Laragh United will face Cuchulainns in the semi-finals of the intermediate championship after seeing off Bailieborough by 3-14 to 1-10 in Virginia.

After saving a replay the last day, Jody Devine’s charges lived up to their billing as firm favourites this time round with an impressive display at Dolan Park, where they’d led by double scores at the halfway stage after kicking it up a gear in the run up to the interval.

The opening 20 minutes were airtight as the scoreboard read 0-3 each before Paul Smith hit Bailieborough’s net with a fantastic strike which swung the pendulum the way of the Stradone men and they simply wouldn’t look back from there.

Fergal McKenna, Paddy Rudden and Smith all rifled over points prior to one from Rhys Clarke at the other end and things went from bad to worse from the Shamrocks when Peter Clerkin was red-carded a minute before the break as Laragh went in up 1-7 to 0-5 with one foot in the last four.

Jack McKenna and Lee Reilly extended the advantage to seven in the opening minutes of the restart with a Rory Farrell ‘45’ the sole Bailieborogh response.

Pauric Reilly, Smith and Jack McKenna made it 1-12 to 0-7 with a quarter of an hour remaining and the game was well and truly put beyond the trailing town side once Ruairi Power snuck in for a second Laragh goal on 54 minutes.

Fergal McKenna got his marching orders just beforehand but Laragh were safely over the line despite a Senan Reilly goal hitting their net as Jack McKenna responded in kind before seeing red late on.

In Ballinagh, Mullahoran struck a goal in each half to bring down the curtain on Belturbet’s season and move towards a semi-final date with Butlersbridge next weekend.

Enda O’Reilly’s 22nd minute penalty – earned by veteran attacker Philip Brady – was what saw the Dreadnoughts lead by 1-5 to 0-6 at the half, with Enda Henry notching 0-4 of the latter tally from frees.

The Rorys levelled up matters seven minutes into the resumption and even got their noses in front two minutes later but couldn’t hold on to the lead as their Longford border counterparts, whom lost influential midfielder PP Galligan to injury early on, squared matters again before hitting three points on the trot to take back the tie.

The game was over as a contest once Cormac O’Reilly fisted in Mullahoran’s second goal after an assist from Brady as Belturbet saw ex-county senior Eoin McGuigan red-carded late on.

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