Red Hands hold off Cavan comeback
TYRONE withstood a rousing Cavan comeback and survived extra time to collapse into an Ulster semi-final against buoyant Donegal after a tense, single-point 1-23 to 3-16 victory yesterday.
The manner in which his team withstood Cavan’s storming rebound will hearten Brian Dooher, but bewilderment will likely cloud his thinking in the immediate aftermath of this clash at a baking Breffni Park.
With less than 20 minutes to go, Tyrone led by eight points, 1-16 to 1-8, and seemed set for a routine victory.
Instead, Cavan scored goals through Pádraig Faulkner and Niall Carolan, as Tyrone lost Pádraig Hampsey to a black card, and the Red Hand men looked scrambled.
Brian O’Connell fisted over a point in the last action of normal time to force the additional periods, and the conditions exerted a significant influence then.
Both teams looked out on their feet as the hot day and a frenetic second half sapped energy.
Tyrone managed just three points in the additional action, through frees from Darragh Canavan and Tiernan Quinn, and a point from play from Niall Devlin, but it was one more than Cavan could muster, and so their date with Donegal this weekend was assured.
However, having to play an extra 20 minutes, on a hot day and with such a short turnaround, will frustrate Dooher, given the win looked secured 15 minutes into the second half of ordinary time – and given how Donegal will bounce into that game after the shock they pulled off against Derry.
Jim McGuinness was in Cavan to take in yesterday’s action, and he will have been impressed by the way Tyrone initially steadied themselves after a good Cavan start.
Cian Madden scored for the hosts as they built a two-point lead, but Liam Gray, on his Tyrone debut, goaled and they took control to lead 1-10 to 1-4 at the break.
They stretched that lead by two before Faulkner’s goal, and thereafter Cavan, boosted by fans who suddenly hoped again, tore into the recovery.
Carolan’s goal blew the game open, and a routine win was turned into a drama for Tyrone.
They saw it out, but the cost involved will become clear next Sunday.