Football

Tyrone take plenty as Dublin retain unbeaten run

Tyrone's Padraig Hampsey is surrounded by Dublin's Eric Lowndes, John Small and Paul Mannion during the Allianz Football League clash at Croke Park. Picture by Philip Walsh 
Tyrone's Padraig Hampsey is surrounded by Dublin's Eric Lowndes, John Small and Paul Mannion during the Allianz Football League clash at Croke Park. Picture by Philip Walsh  Tyrone's Padraig Hampsey is surrounded by Dublin's Eric Lowndes, John Small and Paul Mannion during the Allianz Football League clash at Croke Park. Picture by Philip Walsh 

Allianz Football League Division One: Dublin 0-10 Tyrone 1-7

EVEN the moral victory was halved as Dublin fought back from five down to maintain their unbeaten run, but Tyrone got pretty much everything else they came to Croke Park for.

Two years ago it was a late fisted Dean Rock goal that salvaged a League draw for the Dubs, and this time it was his beautiful 50-metre free from the sodden turf on a wintry night in the capital.

It kept their 31-match unbeaten League and Championship run intact and from Jim Gavin’s perspective, their recovery from five down in the second half to salvage it will have contented, if not quite pleased.

There was so much to take from it for Tyrone. Their last trip to Croke Park was not only forgettable in its result but moreso the performance. They were limp against Mayo.

This was more like them. Bodies behind the ball, tackling with a ferocity and discipline and then bang, into the breach.

Their counter-attacking game suffered an early blow when they lost Tiernan McCann, who had started so brightly, to a black card after just 16 minutes.

A decision that didn’t exactly amuse Mickey Harte, who when asked about it retorted: “I don’t make much of the black card ever. It’s so inconsistently administered that it’s frustrating.

“To think that Tiernan McCann got one tonight and I saw other events on that pitch which were, in my eyes, worse than what he did. It’s the inconsistency of the application that frustrates me and the players.”

Still, it didn’t impede them too much. Wind-assisted they were and the visitors went in 0-5 to 0-3 to the good at half-time, but the lead should have been wider. Much wider.

Eight wides in the first half (and five more in the second) wasn’t even the full story, for they gave Stephen Cluxton a few handy catches as well. The rashness in their shot selection was the sole barrier to a match-winning half-time lead.

But aside from that, they would have been mighty pleased. The turnover rate was phenomenal. Dublin, surely without a few star names, carried the ball into tackles and repeatedly had it dislodged.

Tyrone broke at pace. They broke with numbers. Early on they broke with the kick, playing on the fact that Dublin’s full-back line was two-against-two in the opening quarter.

Jim Gavin wasn’t long in shutting that particular door once Conor Meyler put Tyrone 0-3 to 0-1 ahead after 12 minutes, his score coming off an intercepted Stephen Cluxton kickout.

Declan McClure was a late replacement and his fine shift at midfield, allied to Colm Cavanagh’s aerial work, will give Tyrone hope for any potential summer meeting. Mickey Harte’s side had the better of it in the air.

At the other end, Ronan McNamee was outstanding at full-back. Were it not for Niall Sludden’s magnificent display, the Aghyaran man would have been a shoo-in for man of the match for his tenacity against Eoghan O’Gara.

Dublin struggled to make any attacking headway against a wall of 13 white shirts. They were 30 seconds from registering their lowest score in a half of Gavin’s reign before Jonny Cooper’s swing of the left boot equalled the 0-3 Derry kept them to in a very similar dogfight two years ago.

Two superb Sludden scores pushed Tyrone two clear before Cooper made it 0-5 to 0-3 in the third minute of first half stoppage time. Dublin’s only other scorer from play in the first half was another member of their full-back line, Philly McMahon.

Once Sean Cavanagh had been introduced and Declan McClure had put three in it on the restart, Rock was handed a chance from the penalty spot after Sean Cavanagh’s desperate lunge was adjudged enough to tumble Paul Mannion.

But the Ballymun man’s spot-kick was weak and at a lovely height for Niall Morgan, who had the hard work done once he guessed right.

The heat started to increase on the field (it certainly didn’t off it) as Niall Scully and Justin McMahon were booked after tangling seconds after Kevin McManamon’s introduction.

Tyrone seemed to have taken a major step towards victory when a move started by corner-forward Mark Bradley receiving a kickout on his own 21’ ended with corner-back Aidan McCrory poking home the game’s only goal.

1-6 to 0-4 ahead, their defensive effort up to that point suggested they’d have enough to hang on but Bradley’s dismissal four minutes later made it awfully tough.

Mickey Harte suggested that he would appeal after the Killyclogher man was given a straight red following an off-the-ball tussle with Jonny Cooper, who received yellow.

Tyrone's Mark Bradley receives his marching orders during the Allianz Football League clash at Croke Park. Picture Philip Walsh 
Tyrone's Mark Bradley receives his marching orders during the Allianz Football League clash at Croke Park. Picture Philip Walsh  Tyrone's Mark Bradley receives his marching orders during the Allianz Football League clash at Croke Park. Picture Philip Walsh 

“You can’t afford to be down to 14 men against the best team in the country over the last three or four years. You’re put to the pin of your collar to deal with them with 15,” said the Tyrone boss.

“We could ill-afford that. I don’t think Mark Bradley would be the kind of guy to start instances like that either, he got the wrong end of the stick I feel. There was a bit of schemozzle but I don’t think what he did was a sending-off offence.”

Against the wind, that put Tyrone under serious pressure. The running game was inviting more pressure, and the turnover trend swung as the blue shirts started to nab ball after ball.

Dublin hit five points in ten minutes, answered only by the piercing Sludden firing his third of the night. The Dromore man also tried to convince the umpires he’d gotten a fourth but they engaged the technology, which showed his shot had gone straight over the point and therefore wide.

Six added minutes were called with only one point in it, and the equaliser became inevitable. Joe McQuillan’s award of a free to Michael Fitzsimons looked very soft but Tyrone couldn’t complain too much, having enjoyed a monopoly on the debatable calls.

Dean Rock kept his nerve superbly from 50 yards to save the seemingly never-ending unbeaten run. But Tyrone will feel they showed enough to suggest they could be the ones to cap it come the summer.

Dublin: S Cluxton; J Cooper (0-1), P McMahon (0-1), M Fitzsimons; J McCarthy, J Small, J McCaffrey; B Fenton (0-1), MD Macauley; C Basquel, C Kilkenny (0-1), N Scully; D Rock (0-6, 0-6frees), E O'Gara, P Mannion

Subs: E Lowndes for Basquel (h-t), K McManamon for Macauley (43), C Reddin for Mannion (50), D Byrne for McCaffrey (50), J Whelan for Small (56), D Daly for Cooper (59)

Yellow card: J Small (10), N Scully (42), J Cooper (49), E O’Gara (75)

Tyrone: N Morgan; P Hampsey, R McNamee, C McCarron; T McCann, A McCrory (1-0), J McMahon; C Cavanagh, D McClure (0-1); C Meyler (0-1), N Sludden (0-3), P Harte (0-2, 0-2f); M Bradley, C McShane, D McCurry

Subs: S Cavanagh for McShane (h-t), J Monroe for McMahon (47), D Mulgrew for Meyler (50), C McCann for McCurry (62), P McNulty for McClure (72)

Black card replacement: R Brennan for McCann (16)

Blood replacement: R O’Neill for Sludden (28-30)

Yellow cards: J McMahon (42)

Red card: M Bradley (49)

Referee: J McQuillan (Cavan)

Allianz: for more information visit www.allianz.ie