Omagh pressure proves relentless

Colleges Football All-Ireland Final: Omagh CBS 0-16, Tralee CBS 0-7You come to these colleges finals half expecting a classic - and the hurling duly delivered - but with Tyrone and Kerry teams involved in the football we should have known better. In the end it was like a reprise of those mostly unglamorous occasions of late between their senior county equivalents.

Not that Omagh CBS will care what kind of game it was as they claimed their first Hogan Cup, crushing the hopes of Tralee CBS doing likewise. They delivered an efficient and determined performance, never letting up, even if the margin of victory must have surprised even themselves.

After a game of such heavy inevitability and precious little excitement the first question to ask is what happened Tralee. Having beaten St Patrick's of Navan in the semi-final - a classic, by all accounts - they came to Croke Park as marginal favourites and yet their form deserted them, badly.

Coach and mentor John O'Keeffe - himself a Hogan Cup winner with St Brendan's, Killarney, 38 years ago (before adding five All Stars and seven All-Irelands) - was all week telling his players Croke Park was just another pitch. Easier said than believed, however, as Tralee seemed overawed by the occasion.

The nine-point winning margin reflected Omagh's dominance, especially considering they hit 13 wides. Their forwards played superbly, five of which contributed scores, and midfielders Edan Clarke and Colin Harkin chipped in with a point each.

And defensively Omagh were, well, typical Tyrone - hounding in packs and doing their utmost to upset any opposing player from settling on the ball. Towards the end, when Tralee hunted for the goal to keep alive their hopes, Omagh frequently had 13 players behind the ball.

From the start Omagh's running, passing and supporting tactics - all done at pace - were causing Tralee problems, with a Peter Hughes free and a deft point from Seamus Harkin pushing them two points up in as many minutes. Tralee appeared anxious on every ball, and Alan O'Donoghue's point on nine minutes did little to settle their nerves.

Conor McMahon hit another for Omagh with remarkable ease and that set the tone for the rest of the game. Tralee did enjoy their best period midway through the half, with two points from Brendan Dillon inside a minute, but they wouldn't score again for another 20 minutes.

Omagh should have had two goals before the break - the first when Harkin was found free in front of goal, only to fist the ball over the bar, and the second when Cormac Arkinson charged forward only for his shot to be directed at the crossbar by Tralee goalkeeper Kevin O'Shea, before Shane O'Neill completed the score.

After adding one more point before the break Omagh were still just three points the better at half-time - 0-6 to 0-3 - and yet Tralee must have known they needed to raise their game considerably to have any chance.

Tralee started brightly, a point from Barry John Walsh followed by a searching kick from Stephen Browne which also slipped over the bar, but after that it all went rapidly downhill, their hold on possession going from bad to worse, while the only thing improving was their wide count.

Omagh hit five points without reply. Clarke and Harkin were lording midfield and suddenly the scores were coming with increasing ease. Tralee's lack of leadership was costing them badly, and while they never gave up the hunt for a goal that may have sparked a revival, their challenge was starting to sink like a lead balloon.

It was 23 minutes into the half before they hit their next score, a first for Barry John Keane, yet Omagh responded moments later with the simplest of scores for Diarmuid McNulty, and that left them 0-13 to 0-6 in front.

From there until the end it was effectively target practice for Omagh, with players queuing up to try their luck. Arkinson got his deserved point, followed by Harkin and another for O'Neill, and after that the final whistle sounded as sweet for Omagh as it did lonesome for Tralee.

It's the first Hogan Cup headed for Tyrone since St Patrick's took it to Dungannon in 1997.

OMAGH CBS:T Harney; A Kelly, G Haughey, R McNabb; K Mossy, M Gallagher, C Arkinson (0-1); E Clarke (0-1), C Harkin (0-1); Simon O'Neill, P Hughes (0-2, frees), C McNulty (0-2); Shane O'Neill (0-3), C McMahon (0-2), S Harkin (0-4). Subs: C Dobbs for Clarke (60 mins).

TRALEE CBS:K O'Shea; D O'Sullivan, L Kissane, G Rolls; D McElligot, B Costello, S Higgins; B Shanahan (0-1, free), S Browne (0-1); B Dillon (0-2, one free), S Carroll, BJ Keane (0-1); A O'Donoghue (0-1), P Culloty, BJ Walsh (0-1). Subs: J Keane for Kissane (12 mins), R O'Callaghan for Dillon, P Hurley for J Keane (both 47 mins).

Referee:Maurice Deegan (Laois).