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Irish Times
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Conor McManus: Rule changes make Gaelic football more exciting and managing the clock even more crucial
There was so little between Armagh and Donegal on Saturday that even as you were watching it play out, you just knew it would be decided by who controlled possession in the last two or three minutes. Sure enough, Donegal had the ultimate one-point lead and held on to it, but they had tried to do the same at the end of normal time only for a loose pass from Michael Langan to Peadar Mogan, which Armagh turned over and worked brilliantly well to Oisín Conaty for the equalising score. Such fine margins between teams as good as these – two of the best three or four in the country – mean that one missed pass makes the difference. There are obviously other mistakes and things that go wrong during the course of a match, but when everything is on the line in the dying moments, one single error can affect the outcome. Jim McGuinness's team didn't make the same mistake in extra-time. Niall O'Donnell kicked the winning score on 87:14 and the kick-out resulted in a throw-in, from which Donegal regained the ball and managed to keep possession for the just over two minutes remaining. READ MORE Extra-time with two excellent, brilliantly coached and closely matched teams: you're really drilling down into fine details to come up with a reason why one wins and the other loses. If there was a difference, maybe it came in the ambition of Donegal. They took the game to Armagh for the whole match and managed to play it more on their terms. There was seven points in it on two occasions and it was testimony to Armagh's ability to stay in the game that they clawed it back on each occasion. Donegal were also possibly that bit bolder in how they took on the contest. Take their long kicking into Michael Murphy. We hadn't seen much of that this year and in general conversation beforehand, it was said that it would be good to see Murphy stationed on the edge of the square a bit more. Armagh's Jarly Og Burns competes in the air with Donegal's Jason McGee in Clones at the weekend. Photograph: Ben Brady/ Inpho Donegal did that. Over the years he's shown that he's virtually impossible to mark in there with that type of possession and he was able to feed it out to the likes of Oisín Gallen and Patrick McBrearty to create scoring chances. So, Donegal were more direct and Armagh more deliberate, at times too deliberate. A quick injection of pace might have caused a bit more trouble. Armagh have a slight tendency to tune out of games. We saw it in the first half against Antrim and the second half against Tyrone, when they were clearly the better team. Maybe that's something they need to address. Is this nit-picking? Possibly, because they have developed such resilience in coming back against teams that they are really hard to beat. They also have a number of injuries to first-team players. There was only seven of the team that started last year's Ulster final starting this year. Players are coming back and it looks like Rian O'Neill will be on board later in the summer after his reappearance with the team. That suggests room for improvement and they've obviously strengthened their panel significantly, which will stand to them. It was a great occasion and provided further evidence that the new rules have improved football and brought back the excitement. For me, the pace of the game was fantastic. There were times when teams slowed down the attack, maybe against the wind, and tried to organise or micromanage things, but by and large the speed of the game over the 90-plus minutes was incredible. There was also space for forwards to manoeuvre and take on defenders, one v one. You could see it numerous times. Conaty for Armagh, Oisín O'Neill for Armagh, Soupy Campbell for Armagh and then Donegal's Gallen were all looking for those one v ones. Louth's Craig Lennon celebrates scoring his side's third goal against Meath at Croke Park on Sunday. Photograph: James Crombie/Inpho So, you had individual battles and duels, which is something we haven't been accustomed to in recent years. The well-drilled efforts to run down the clock are something we're seeing more of this year previously. Obviously, this is because of the hooter and the clarity and definition it gives as to when the game is over. There's no arguing with it. Donegal in the last play down the sideline with Stephen McMenamin and Finbarr Roarty had Armagh hunting them down really well and it was just a very composed piece of play to keep the ball under pressure and keep it moving. The key is just ensuring support for the man on the ball and two or three men providing options. Once they got it switched across to the far side and Odhrán McFadden-Ferry kicked it clear to Daire Ó Baoill, this great roar went up because everybody knew that the danger had passed with four seconds left. It does add bit of drama and excitement at the end. We saw the same in Croke Park when Louth successfully kept the ball at the end of the Leinster final against Meath . It was high-risk strategy. Ger Brennan was saying after the game that if they were going to do that, he'd prefer they had done it down towards the Canal End rather than in front of Hill 16, where they were actually defending their own goal. It takes a fair bit of confidence in each other and a lot of composure to pull that off and in fairness they managed it. Louth's first Leinster title in 68 years is great but it also validates their progression this last number of years. It's not just a flash in the pan. They've been knocking on the door with promotions and three provincial finals, ending in their first All-Ireland quarter-final last year. That's steady, sustainable progress, vindicating the development work that has seen Louth win this year's Leinster under-20 and now senior titles. They've also beaten Dublin to reach the minor final. It's an incredible achievement for the county and they'll feel their season isn't over yet.
