Kelly sisters help Mayo secure place in last four

MAYO DONEGAL 3-14 2-11

MANAGER Frank Browne said his Mayo team released a flood of hurt and emotion against Donegal in Saturday’s All-Ireland Ladies SFC quarter-final at Cusack Park in Mullingar.

The beaten Connacht finalists have returned to the stage where they stumbled in last year’s competition, when Dublin edged past them by just a single point in a classic Kingspan Breffni Park encounter.

On the morning of that game, an interview with Browne was published where he spoke about how his daughter, Emma, died from pneumonia, aged just six months and two days, back in 2003.

And Browne said: “You know what, we’ve been carrying a huge amount of hurt. I remember talking to you in Breffni Park, a hugely emotional day after an article in the paper.

“We’ve been storing up that hurt for the last, what is it now, almost a year ago. We’ve been waiting for days like today. We put in a massive performance.”

Mayo suffered Connacht provincial final heartbreak against Galway in July, but after seeing off Kildare in the qualifiers, the underdogs put Donegal to the sword.

Second-half goals from the Kelly sisters, Niamh and Grace, and Cora Staunton helped to seal a six-point victory over Ulster winners Donegal.

Both sides lost a player to the sin-bin in the first half, but Mayo held their nerve to set up a semi-final clash with holders Cork.

For Donegal, it’s another case of what might have been.

They started well with early goals from Geraldine McLaughlin and Yvonne McMonagle, but Mayo were level at half-time and got the job done after the break.