Fermanagh escape from Clones and earn return to cauldron

ULSTER FINAL Armagh 2-8 Fermanagh 1-11FERMANAGH PEOPLE waited for 26 years to see their team in an Ulster final. Now, they get treated to two royal days in Clones in a single July. Fermanagh come seeking the Anglo-Celt cup again next Sunday. If they don't win one soon, it will be a crying shame because few teams bring more to the game of Gaelic football than this current Lakeland side.

Yet again, they showed magnificent bravery and no little escape artistry to earn a second big date in the market town. And the manner in which they did so shook the very fundamentals of the Armagh belief system.

Armagh were 2-5 to 0-4 up after Ronan Clarke smacked home a wonderfully crisp goal just after half-time, and the crowd settled back in the sunshine for an exhibition of orange supremacy.

Half an hour later, black smoke was pluming from the Armagh machine as Fermanagh threw everything in search of a late equalising point, flinging shots at Paul Hearty's goalposts like youngsters at a coconut stall.

By then the Ulster final had been transformed from the cagey, defensive and heavily tactical affair of the opening half to a madcap and wonderful bid by Fermanagh to eat up the Armagh lead before the clock ran out.

They blasted a few speculative shots wide and dropped others into the waiting arms of Hearty, and in the terraces addled Fermanagh men scratched their heads and tore up Sunday newspapers and made promises to The Man Upstairs (God, not Tom Daly) to lead more virtuous lives if only they could be granted the wish of a point that would bring them level.

It is hard to overestimate just how much was riding on this final for the Erne men. There is no question this current generation of Fermanagh players have exorcised whatever inhibitions and inferiority complexes dogged their predecessors. They were fearless here.

Nonetheless, they must have felt the weight of history as the crowd pressed in against the wires begging and pleading for anything but defeat. And so that last score was the most difficult to make and was simply priceless.

We scanned the field in search of a likely hero, and although there was no question that every Fermanagh player was game enough to take on a shot, it needed a cool head.

Marty McGrath spotted him: Kinawley's Shaun Doherty was on the field only seven minutes and had found a good position about 35 metres out on the right side of Hearty's goal. McGrath's floated pass was perfectly measured and Doherty did not hesitate. The shot looked true from the moment it left his foot.

Armagh were in no rush to take the kick-out and referee Jimmy White signalled full-time before the restart.

The reigning champions must have been shook as they left the field. They knew they were run ragged at the end here, and Peter McDonnell will surely hold something of an inquisition this week.

Armagh spent many years acquiring a reputation for being the game's most ruthless team, but that aura has steadily been eroded in recent years.

In this championship, they have demonstrated their vulnerability when it comes to shutting out teams. They managed just three points after Clarke's goal, each of those absolute gems from Steven McDonnell, whose poise and craftsmanship enabled Armagh to hold onto their increasingly precarious lead.

How Armagh found themselves in a situation where they were holding on with fingernails to the Anglo-Celt Cup is a problem they will have to solve if they are to realise their potential in this year's All-Ireland.

They bossed the day for half an hour here with that simple and intimidating system of theirs: just Clarke and McDonnell granted the privilege of loitering up front while the entire half-forward line and Stephen Kernan fell back to close off all Fermanagh paths to goal.

For a while, Fermanagh coughed the ball up like first-year boys handing over their tuck shop money and then Armagh broke out with the ball, stern and confident and full of purpose.

At their best, they are a fascinating team to watch, and here it was their veterans - Aidan O'Rourke, Francie Bellew, Paul McGrane and McDonnell - who led the charge.

They struck their first goal on just such a counterattack, Finian Moriarty cleaning up a Fermanagh point attempt that fell short and running the length of the field to finish a ball worked through McGrane and Brian Mallon.

Clarke's goal came from a similar burst from deep, Mallon against piling through before playing Clarke in.

Perhaps it could be argued Armagh switched off and Fermanagh threw caution to the wind at precisely the same moment.

Or maybe the withdrawal of a flagging Martin O'Rourke was a big moment.

The Dromintee man will never draw bouquets from opposition fans but he is an essential player for Armagh. He is a workhorse and a nuisance, a ball-winner, a safe pair of hands and is brilliant at moving ball smartly.

He may also be a natural scorer but we won't know because right now that is not his job.

Peter McDonnell may face criticism for some of his substitutions, but as he rightly pointed out, bringing in two All-Ireland medal winners in Paddy McKeever and Oisín McConville, hardly ranks as foolhardiness.

In any event, both substitutes did fine. It was not about individuals; it was just that Armagh as a team could not cope as Fermanagh found their naturally smart, opportunistic running game.

Ryan McCluskey was director of operations and McGrath, Eamon Maguire and Mark Little gave hugely brave second-half performances. They clipped some stirring points through the great orange wall, and though they simply could not find the posts between the 55th and 66th minutes, they never lost heart.

A Little free set them up for a last onslaught, and when Mark Murphy landed a huge point to leave a single score between the sides, it seemed as if the Anglo-Celt might be heading to Erne Country. They had chances and they had Armagh on the rack but the best they could do was earn another day out.

Of course, they say Armagh do not lose replays - they have won five this decade. But Fermanagh are no respecters of history. If they were, they would have no business being here.

It is still all to play after a classic day in Clones. Maybe they should move the replay to Dublin. It's about time Croke Park got to host a decent game.

ARMAGH:P Hearty; A Mallon, F Bellew, F Moriarty (1-0); A Kernan, A O'Rourke, C McKeever; P McGrane, K Toner (0-1); C Vernon, B Mallon, M O'Rourke; S McDonnell (0-6, one free), R Clarke (1-1), S Kernan. Substitutes: P McKeever for M O'Rourke (39 mins), O McConville for S Kernan (43 mins), M O'Rourke for C Vernon (63 mins), D McKenna for B Mallon (70 mins).

FERMANAGH: R Gallagher; S Goan, S McDermott (0-1), P Sherry; D Kelly, R McCluskey, T McElroy (0-1); M McGrath (0-2), M Murphy (0-1); M Little (0-2, frees), S McCabe, R Keenan (0-1 free); E Maguire (1-0), J Sherry, C McElroy (0-2). Subs: B Owens for S McCabe (39 mins), S Lyons for D Kelly (44 mins), T Brewster for J Sherry (53 mins), D O'Reilly for S Goan (60 mins), S Doherty (0-1) for C McElroy (64 mins).

Referee:J White (Fermanagh).