Kerry beat Clare by 0-14 to 0-3 in a one-sided encounter at Tralee this evening to set up a semi-final date with Cork.

The hosts didn't have to get anywhere near the level that saw them capture last year's All-Ireland title in this grade and could have won by more but for some poor shooting. With the game already over as a contest, the winners managed just four second-half points.

Clare, meanwhile, are still in the competition as they join Limerick and Waterford in the play-offs to see who progresses to provide semi-final opposition to Tipperary (victors over Na Deise). They need to improve dramatically, though: in an hour of football tonight, they failed to score from play…

The Kingdom had it all their own way in the first half and took a commanding nine-point advantage into the interval, 0-10 to 0-1, with nine of those scores coming from play, including four from Dingle's Conor Geaney, who opened the scoring in the seventh minute.

Keelan Sexton registered the Banner County's only score at the midway stage of the first half but, apart from that, it was all one-way traffic as Jack O'Connor's charges dominated proceedings, with Stephen O'Sullivan (2) and Cormac Linnane (free) also amongst the scorers before the break.

The visitors doubled their tally from another Sexton free a minute after the restart but the most interesting thing about the second half was that both goalkeepers managed to get on the scoresheet: Kerry custodian Billy Courtney thumped over a 49th-minute free while his Clare counterpart Killian Roche closed the scoring two minutes from the end.

Gavin White, Evan Cronin and Brian O Seanachain were Kerry's other second-half scorers on a night when the winners posted 13 wides.

Kerry's semi-final against Cork - who defeated Limerick tonight - will take place on May 13th.

Kerry - B Courtney (0-1f); D Brosnan, J Foley, T L O'Sullivan; G White (0-1), M Breen, D O'Brien; M O'Connor (0-1), J M Foley; B O Seanachain, B Sweeney (0-1), S O Shea; S O'Sullivan (0-2), C Linnane (0-2, 1f), C Geaney (0-4). Subs: E Cronin (0-1f) for C Linnane, D O Shea for T L O'Sullivan, G O Sullivan for G White, B Barrett for S O Shea, M Foley (0-1) for B O Seanachain, R Buckley for J M Foley.

Clare - K Roche (0-1f); K Killeen, P Lillis, N McCarthy; K Burke, C Downes, C Pyne; C Hehir, S O'Donoghue; P McNamara, K Sexton (0-2f), C O Halloran; C Murray, E Tubridy, A Sweeney. Subs: C Brennan for K Burke, N Murray for P McNamara, J Morrissey for E Tubridy, C Tevlyn Tubridy for A Sweeney, D Furan for C Pyne.

Referee - J Ryan.

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