Ulster Senior Football Championship semi-final: Cavan 1-14 Down 1-13
DOWN boss Paddy Tally blasted the “very controversial” penalty decision that helped haul Cavan back from the brink in yesterday’s dramatic Ulster Championship semi-final in Armagh.
The Mournemen were 10 points up at one stage following a blistering first half performance but, in the ultimate game of two halves, Tally’s side were reeled in as Cavan piled on the pressure after the break.
A major moment came early in the second half when Kevin McKernan picked the ball off the ground on the goal-line after Cavan substitute Conor Madden had batted the ball from the hands of Down ’keeper Rory Burns.
Martin Reilly fired home to reduce the deficit to four after referee Martin McNally, having consulted with the umpire behind the goal, awarded the penalty – leaving Tally furious.
“The game swung on the penalty, it was a very controversial call,” said the Galbally man.
“It was made by the umpire – the referee didn’t make a call on that and an umpire made a call on a penalty? I’ve never seen that before. I’ve never actually seen an umpire make a decision on a penalty.
“Linesmen don’t make calls, umpires don’t make calls, but we get an umpire today makes a call on a penalty? That’s not within the rules that an umpire makes a call on a penalty or not. That, to me, was a poor decision.
“That never happens, and that was a decisive moment in the game. At that stage we were still up by seven points and then the next thing the game’s back to four, you’re playing against the breeze and the whole momentum’s swung back.
“I’d really question that call.”
The Down boss admitted it was “devastating” to miss out an Ulster final place having been so much in control during the opening 35 minutes.
And although Ceilum Doherty rattled the Cavan net just three minutes in, other spurned goal chances for Caolan Mooney, Jerome Johnston and Conor Poland would ultimately come back to haunt them as the Breffnimen took over around centrefield.
“The game just kept going away and we couldn’t get a foothold in the second half.
“You have to give it to Cavan, they dominated the midfield, they were very strong on the kick-outs and we couldn’t get enough possession. Out of 12 of our kick-outs in the second half, they won 10 of them and that just gave them the platform.
“We knew that was going to be an issue and in the first half we were able to work around that, but in the second half they just got complete control and they were able to go very direct.”
Jubilant Breffni boss Mickey Graham urged reporters “don’t put a heart monitor on me” after watching his side produce another strong second half showing to advance to a second Ulster final in-a-row.
Just as against Monaghan and Antrim, Cavan were slow out of the blocks. Again, though, they got the job done – a repeat of their 2019 showdown with defending champions Donegal their reward back at the Athletic Grounds in Armagh on Sunday.
“What you see with these lads is what you get – they are never going to throw in the towel,” said Graham.
“A lot of teams that found themselves in the situation we found ourselves in the last three games, they might tap out. But these boys just keep going and going and going. And you have to admire them for that, it was just pure willpower from them today and they never gave up.
“It's a one-off shot for us [against Donegal] - we will be wrote off and rightly so. We are coming up against a different animal, a seasoned team and this is their ninth final in 10 years.
“If we perform as we have done in the last three games, then they will be out of sight by half-time. I just hope mentally and physically the boys can recover and the energy of an Ulster final will give them a big push.”
