Allianz National Football League Division One round one: Dublin 1-13 Armagh 2-15
From Andy Watters at Croke Park
THE Sam Maguire isn’t handed out in January but Orchard county fans will have dreamt of the rich promise of the Championship summer after Armagh out-played Dublin at Croke Park on Saturday night.
This was supposed to be the acid test for them but Armagh passed it with flying colours and motored into a 2-8 to 0-5 lead at the interval after first half majors from the superb Rian O’Neill and Jason Duffy’s chip over Evan Comerford.
The Dubs out-scored them 1-8 to seven points in the second half but there was no Armagh collapse; no loss of concentration or belief and that too augurs well for their prospects this season.
The Orchardmen are on the way up. As for Dublin, talk about splitting the county in two will die down for a while.
“It’s not the start we would have wanted, that’s for sure,” said manager Dessie Farrell.
“We knew it was going to be really tough and we knew Armagh would have had this game in their sights from a long way off and would have had a lot of work done. You could see they well-organised and very fit. They’re a proper side and they were deserving winners.
“It’s disappointing, but on the positive we got some new blood in and, ultimately, that’s part of where we’re at now in terms of the League over the next number of weeks and waiting on other players to come back from injury.”
Dublin travel to Tralee next week with a team packed with young players trying to make their mark at inter-county level and filling the boots of the Allstars who went before them.
“It was difficult for some of them to come in tonight when we were six or eight points down and try to make a difference,” said Farrell.
“But that’s where these players need to be tested. It was a frenetic pace and it was a great baptism for young players and, as we move on, if they’re capable of stepping up that’s what they’re going to encounter as they go.
“I was very impressed with Armagh and when the League fixtures were announced, I had no doubt that this was going to be a really tough opener. It’s not going to be easy next week either but that’s where we’re at.”
It’s safe to say that the Dubs are in transition and only now, perhaps, will the golden generation – Connolly, Cluxton, McMahon, Brogan, Flynn, McCaffrey, McManamon, McAuley etc - they enjoyed for a decade get the credit they deserve.
Nothing lasts forever in sport and, on Saturday night’s evidence, Dublin’s Leinster rivals will sense that their provincial championship could be up for grabs again. However, as Kieran McGeeney pointed out, results in the early months of the year are often long forgotten when the Championship comes around.
“I’m sure Dublin will look at some of the mistakes they made and they’ll bounce back and they’ll be stronger come the summer because of tonight,” said the Armagh manager.
McGeeney had his homework done for Saturday night and he set his team up to man-mark Dublin’s inside forwards Ryan Basquel and Cormac Costello and establish a defensive line across the Armagh 45 with a deeper line covering behind.
Dublin couldn’t break them down and the ball was forced out to the wings. The men in blue didn’t trust themselves to shoot from long range and the scores that used to come from loops and darting runs didn’t materialise.
Armagh already led 4-3 when the facets of their gameplan clicked with harmonious productivity. First there was the turnover, then a break led by the artful Rory Grugan who declined the obvious handpass and instead kicked to Aidan Nugent in space on the right wing. In a flash, Nugent drilled a brilliant long ball to targetman Rian O’Neill and the Crossmaglen full-forward, one-on-one with Comerford, applied a superb finish.
Armagh never looked back.
O’Neill turned provider for the second goal. His pass found Duffy in space and he jinked around John Small and then chipped Comerford to leave it 2-5 to 0-5. Armagh added three more points – two from Grugan and a superb score from the left corner from O’Neill – to leave it 2-8 to 0-5 at the break.
Dean Rock, brought on late in the first half after Costello had gone off injured, nailed an early free after the resumption but Dublin could find no fluency and there were two wides (the final total was 14) before Cameron McCormack reduced the gap to seven.
Armagh remained composed and after Jarly Og Burns, who carried the ball forward with pace and purpose throughout the game, was fouled O’Neill’s free restored the visitors’ efficient dominance.
Niall Scully fisted a score for the Dubs but Lee Gannon’s indisciplined barge on Tiarnan Kelly allowed Grugan to add another free and then Niall Rowland and substitute Stefan Campbell did the spadework for Connaire Mackin – as good in the second half as his brother Ciaran had been in the first – to surge forward and leave it 2-11 to 0-8.
Campbell got on the scoresheet himself minutes later. He was one of three subs to score as Armagh finished the game out by taking advantage of the gaping holes Dublin left at the back as they attempted to get back into the game.
Lorcan O’Dell did manage a goal – via touches of both Mackin brothers – with 10 minutes to go but Niall Grimley and Greg McCabe points ensured that there would be no late drama and a joyous Orchard county roar, unheard in Croke Park for many years, greeted the final whistle. Armagh dream again.
Dublin: E Comerford; L Gannon, D Byrne, E Murchan; T Lahiff, B Howard (0-1), J Small; B Fenton, E O Conghaile; S Bugler (0-2), C Kilkenny (0-1), N Scully (0-1); A Byrne, C Costello (0-3, 0-1 free), R Basquel
Subs: R McGarry for A Byrne (16), D Rock (0-3 frees) for Costello (30), C McCormack (0-1) for O Conghaile (HT), L O’Dell (1-1) for Basquel (51), S McMahon for Murchan (68)
Yellow cards: Basquel (42), J Small (65)
Armagh: B Hughes; P Burns, A Forker, A McKay; Connaire Mackin (0-1), N Rowland, J Og Burns; Ciaran Mackin, B Crealey; J Hall, R Grugan (1-4, 0-1 free), T Kelly (0-1); J Duffy (1-1), R O’Neill (1-4, 0-1 free), A Nugent (0-1)
Subs: N Grimley (0-1) for Crealey (35), S Campbell (0-1) for Hall (HT), G McCabe (0-1) for Rowland (52), R McQuillan for Duffy (59), M Shields for McQuillan (62), S Sheridan for O’Neill (78)
Yellow cards: R O’Neill (2), Hall (29)
Referee: F Kelly (Longford)
