ALL-IRELAND SFC QUALIFIER ROUND FOUR Tyrone 3-19 Roscommon 1-14:THIS EVENTUALLY seemed like a dress rehearsal for Dublin next Saturday. The most obvious example being the arrival of Brian Dooher and Owen Mulligan at half-time. Everything went through Dooher's hands thereafter.
“That’s why good players are on your bench,” Mickey Harte explained. “It is a squad game now – everybody knows that. The pace the game is played at, out in Croke Park especially, there is plenty of energy required. It is a mix of youth, experience, quality; all those things are needed to make a good result. I couldn’t think of two better men to shake things up.”
Kyle Coney made way for Mulligan after readjusting his sights to GAA headquarters having not really been there since he was a minor star. Other young forwards like Peter Harte and Mark Donnelly were more impressive and their reward was 70 minutes. There was even the surprise sight of Stephen O’Neill in injury-time. His presence sent an ominous message to Pat Gilroy’s Dublin.
It was no coincidence the arrival of Dooher and Mulligan coincided with a string of five points that effectively settled the contest. It was calculated score-gathering and, with Dooher’s mere presence being a timely reminder, they cradled possession.
Like only champions can.
Just before the interval a trademark shuffle and shot from Seán Cavanagh put Tyrone a point ahead. It came just moments after another bad wide by Roscommon’s version of Joe Canning – Donie Shine. Seconds after the break Karol Mannion kicked the sides level and it seemed like this young Roscommon team were capable of staying with Tyrone. They will look back and regret their nine wides in the first half.
Shine and Senan Kilbride were the main guilty parties, yet this pair’s general contributions had some regal Tyrone defenders rattled. There was the rare sight of Joe McMahon struggling to contain Kilbride but Conor Gormley can be happy with his man-marking job on Shine. including a sensational block on 13 minutes to deny a certain goal.
With the Cavanagh brothers so industrious around the middle third and the new wave of Tyrone forwards showing well, it seemed only a matter of time before Tyrone would break them.
But Roscommon’s challenge came alive on 26 minutes when Cathal Cregg’s speculative effort dropped short only for Pascal McConnell to make the regrettable decision of punching rather than catching the ball. Mannion swept in to blast a dream shot that settled just inside the far post.
This gave Roscommon a four point lead. Maybe Tyrone’s over 30s, three-time All-Ireland winning club would fold up their tents. Not on your life.
Within two minutes a clearly rejuvenated Seán Cavanagh thundered through the heart of the Roscommon defence, shrugging off Donal Ward, and carefully rolled a left-footed shot to the corner.
Seán’s brother Colm had Dooher’s number 10 on his back and emulated his captain by covering acres of ground. The reward came with punched points in either half. And, of course, 70 minutes of action. That’s the challenge now for every Tyrone starter. With Dooher, Mulligan, O’Neill, Justin McMahon and Enda McGinley straining to be let off the leash, a momentary lack in concentration can get you the shepherd’s hook from Mickey Harte.
This seemed like a bloodless coup when points from Brian McGuigan, Donnelly, Philly Jordan, a Peter Harte 45 and then Seán O’Neill put distance between the teams by 42 minutes. Even Joe McMahon and Gormley had got to grips with Kilbride and Shine, to the extent they were joining the attacking raids.
Scores from Shine, Mannion and Kilbride at least ensured an interesting fourth quarter.
But there was a late flurry coming from Tyrone. Seán Cavanagh ruthlessly punished a sloppy kick out to gather his second goal, while Donnelly completed a fine individual outing with their third in the 69th minute. Then Stephen O’Neill jogged onto the pitch. Thoughts immediately switched to next Saturday. Hill 16 will be open for business and Tyrone will not be afforded as much room to express themselves.
“I wouldn’t describe it as convincing, I would describe it as flattering because no way did Roscommon deserve to be beaten by that amount. They pushed it every step of the way. We had a lot to think about at half-time.” Harte thought about Dooher and Mulligan. The impact allowed Tyrone to march onwards.
“Meeting the Dubs,” Harte mused, “you almost get an All-Ireland final atmosphere.” Almost.
TYRONE: 1 P McConnell; 2 M Swift, 3 Joe McMahon, 6 C Gormley (0-1); 5 Seán O'Neill (0-1), 4 R McMenamin, 7 P Jordan (0-1); 8 K Hughes (0-1), 9 S Cavanagh (2-3, 0-1 free); 10 C Cavanagh (0-2), 11 B McGuigan (0-2), 12 P Harte (0-4, 0-3 frees, 0-1 45); 13 T McGuigan, 14 M Donnelly (1-1), 15 K Coney (0-2). Subs: B Dooher for T McGuigan, 26 O Mulligan (0-1) for Coney (both half-time), Justin McMahon for McMenamin (50 mins), C McCarron for Swift (55 mins), E McGinley for S Cavanagh (blood, 58-62 mins), D Harte for McCarron (69 mins), Stephen O'Neill for B McGuigan (70 mins). Yellow card:Donnelly (51 mins).
ROSCOMMON: 1 G Claffey; 2 S McDermott, 4 S Purcell, 3 N Carty; 5 D Keenan, 6 P Domican, 7 D Ward; 8 M Finneran, 9 K Mannion (1-2); 10 S O'Grady, 11 K Higgins, 12 C Cregg (0-1); 25 D McDermott (0-2), 14 S Kilbride (0-4, 0-1 free), 15 D Shine (0-4, 0-2 frees). Subs: D O'Gara for Higgins (41 mins), J Rogers (0-1) for D McDermott (56 mins), C Devaney for Ward (66 mins), N Daly for O'Grady (69 mins), E Kenny for Finneran (70 mins). Yellow cards: Purcell (50 mins), Kilbride (51 mins), Finneran (55 mins).
Referee: M Deegan(Laois).
