Ulster U20 Football Championship Quarter-Final
Tyrone 3-15, Armagh 1-11
Tyrone booked their place in the Ulster U20 Football Championship semi-final with an emphatic second-half display to overcome Armagh in Dungannon last night.
Despite trailing by a point at the break, Tyrone turned on the style in the final quarter, hitting an unanswered 3-4 to power past the Orchard men and secure a deserved 10-point win.
Armagh made the brighter start, with John-Joe Hughes proving a real threat early on. The Derrynoose forward opened the scoring after four minutes and found the net two minutes later to put his side in the driving seat. Points from Ryan Duffy, Conall McGeough and Aaron O’Neill kept the visitors in control, but Tyrone gradually grew into the contest, with Shay McDermott, Conor O’Neill, and Matthew Quinn among the scorers to reduce the deficit to a single point at the break – 1-6 to 0-8.
The second half began with Armagh extending their lead through Conall McGeough and an Aaron O’Neill two-pointer, but Tyrone remained composed. Ruairi McCullagh was instrumental, kicking five points over the course of the half, including two in quick succession to spark the comeback.
The turning point came in the 47th minute when Conall Sheehy burst through the Armagh defence and finished to the net, levelling the tie. The Cookstown man’s goal was the catalyst for an unstoppable Tyrone surge. Just minutes later, Eoin McElholm and Noah Grimes each found the back of the net, as Tyrone rattled off 3-4 without reply to kill off the contest in clinical fashion.
Grimes and Caolan Donnelly chipped in with late points to round off an impressive team performance and seal a semi-final berth.
Next up is a semi-final meeting with Derry. That game will be played next Wednesday 23rd in Owenbeg.
By Rory Cox Thu 17th Apr