Irish Times
10-05-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Donegal beat Armagh to retain Ulster title after Clones classic
Ulster Senior Football Final: Donegal 2-23 Armagh 0-28 Chaos in Clones, wonderful, frantic chaos. And from within the madness of it all, Donegal emerged still holding the Anglo Celt Cup while Armagh left with a sackful of regrets for the third successive Ulster final. It needed extra-time to separate these two heavyweights. How either were still standing by that stage is hard to know after the sides had served up a breathtaking contest in front of 28,788 spectators at a sun-drenched St Tiernach's Park. Niall O'Donnell's point three minutes from the end of extra-time proved to be the match-winner. READ MORE It is Donegal's 12th Ulster SFC triumph. Armagh – who lost the last two finals after penalty shoot-outs – have not tasted provincial glory since 2008. The reigning All-Ireland champions never led during normal time of this clash but Oisín Conaty's equaliser with just seven seconds remaining sent the game to extra-time, 0-23 to 1-20. And when Jarly Óg Burns put them in front for the first time all evening at the start of extra-time, it appeared Armagh had grabbed the momentum. But Donegal replied and the sides traded blows to go in level at the turnaround. Armagh's Jarly Óg Burns. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho Stefan Campbell, who impressed after coming in off the bench, edged Armagh back in front again before what appeared to be a pivotal score for Donegal. After a strong run, Michael Langan fed Ciarán Moore and he smacked the ball beyond Ethan Rafferty in the Armagh goal, 2-22 to 0-26. But when Rafferty came up the field to stroke over a two-pointer free moments later, this Ulster final seemed destined to be decided as the last two were – by penalties. O'Donnell had other ideas though. He brought great pace and energy when introduced and popped over two points in extra-time, including the winner in the 87th minute after cleverly darting through a gap in the Armagh defence to create a pocket of space to shoot. Donegal tried to play keep-ball thereafter but almost coughed up possession several times. Ultimately though, Armagh were unable to fashion another scoring chance in those closing seconds and at the hooter Donegal booted the ball into the terrace. Victory. Unfortunately, as the fans poured on to the pitch a scuffle broke out involving members of both squads just metres inside the pitch under the main stand. With the very real risk of supporters getting embroiled in the row, Gardaí rushed to the flashpoint and helped separate the two fighting factions. It was a regrettable scene at the end of what had been a brilliant occasion in Clones and could yet lead to suspensions when disciplinary chiefs review the video footage of the incident. Donegal's Hugh McFadden celebrates after scoring a goal. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho The game itself took a little while to heat up as both sides tried to figure out what the other had brought to the party, but in those early stages Donegal brought more aggression and energy. Aidan Forker was promoted from the bench to Armagh's starting side from the off and the team captain immediately picked up Michael Murphy – the pair's last meeting ended with Forker getting sent off in the league earlier this season. Paddy Burns marshalled Patrick McBrearty while Barry McCambridge was given the man-marking job on Oisín Gallen. At the other end of the field, Ryan McHugh's detail for the evening was to follow Rory Grugan wherever he roamed in Clones. That would ultimately prove to be a matchup where both players essentially cancelled each other out of the game. The sides were level on 0-2 apiece in the 13th minute when Ciarán Thompson boomed over the first two-pointer of the day. Donegal would lead from that moment until seven seconds before the hooter sounded. The 2024 champions led 0-14 to 0-11 at half-time but in truth they probably should have been further ahead at the short whistle. Donegal's Oisin Gallen celebrates after scoring. