UlsterNet.co.uk

Tyrone Minors overwhelm All-Ireland champions Armagh at Clones

Wednesday, 21 July 2010

Tyrone 1-14 Armagh 0-5. Tyrone overwhelmed All-Ireland champions Armagh to win their third Ulster MFC title in four years at Clones.
The Red Hands turned in an impressive team display, dominating from start to finish, leading by seven points at the break, and nine at the end.
With eight players on the scoresheet, Tyrone possessed too many attacking options for an Armagh side, for which just two of the starting 15 scored.
Armagh suffered a pre-match blow when captain and key midfielder Peter Carragher was ruled out by a knee injury, and it was in the central region that Tyrone laid the foundations for success, with midfielder Harry Og Conlon producing a man of the match display.
“We concentrated on getting it right round the middle third of the field, to win breaking ball, and we got our launchpad," said manager Raymond Munroe.
All the men in that area of the field, it's no surprise that that's where we made the changes, because the men were out on their feet.
“That was the area we focused on, where we did all our work, and one of our midfielders lifted the man of the match award, it says it all.
We watched Armagh against Cavan, their winning of the breaking ball was phenomenal, it launched everything for them. Today we got among them."
And Munroe was pleased with the return from the attacking unit.
“Sometimes we made bad choices in shot selection, but at the end of the day we got enough scores.
“That's what it's all about, getting more scores than the opposition."
Tyrone took control right from the start, and were four points ahead inside eight minutes, two of their scores coming from Ronan O'Neill.
A Ryan Rafferty point merely interrupted the Red Hand flow, with Ryan Devlin, John McCullagh (2) and half backs Niall Sludden and Eunan Deeney all hitting the target.
Conan Grugan, returning after suspension, made a big impression in midfield, and six different players got on the scoresheet in the opening half.
They could have had a goal on 20 minutes when O'Neill turned his marker, but sent his shot just wide.
Tyrone held a commanding 0-9 to 0-2 lead at the break, after Paul McGeown had hit a second Armagh point from a free.
Richard Donnelly converted his second '45 to extend the advantage, with midfielder Harry Og Conlon adding a fisted point.
Both sides had goal chances, but Tyrone goalkeeper Mark McReynolds saved from Colin Stevenson, and Armagh 'keeper Matthew McNeice denied Ryan Devlin.
In the 51st minute, Tyrone killed off the challenge of the defending champions when Devlin side-footed to the net from Conlon's assist.
And a couple of late points from substitute Dara Donnelly sealed a comprehensive victory for the Red Hands. But it's not all gloom for Armagh, who also go through to the All-Ireland quarter-finals through the minor championship's own version of the back door system.
Tyrone scorers: Ryan Devlin 1-2, Ronan O'Neill (2 frees), John McCullagh, Richard Donnelly (2 '45s), Dara Donnelly 0-2 each, Niall Sludden, Eunan Deeney, Conan Grugan, Harry Og Conlon 0-1 each
Armagh scorers: Paul McGeown (1 free), Ryan Conlon 0-2 each, Ryan Rafferty 0-1.
Tyrone: Mark McReynolds, Shea McGarrrity, Conor Clarke, Hugh Pat McGeary, Niall Sludden, Michael Donaghy, Eunan Deeney, Conan Grugan, Harry Og Conlon, Richard Donnelly, Thomas Canavan, Ryan Devlin, Stefan Tierney, John McCullagh, Ronan O'Neill.
Subs: Dara Donnelly for R Donnelly, Dwaine Quinn for Donaghy, Padraig McNulty for McGeary, Darren McCurry for McCullagh, Rory Loughran for Conlon
Armagh: Matthew McNeice, Ruairi McCaughley, Colm Hoey, Ronan Finnegan, Dean Nugent, James King, Niall McConville, Aaron Findon, Conor Gough, Michael McKenna, Aidan Forker, Barry Seeley, Colin Stevenson, Paul McGeown,. Ryan Rafferty. Subs: Dominic McParland for Findon, Ryan Conlon for McKenna, Caolan Trainor for Seeley, Pearce Casey for McParland
Referee: Jimmy Galligan (Cavan).

Subscribe to read full newspaper »

Send this page to a friend »