Red Hands crush Cavan to stroll into last eight

Tyrone 0-31  Cavan 0-18

THERE was absolutely no doubt about Tyrone’s total supremacy in this clash against Cavan as they marched into the All-Ireland SFC quarter-finals courtesy of a brilliant display that saw them record their highest-ever points total.

Now the stage is set for the All-Ireland quarter-finals after the Red Hands ruthlessly disposed of the Breffni side at Brewster Park on Sunday. Their 31 points tell just part of the story from a game which saw them produce an accomplished team performance.

One of the biggest cheers of the day was when news came through of Donegal’s win over Mayo in the other group game. It secured Tyrone’s place at the top of the table, and, with it, a valuable two-week break until the last eight clash.

It was an outcome which Tyrone certainly deserved. For their demolition of Donegal last month and then this display marks them down as real contenders for Sam Maguire honours as this season reaches its climax.

Most of the key indications pointed positively towards Tyrone maintaining their dominance following an impressive first half display. Nine points separated the teams at the break, a scoreline which reflected the Red Hand control of affairs in those opening 35 minutes or so.

It was Tyrone who grabbed the initiative when the dust settled following a heated enough start to the match. A foul on Michael McKernan resulted in him having to go off, but it was a minor enough blow considering that his replacement was Peter Harte.

Swapped points between Darragh Canavan and Cormac O’Reilly for Cavan suggested that this might be a close enough contest. The Breffni side equalised again minutes later. However, from then on, the speed, poise and scoring ability of Tyrone made a crucial difference.

That was due to Tyrone’s overall strength throughout the field. They dominated in terms of winning the kick-outs after a shaky enough start. Niall Morgan won a number of speculative lobs into the danger area by Cavan, while the attention and discipline of Kieran McGeary, Peter Teague and Padraig Hampsey provided them with the ideal foothold.

Up front, the darting attacking of Darragh Canavan, Ciaran Daly, Seanie O’Donnell and Mattie Donnelly began to create multiple scoring opportunities. As a result, the dividends were soon being yielded on the scoreboard where the Red Hands raced into a comprehensive advantage.

Between the 12th and 22nd minutes of that first half, they outscored Cavan by 0-8 to 0-1. Time and again, Tyrone’s vision and direct approach saw them make a big mark. Niall Morgan and Peter Harte recorded two-pointers, and there were a litany of well-taken scores to maintain that advantage.

The experienced Mattie Donnelly was raced in from the wing to score four, Niall Devlin forged forward for another and Seanie O’Donnell capitalised on good work from Peter Harte and Conn Kilpatrick to make the score 0-11 to 0-3.

This was the kind of dominance which Tyrone were seeking. While Cavan did battle back to some extent before half-time, there was no doubting the continued Red Hand dominance.

In contrast, Cavan’s impact was undermined by wides, balls dropped short and turnovers. They missed a number of two-pointers, and a great save from Niall Morgan after Dara McVeety had broken through further undermined the Breffni confidence.

Rory Brennan got forward for an easy two-pointer, Darren McCurry recorded two well-taken points and they finished that first half in a flourish when Kieran McGeary went forward to score after a fine interchange with Peter Harte.

A 0-17 to 0-8 interval advantage was fully deserved by Tyrone. But the big question on the resumption was whether Cavan could stage the kind of spirited revival that they now required to boost their chances of a place in the preliminary quarter-finals.

Tyrone, though, were in no mood to let things slip.

The opening minutes at the start of that second half saw them firmly maintain and enhance their control of proceedings. There were occasional moments when Cavan looked like threatening to score, but the work of Peter Teague, Rory Brennan, Conn Kilpatrick and Peter Harte kept them firmly at bay.

Points from Paddy Lynch and Cormac O’Reilly provided Cavan with a brief hope. But that flicker was quickly extinguished as Darren McCurry with three points, Ciaran Daly and Darragh Canavan all scored to leave them 0-22 to 0-9 ahead early in the second half.

Cavan’s accuracy continued to lead them astray, and the game overall lacked the energy and commitment which was so evident in the opening 35 minutes. But that didn’t worry Malachy O’Rourke or his players as they cruised with a combination of firm passing, good attacking play and well-taken scores.

It was turning into a procession as Darragh Canavan and Kieran McGeary stretched the Tyrone advantage. While the tie had still around 20 minutes to run, a 0-24 to 0-9 lead for the Red Hands meant that the issue was effectively now decided.

The introduction of Conor Meyler prompted one of the largest cheers of the day as he made his first return to the Red Hands for two years. He was quickly on the ball, but it was Cavan who were now enjoying the best of the exchanges.

Five points in quick succession put a more respectable look on the scoreboard for them. Paddy Lynch, Ryan O’Neill with a two-pointer and Ruairi Curran reduced the deficit to eight points and they briefly seemed capable of making further inroads into that sizeable deficit.

Ultimately, though, there was no need for any real concern from a Tyrone viewpoint. Some good defending from Peter Teague, Aidan Clarke, Rory Brennan and Padraig Hampsey snuffed out the Cavan hopes. Up front, too, the ship was settled when Darren McCurry increased their total to a record 0-28.

Further scores courtesy of Eoin McElholm and Darragh Canavan confirmed Tyrone’s place in the All-Ireland quarter-final, where they will pose formidable opposition from whoever emerges from next weekend’s preliminary quarter-final clashes.

Scorers

Tyrone: Darren McCurry (0-9,1tpf,3f) , Darragh Canavan (0-5,2f) , Mattie Donnelly (0-4), Rory Brennan (0-3,1tp)t Niall Morgan (0-2,tpf), Peter Harte (0-2,tp), Kieran McGeary (0-2), Seanie O’Donnell (0-1), Ciaran Daly (0-1), Niall Devlin (0-1), Eoin McElholm (0-1)

Cavan:  Paddy Lynch (0-9, 2tpf, 3f,145), Cormac O’Reilly (0-4), Ryan O’Neill (0-2,tp), Ruairi Curran (0-1), Oisin Brady (0-1), Sean McEvoy (0-1)

Teams

Tyrone: Niall Morgan, Cormac Quinn, Padraig Hampsey, Niall Devlin, Michael McKernan, Rory Brennan, Peter Teague. Brian Kennedy, Conn Kilpatrick, Seanie O’Donnell, Kieran McGeary, Ciaran Daly, Darren McCurry, Mattie Donnelly, Darragh Canavan. Subs – Peter Harte for M McKernan (3mins) , Aidan Clarke for N Devlin (30), Eoin McElholm for M Donnelly (48), Conor Meyler for K McGeary (55), Ben McDonnell for C Kilpatrick (65)

Cavan:  Liam Brady, Niall Carolan, Killian Brady, Cian Reilly, Brian O’Connell, Ciaran Brady, Padraig Faulkner, Oisin Kiernan, Evan Crowe, Gerard Smith, Dara McVeety, Oisin Brady, Cormac O’Reilly, Paddy Lynch, Cian Madden. Subs – Sean McEvoy for K Brady (32mins) , Ryan O’Neill for G Smith (50), Ruairi Curran for O Kiernan (53), Luke Fortune for C Reilly (65)

Referee – Paddy Neilan, Roscommon.