Stars of the future.
The senior action last weekend may have left a lot to be desired, but as ever the Electric Ireland All-Ireland minor football quarter-finals were of the purest quality.
Derry and Kildare progressed in two two point wins on Saturday, while the Bank Holiday Monday action saw All-Ireland champions Kerry and Tipperary reach the last four.
Tipperary will now face Kildare while Kerry will meet Ulster champions Derry later this month in Croke Park.
With just four sides left we’ve picked out the key players that inspired their sides to victory.
Derry 0-12 Longford 2-4
Star man: Shane McGuigan
The headlines will be grabbed by the the match winners Jack Doherty and Conor Glass, but Derry can thank underage starlet Shane McGuigan for helping them through the stiff test posed by Longford in Enniskillen.
The Ulster side trailed by four points at the break after an early surge from Longford had seen them open up a sizeable lead with their defence on top.
The lead was extended to five points in the second half before McGuigan began to give an exhibition from corner forward.
He scored 0-7 in total and his three first half efforts keeping his team’s head above water.
Man of the match in the Ulster final, he was outstanding in a second half dominated by the Oak Leaf as his pace and accuracy gave Longford huge problems in their full back line.
He grabbed the equalising point with five minutes to go before Jack Doherty landed a monster score and Conor Glass secured passage to an All-Ireland semi final at the end of the month.
Kildare 2-14 Cavan 2-12
Star man Ciaran Kelly
Kildare’s minors enjoyed some what better fortune than their senior counterparts but could well have been caught cold by a late surge from Cavan in Navan on Saturday.
The Lilywhites looked in total control for the majority of the game thanks in no small part to forward Ciaran Kelly. 1-7 in the course of the 60 minutes with his first half goal opening the floodgates before a comeback from the Ulster outfit.
The Leinster champions went the last 18 minutes without a score as Cavan threw everything at their defence but Kelly was always an outlet but lacked support from his teammates at times.
He did get his sides last score of the game and after grabbing 0-3 in the Leinster final will no doubt look forward to returning to Croke Park later this month to add to his 0-5 from play at the weekend.
Kerry 2-12 Sligo 2-6
Star man: Conor Geaney
The production line never stops in Kerry and the next man to roll off the end of the conveyor belt as one of the country’s top forwards is their current minor Conor Geaney.
Once again the focal point of the All-Ireland champions attack, the Dingle sharpshooter was outstanding on a day of difficult conditions against Sligo in Tullamore.
In a contest when Kerry were missing some of their more established stars through injury, Geaney played a key role as he scored four points in the first half to help Kerry lead by 1-6 to 0-3 at the break.
His goal ten minutes into the second half killed the game as a contest as the Kingdom marched on to an All-Ireland semi final later this month.
Tipperary 1-10 Galway 0-6
Star man: Alan Tynan
The Connacht champions are out and the man at the heart of their demise is the Premier’s forward Alan Tynan who grabbed 1-5 of his team’s total this afternoon.
The Roscrea teenager, who’s also a fine hurler, was in sensational form as the Munster side recorded a famous win in Tullamore.
Tipperary led by 0-4 to 0-3 at the break but Tynan sprung to life in the second half and his goal on 53 was the game breaker as he beat three defenders to blast the ball into the top corner.
Galway were well off the pace after their provincial success over Sligo and Tynan was at the heart of everything good coming from the Munster side.
Two frees and one 45 as well as his scores from play were the ultimate difference between the sides, as Galway’s forwards struggled to get any purchase from the Tipperary full-back line.
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