M Mallon; E McNamee, S Gormley, A Horisk; N O’Neill, C McCrossan, C McCaffrey.

Group 3: Cavan v Wicklow; Kingspan Breffni, 2pm

Cavan, viewed by many as All-Ireland contenders, lost by just a point to Monaghan in a cracking tie last weekend.

Now, there’s real jeopardy for the Breffni girls as they must beat Wicklow to stay alive in the 2025 Championship.

Wicklow return to competitive action for the first time since losing the TG4 Leinster semi-final against Laois last month – and they’ll need a big display here to trouble Cavan.

Cavan: E Baugh; L Crowe, C Charters, E Corcoran; M Sheridan, S Lynch (capt.), S Greene; M Fitzpatrick, N Tolan; K McCormack, N McCorry, C Dolan; N Keenaghan, A Sheridan, A Gilsenan.

Wicklow: E Griffin; S Evans, SJ Winders (capt.), M Corr; I Ledesma, S Goetelen, L Dunne; A Keegan, A Gorman; N Cullen, S Byrne, E O’Kane; A Harmon, S McGettigan, H Dowling.

Group 4: Offaly v Wexford; Tubber, 2pm

Offaly began their TG4 All-Ireland series with a defeat to Clare last weekend.

If the Faithful County lose again, they’re out of the running for the All-Ireland Championship and facing into a relegation battle.

Wexford were TG4 All-Ireland semi-finalists last year and they’ll be keen to bounce back from their Leinster Final loss to Westmeath.

Offaly: L Dunne; N Buckley, N Glackin, J Maher; A Grehan, K Flynn, A Phelan; A Watkins, D Hannon; M Byrne, M Mann (capt.), S McGuinness; E Hand, A Stafford, S Doyle.

Wexford: S Cloake; K English, S McCarthy, K Dempsey; C Banville, A Halligan, M Byrne; C Donnelly, R Murphy (capt.); S Hamilton, C Murray, O Byrne; A Neville, T Doyle, C Foxe.

TG4 All-Ireland Junior Championship

Group A: Sligo v Kilkenny; Cloonacool Community Park, 2pm

Sligo got off to a winning start against Derry last weekend, with seven points to spare.

And they’ll be fancied to make it two wins on the spin when they face Kilkenny, who suffered a heavy loss to Limerick in their opening tie.

Sligo: E McGuire; A Molloy, H Walsh, J Creegan; C King, T Doddy, T Breheny; S Regan (capt.), C Walsh; M McCormack, E Kelleher, S Feeney; L Duffy, C Gilligan, A McDaniel.

Kilkenny: J Flynn; D Tervit-Kruger, A Galwey, S Dunne; S Mooney, R Crowley, J O’Keefe (capt.); R Crowley, S Smith; R Phelan, K Purcell, E Phelan; C Moore,

Group A: Limerick v Louth; Doon, 2pm – Live on LGFA Facebook and YouTube

Limerick, semi-finalists last year, got their All-Ireland series off to a strong and confident start against Kilkenny.

Now they face Louth, beaten finalists last year, in a pivotal Group A clash.

Louth won by three points when the sides met in Division 3 of the Lidl National League.

Limerick: C Bateman; R Browne, J McGuire, E Kennedy; L Ryan, A O’Sullivan, E Woulfe; D Murphy, K O’Leary; E Crowe, R Delee, A Morrissey; G Keane, C Mee, R Ambrose (capt.).

Louth: R Lambe Fagan; R Beirth, E Hand, E Murray; S Matthews, S McLaughlin, L Byrne; Á Breen (capt.), A Halligan; L White, E Byrne, A Russell; L Collins, K Flood, C Nolan.

All-Ireland U14 Finals

Gold: Dublin v Kerry; Nenagh Éire Óg GAA Club, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, 1.30pm

Two counties with a rich history in the U14 Championships go head to head in the Gold Final.

At the semi-final stage, Kerry got the better of Monaghan, as Dublin beat Offaly.

Dublin: L Bourke; S Leaney, M Conlon (capt.), K Corr; T Cowap, F Bolger, B Collins; S Malone, R Haran; M Healy, E Murphy, E.M. Burns; H McDonnell, K Deegan, R Cosgrove.

Kerry: E Lynch; H Barrett; A Mangan, H Mulvihill; A Duffy, D O’Sullivan (capt.), L Keane; E Barry, N Twiss; E O’Connor, N Kirby, C Coffey; A O’Sullivan, D Sheahan, E Corkery.

Platinum: Cork v Galway; Nenagh Éire Óg GAA Club, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, 3.30pm

Holders Galway are back in the Platinum Final for 2025.

After defeating Cavan in last year’s Final, the Westerners will hope to get the better of Cork, runners-up in 2023 and 2022, this time.

This is a repeat of the 2019 Platinum Final between the counties, won by Cork.

Cork: M.K. Hannon; C Ambrose, A McCarthy, S Erangey; G O’Sullivan, A Walsh, L Mylod; A O’Mullane, N Doyle; O Murphy, N Kinsella, I Brosnan; K O’Connell, L O’Mullane, A Harte (capt.).

Galway: N Ní Churraoin; K Jennings, A McCormack, A Feeney; A Glynn, T O’Flynn, C Lipscombe; K McNulty, C Osborne; C Flanagan (capt.), K Brogan, E Harty-O’Brien; S Keane, S Cullinane, L Casserly.

Bronze: Limerick v Armagh; Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA, Co. Westmeath, 1.30pm

Limerick, runners-up last year, are back in the final.

The Shannonsiders will take on Armagh, who were Gold Finalists last year.

Limerick: E Culhane; E Dowling, C Bresnan, L Healy; M Kitson, K Riall, C Youta; K Williams, S Hanley; C McCarthy, M Conneely (capt.), L Stokes; E Egan, E Halley, S Lynch.

Armagh: N Jordan; L Woods, S Lavery, J Donnelly; C Moriarty, A Reid, L Egan; A Coleman, E McCormack; G Stewart, G Marsden (capt.), M Campbell; K Cumiskey, C O’Reilly, A O’Neill.

Silver: Tipperary v Cavan; Coralstown/Kinnegad GAA, Co. Westmeath, 3.30pm

Cavan were Platinum Finalists last year and are targeting a Silver title a year later.

Their opponents are Tipperary, who were Gold Finalists in 2023 and 2022, and Silver Finalists in 2019.

Tipperary: M Cummins; A Mason, M Grey, N Dunphy; L O’Connell, M Lonergan, P Marcinek; G-Mai Barrett, H Murphy; F O’Dwyer, F Madigan (capt.), R Browne; C Dennehy, S O’Sullivan, S Nugent.

Cavan: C Nolan; E Gilsenan, N McKenna (capt.), A Leddy; I Wynne, A Ford Peat, C Rudden; S Lyons, R Crowe; A O’Reilly, F Caffrey, L Cooney; P Gilmartin, A Harney, S McNulty.