Laois set for Croke Park showdown as Down await in the Tailteann Cup semi-final
Match Preview and Team News
At the beginning of the 2023 season, many Laois fans would have been hopeful of promotion from Division 4 of the National League and thus a trip to Croke Park. Fast forward to June 25 and Laois fans are finally getting that trip to GAA HQ albeit in a different competition.
Laois have got to the semi-final stage of this year's Tailteann Cup and will face Down while Meath take on Antrim in the other semi-final. Billy Sheehan's men have had a frantic schedule to date as this game is their fourth game in four weekends.
Remarkably, Laois failed to win a game in the group stages as they lost out to Cavan in the first game before having to settle for a draw against Offaly despite holding a six-point lead with two minutes of regulation time remaining. Laois then needed a late fisted point from Niall Corbet against London to snatch a draw which in turn meant they finished as one of the best third-placed teams.
This set Laois up with an away preliminary quarter-final away to Fermanagh. Mark Barry was Laois' hero on this occasion as his two late points earned Laois victory and into the hat for the quarter-final. Limerick proved tricky competition in the quarter-finals as they pushed themselves into a five-point lead midway through the second-half. Laois took the game by the scruff of the neck and finished out strongly as they kept Limerick scoreless while scoring 1-5 of their own to cement their place in the last-four.
In terms of previous championship meetings, their last championship meeting came back in the 2009 All-Ireland qualifiers when Down won by eight points in Newry. They also met in the 2008 qualifiers when Down won by two points.
Down will prove a step up you'd imagine as they knocked out last year's finalists Cavan. Their only defeat of their Tailteann Cup campaign came in their final group game as fellow semi-finalists Meath defeated them by two points on the same day Laois drew to London.
Laois' game against Down throws-in at 4pm on Sunday June 25 in Croke Park. The game will be shown live on RTE 2 with the Meath and Antrim game. We will also be providing a live blog from GAA HQ. Tickets can be bought from Supervalu/ Centra stores as well as online here.
The Laois team shows no changes to the starting side with only one change to the overall panel. Trevor Collins returns from inury to the panel in place of Stradbally's Eamon Delaney on the substitute's bench.
See the Laois Starting 15 below:
Killian Roche (Killeshin)
Sean Greene (Emo)
Alex Mohan (Portarlington)
Robert Pigott (Portarlington)
Padraig Kirwan (Emo)
Mark Timmons (Graiguecullen)
Patrick O Sullivan (Portarlington)
Kieran Lillis (Portlaoise)
Damon Larkin (Portlaoise)
Colm Murphy (Portarlington)
Paul Kingston (Arles-Killeen)
James Finn (Ballyfin)
Mark Barry (O'Dempsey's)
Evan O'Carroll (Crettyard)
Eoin Lowry (Killeshin)