THIS IS THE type of performance that All-Ireland champions deliver. Armagh survived an enormous Tyrone push that nudged them two points in front for the first time to book their place in their third consecutive Ulster final.
Say what you want about the new rules, but Clones felt like days of old with the result of this hanging in the balance until the very last ball was kicked. In this case it was Rory Grugan – imperious in open play and the playmaker that makes Armagh tick – knocking over a close-in free awarded when Peter Harte met with Conor Turbitt who would certainly have converted.
The sulpher of old remains in traces.
In the past, there was a sense that Armagh were always that little bit more up for it than Tyrone when it came to the tail twisting. There was an early sign of it here when the teams were completing their pre-match parade, coming to the front of the Gerry Arthurs Stand.
Armagh broke first to go into a pre-game huddle and on their way past the Tyrone players, one or two couldn’t resist a little tug of the jersey.
Both sides had changes before the start; Tyrone’s were the most damaging. Matthew Donnelly was the victim of a reputed vomiting bug and did not travel with the team, arriving later in a car so he dropped out of the starting line-out, as did Peter Harte.
Electing to go with the wind for the first half after winning the toss, Armagh played towards the Eastern Terrace and, buoyed by their shooting display against Antrim, decided to go bananas with two-point attempts.
One came off, from Oisín O’Neill. The debit side of the column looked ugly though with six misses, including one post-hooter attempt when Ethan Rafferty felt that endless recycling was for blue bins and had a dig that drifted wide.
Ethan Rafferty. John McVitty / INPHO
John McVitty / INPHO / INPHO
Tyrone started Ruairí Canavan in place of his brother in law Peter Harte and he had a difficult opening half, kicking their only two-point miss and getting caught under a bouncing ball along with getting whistled up for steps – one of four such calls in the first half from referee David Gough who clearly is taking the reaffirmed directive from the Football Review Committee to heart.
Darren McCurry with five points, three from frees, and a Michael McKernan two-point score kept them in touch on the board.
All in it was a remarkably doughty first half from Tyrone given they were dwarfed around the middle with seven of goalkeeper Niall Morgan’s 15 kickouts gobbled up by Armagh as the half-time score read Armagh 0-11, Tyrone 0-8.
The second half read no better for Tyrone on that score and they left themselves a mountain to do when Armagh racked up four of the first five scores of the second half.
Once again McCurry would go into overdrive, hitting 10 points in all, four from play and a two-point free.
In the 50th minute it looked like their cause was lost but they gathered up seven consecutive points, with McCurry’s free added to a Peter Harte special to go two up with eight minutes left.
McCurry’s free was essentially the worst kind of one to give away, David Gough booking Armagh manager Kieran McGeeney for dissent and awarding the free to Tyrone.
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McGeeney owes his players an apology, but how and ever Armagh came back. Conor Turbitt took a point.
Kieran McGeeney. John McVitty / INPHO
John McVitty / INPHO / INPHO
Eoin McElholm scored his second since coming on to give Tyrone the two point cushion but Armagh wouldn’t give up as Jarly Óg Burns scored a collector’s item point before Stefan Campbell got himself into position for a shot and was just a step inside the arc to level it.
It came down to the final play in the game. Armagh had troubled Niall Morgan’s kickout all day after Stefan Campbell levelled it up to 0-22 each, Jarly Óg Burns flung himself at the kickout to turn the ball over.
Armagh patiently worked the ball around the fringes of the Red Hands defence before Ethan Rafferty popped a pass to Rory Grugan. Conjurer-in-chief, he played a ball over the top to Conor Turbitt steaming through.
Peter Harte, who had scored a two-pointer himself, sprinted towards Turbitt, made himself big, and Turbitt went down. A free?
Seen them given many, many times. David Gough thought so too. With the hooter having already sounded, it was left to Grugan to tap over before jubilant Armagh fans took over the St Tiernach’s Park pitch.
John McVitty / INPHO
John McVitty / INPHO / INPHO
Scorers for Armagh: Oisín Conaty 0-4, Oisín O’Neill 0-3 (1 x 2point), Rory Grugan 0-3 (2f), Callum O’Neill 0-3, Andrew Murnin, Ross McQuillan, Jarly Óg Burns 0-2 each, Ethan Rafferty, Ben Crealey, Conor Turbitt, Stefan Campbell 0-1 each.
Scorers for Tyrone: Darren McCurry 0-10 (4f, 1x 2point free), Darragh Canavan 0-4 (2f), Eoin McElholm 0-2, Michael McKernan, Conn Kilpatrick, Peter Harte 1 x 2point score each.
Armagh
1. Ethan Rafferty (Grange)
2. Paddy Burns (Burren) 3. Barry McCambridge (Clann Eireann) 4. Tomas McCormick (Annaghmore)
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Rory Grugan seals nerve-shredding win for Armagh over Tyrone in late drama
Armagh 0-23
Tyrone 0-22
THIS IS THE type of performance that All-Ireland champions deliver. Armagh survived an enormous Tyrone push that nudged them two points in front for the first time to book their place in their third consecutive Ulster final.
Say what you want about the new rules, but Clones felt like days of old with the result of this hanging in the balance until the very last ball was kicked. In this case it was Rory Grugan – imperious in open play and the playmaker that makes Armagh tick – knocking over a close-in free awarded when Peter Harte met with Conor Turbitt who would certainly have converted.
The sulpher of old remains in traces.
In the past, there was a sense that Armagh were always that little bit more up for it than Tyrone when it came to the tail twisting. There was an early sign of it here when the teams were completing their pre-match parade, coming to the front of the Gerry Arthurs Stand.
Armagh broke first to go into a pre-game huddle and on their way past the Tyrone players, one or two couldn’t resist a little tug of the jersey.
