National Football League Division One finalSadly for Laois and any neutrals among the 30,293 at Croke Park, yesterday's Allianz National Football League final proved as competitive as last year's. Having won a first national title 12 months ago, Tyrone proved reluctant to let it go and by the final whistle Laois were 10 points adrift, one more than Cavan's margin of defeat last year.
Mick O'Dwyer's achievement in taking Laois through the campaign unbeaten until yesterday inevitably wilted a bit in the face of such a hammering but there'll be no time for brooding with the county due back in Croke Park for championship duty in six days.
It remains to be seen whether the benefit to Laois from this exposure to life at the top will outweigh the dangers of demoralisation, but as GAA president Seán Kelly said at the presentation, there are few better placed than O'Dwyer to apply the lessons of defeat.
Tyrone have their own lessons to apply. Manager Mickey Harte, having won the league in his first year in charge, was quick to express caution in the light of Tyrone's experience last year. "We've played well for a number of games but last year performed well in the league but not in the championship and we have to guard against that."
There was a period just around half-time when Laois threatened Tyrone's dominance and the margin was down to two points seconds after the break, but by the end of the third quarter the match was effectively over.
Five unanswered points stretched the lead and Laois buckled under the pressure of chasing such a daunting deficit.
The trend was set early as Tyrone's forwards cut loose.
Their attacks were swift and enveloping as a virus and slippery underfoot conditions proved more of a hindrance than Laois's early befuddled defending. It would be hard to be too critical of the challengers, however, because the holders' movement was so practised and slick that opposing backs were left clutching at shadows as hand passes were instinctively slung in behind the defence for forwards to run on to.
When Laois got into the rhythm of it there was some stabilising and when in the ninth minute Peter Canavan got straight in on goal, determined covering by Tom Kelly, Derek Conroy and Colm Byrne crowded him out and cleared the threat. But that was a relatively rare act of deliverance and for the most part Tyrone cut rashers off their opponents.
To be strictly fair that was an expected outcome given the impact of the Ulster side's attack throughout the league.
Canavan posed the usual menace but yet again his apprentice, Owen Mulligan, shone even by comparison with his mentor.
Brian Dooher ran another marathon, getting around the field from end to end to the extent that he had two good goal chances but finished wildly. Nonetheless, his bewildering levels of industry maintained constant pressure on Laois.
Tyrone failed to score a goal but, typically, as they swarmed through with their opponents back-pedalling in the face of the onslaught, the space opened for point chances, which were generally taken. There were also goal chances but the conversion rate here was the least impressive aspect of the winners' attack.
O'Dwyer will have been disappointed with his centrefield, up to now a major platform in the team, who never got going against Tyrone's well worked tactics. Pauric Clancy was unable to fetch high catches at his usual rate as Cormac McAnallen broke ball after ball in the middle and Tyrone were far sharper on the breaks.
It was 0-6 to no score after 20 minutes and with the match dying, Laois revived interest with a goal smartly fisted in by Ian Fitzgerald after Damien Delaney dropped a 45 into the goalmouth. This triggered a revival and the addition of some points cut the margin at the break to a respectable three, 1-4 to 0-10.
When replacement Ross Munnelly cut it to two within seconds of the restart prospects for the second half looked interesting. But Laois's most disappointing sector was the attack, which failed to turn the screw in terms of winning possession or creating and taking chances even from straightforward frees. Four of the starting forwards were substituted and any attempts on goal were well contained by John Devine.
His save from Munnelly in the 55th minute and an acrobatic double save two minutes from time mightn't have turned the match but certainly prevented Laois from developing any notions of a comeback.
The one blight on the day for Tyrone was the suggestion that Gavin Devlin, booked for a foul on Colm Parkinson, might face more severe censure when the GAC view the match video.
TYRONE: J Devine; R McMenamin, C Holmes, M McGee; C Gormley, G Devlin, P Jordan; C McAnallen (0-1), S Cavanagh (0-1); B Dooher, B McGuigan (0-1), S O'Neill (0-4, one free); E McGinley (0-1), P Canavan (0-6, three frees), O Mulligan (0-3). Subs: G Cavlan (0-3) for McGinley (42 mins), R Mellon (0-1) for McGuigan (59 mins), D McCrossan for Gormley (67 mins).
LAOIS: F Byron; T Kelly, C Byrne, J Higgins; D Rooney, K Fitzpatrick, D Conroy; P Clancy, N Garvan; C Parkinson (0-1), I Fitzgerald (capt; 1-1, point a free), M Lawlor; B McDonald, D Delaney (0-2, one free), S Kelly. Subs: R Munnelly (0-1) for Lawlor (half-time), C Conway (0-2, one free) for Delaney (46 mins), D Miller for Garvan (52 mins), D Sweeney (0-1) for S Kelly (52 mins), A Fennelly for Fitzgerald (64 mins).
Referee: M Collins (Cork).