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho Midway through that opening period, and having been largely anonymous until that stage, Oisín Gallen caught fire and hit four points from play in a blistering nine-minute spell. In a bid to curb his influence on proceedings, Armagh switched markers with Burns and McCambridge switching roles. But Armagh were struggling with their own kickout too and both Murphy and Gallen capitalised with points from Orchard restarts won by Donegal. They led 0-14 to 0-7 with just three minutes of the first half remaining but then Shaun Patton's kickout malfunctioned. From two consecutive restarts, Donegal failed to win possession and instead conceded 0-3 – including a two-pointer from Oisín O'Neill. Conaty was their biggest threat up front though and his three first-half points were crucial in keeping the Orchard County in touch. O'Neill thought he had kicked a two-pointer with the last kick of the opening half but Patton got a touch on the ball as it travelled over the crossbar, reducing the score to a single point. Armagh's late spurt in the opening half had cut Donegal's lead to three. Donegal's Michael Murphy in the dressing room with the Anglo Celt Cup after the game. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho But a Hugh McFadden goal in the 44th minute proved a fresh launch pad for Donegal and with 20 minutes remaining they led by seven again. Once more though Armagh rallied – and in truth they were the far better team in the last quarter, outscoring Donegal 0-8 to 0-1 in that period. But if Armagh had displayed the character of All-Ireland champions to force the game into extra-time, Donegal showed the resilience of Ulster champions with their gritty display to respond in the extra periods. As legions of Donegal fans remained on the pitch long after the trophy presentation, Jimmy's Winning Matches boomed out from the PA system. The evening sun was setting in Clones but already they were dreaming of Croke Park. DONEGAL: Shaun Patton; Finbarr Roarty, Brendan McCole, Peadar Mogan (0-0-1); Ryan McHugh, Caolan McGonagle, Ciarán Moore (1-0-1); Hugh McFadden (1-0-0), Michael Langan (0-0-2); Dáire Ó Baoill (0-0-1), Ciarán Thompson (0-2-0), Shane O'Donnell; Patrick McBrearty (0-0-3, 3f), Michael Murphy (0-0-3), Oisín Gallen (0-0-4). Subs: Conor O'Donnell (0-0-1) for McBrearty (43 mins); Jason McGee (0-0-1) for McFadden (50); Jamie Brennan for Ó Baoill (52); Eoin McHugh for Moore (55); Aaron Doherty for Gallen (64); Odhran McFadden Ferry for McGee (ft); Niall O'Donnell (0-0-2) for J Brennan (ft); C Moore for Doherty (ft); P McBrearty for Murphy (77); D Ó Baoill for R McHugh (78); Stephen McMenamin for McCole (84). ARMAGH: Ethan Rafferty (0-1-1, 1 2ptf, 1 45); Paddy Burns, Aidan Forker, Barry McCambridge; Ross McQuillan (0-0-3), Greg McCabe, Tiernan Kelly; Callum O'Neill (0-0-1), Ben Crealey (0-0-1); Darragh McMullen, Rory Grugan, Jarly Óg Burns (0-0-1); Oisín Conaty (0-0-6), Andrew Murnin (0-0-1), Oisín O'Neill (0-2-3, 1 2ptf). Subs: Conor Turbitt for Kelly (41 mins); Stefan Campbell (0-0-3) for C O'Neill (50); Peter McGrane for McCabe (55); Jason Duffy (0-0-2) for O Ó'Neill (60); Niall Grimley for Forker (61); Conaire Mackin for Murnin (ft); Cian McConville for Conaty (79); Shane McPartlan for Grugan (83); Tomás McCormack for McQuillan (87) Referee: Brendan Cawley (Kildare).
BreakingNews.ie
10-05-2025
- Sport
- BreakingNews.ie
Donegal retain Ulster title after dramatic extra-time win over Armagh
Donegal have defended their Ulster football title but needed extra time to do it. Oisin Conaty brought Armagh level on 70 minutes to leave the game level 0-23 to 1-20 in Clones. Advertisement Niall O'Donnell's last gasp point was enough to win it for Jim McGuinness's men who came out on top after 90 mins by 2-23 to 0-28 points. It means the All-Ireland champions have lost the last three Ulster finals after extra time.