Both sides had changes before the start; Tyrone’s were the most damaging. Matthew Donnelly was the victim of a reputed vomiting bug and did not travel with the team, arriving later in a car so he dropped out of the starting line-out, as did Peter Harte.
Electing to go with the wind for the first half after winning the toss, Armagh played towards the Eastern Terrace and, buoyed by their shooting display against Antrim, decided to go bananas with two-point attempts.
One came off, from Oisín O’Neill. The debit side of the column looked ugly though with six misses, including one post-hooter attempt when Ethan Rafferty felt that endless recycling was for blue bins and had a dig that drifted wide.
Tyrone started Ruairí Canavan in place of his brother in law Peter Harte and he had a difficult opening half, kicking their only two-point miss and getting caught under a bouncing ball along with getting whistled up for steps – one of four such calls in the first half from referee David Gough who clearly is taking the reaffirmed directive from the Football Review Committee to heart.
Darren McCurry with five points, three from frees, and a Michael McKernan two-point score kept them in touch on the board.
All in it was a remarkably doughty first half from Tyrone given they were dwarfed around the middle with seven of goalkeeper Niall Morgan’s 15 kickouts gobbled up by Armagh as the half-time score read Armagh 0-11, Tyrone 0-8.
The second half read no better for Tyrone on that score and they left themselves a mountain to do when Armagh racked up four of the first five scores of the second half.
Once again McCurry would go into overdrive, hitting 10 points in all, four from play and a two-point free.
In the 50th minute it looked like their cause was lost but they gathered up seven consecutive points, with McCurry’s free added to a Peter Harte special to go two up with eight minutes left.
McCurry’s free was essentially the worst kind of one to give away, David Gough booking Armagh manager Kieran McGeeney for dissent and awarding the free to Tyrone.
McGeeney owes his players an apology, but how and ever Armagh came back. Conor Turbitt took a point.
Eoin McElholm scored his second since coming on to give Tyrone the two point cushion but Armagh wouldn’t give up as Jarly Óg Burns scored a collector’s item point before Stefan Campbell got himself into position for a shot and was just a step inside the arc to level it.
It came down to the final play in the game. Armagh had troubled Niall Morgan’s kickout all day after Stefan Campbell levelled it up to 0-22 each, Jarly Óg Burns flung himself at the kickout to turn the ball over.
Armagh patiently worked the ball around the fringes of the Red Hands defence before Ethan Rafferty popped a pass to Rory Grugan. Conjurer-in-chief, he played a ball over the top to Conor Turbitt steaming through.
Peter Harte, who had scored a two-pointer himself, sprinted towards Turbitt, made himself big, and Turbitt went down. A free?
Seen them given many, many times. David Gough thought so too. With the hooter having already sounded, it was left to Grugan to tap over before jubilant Armagh fans took over the St Tiernach’s Park pitch.
Scorers for Armagh: Oisín Conaty 0-4, Oisín O’Neill 0-3 (1 x 2point), Rory Grugan 0-3 (2f), Callum O’Neill 0-3, Andrew Murnin, Ross McQuillan, Jarly Óg Burns 0-2 each, Ethan Rafferty, Ben Crealey, Conor Turbitt, Stefan Campbell 0-1 each.
Scorers for Tyrone: Darren McCurry 0-10 (4f, 1x 2point free), Darragh Canavan 0-4 (2f), Eoin McElholm 0-2, Michael McKernan, Conn Kilpatrick, Peter Harte 1 x 2point score each.
Armagh
1. Ethan Rafferty (Grange)
2. Paddy Burns (Burren) 3. Barry McCambridge (Clann Eireann) 4. Tomas McCormick (Annaghmore)
5. Ross McQuillan (Cullyhanna) 6. Greg McCabe (Camlough) 7. Jarly Óg Burns (Silverbridge)
8. Callum O’Neill (Belleeks) 24. Ben Crealey (Maghery)
22. Darragh McMullan (Madden) 11. Oisín Conaty (Tir na nÓg) 12. Peter McGrane (Ballyhagan)
13. Rory Grugan (Ballymacnab) 14. Andrew Murnin (St Paul’s) 18. Oisín O’Neill (Crossmaglen)
Subs:
15. Conor Turbitt (Clann Eireann) for O O’Neill (52m)
19. Jemar Hall (Forkhill) for Crealey (54m)
21. Cian McConville (Crossmaglen) for McMullan (62m)
26. Stefan Campbell (Clan na Gael) for Murnin (63m)
17. Shane McPartlan (Clan na Gael) for McGrane (67m)
Tyrone
1. Niall Morgan (Edendork)
17. Cormac Quinn (Errigal Ciaran) 3. Peter Teague (Dromore) 4. Niall Devlin (Coalisland)
5. Michael McKernan (Coalisland) 6. Rory Brennan (Trillick) 7. Kieran McGeary (Pomeroy)
8. Brian Kennedy (Derrylaughan) 9. Conn Kilpatrick (Edendork)
10. Aodhan Donaghy (Loghmacrory) 22. Joe Oguz (Errigal Ciaran) 12. Ciaran Daly (Trillick)
13. Darren McCurry (Edendork) 25. Ruairí Canavan (Errigal Ciaran) 15. Darragh Canavan (Errigal Ciaran)
Subs:
24. Seanie O’Donnell (Trillick) for Donaghy (42)
20. Ben McDonnell (Errigal Ciaran) for Oguz (48)
26. Eoin McElholm (Loughmacrory) for Ruairí Canavan (48)
14. Peter Harte (Errigal Ciaran) for Daly (54m)
18. Padraig Hampsey (Coalisland) for Quinn (55m)
Referee: David Gough (Meath)
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All-Ireland Football Armagh Clones Tyrone Ulster Championship