Under-20s chop down Oak Leafers to reach Ulster Final

Derry 0-19  Tyrone 3-12

AS an innately partisan reporter it’s all too easy to get carried away with things, but this really was sublime stuff from the Tyrone U20s, pummelling a vaunted Derry side into near-total submission in last Wednesday’s Ulster Championship semi-final at Owenbeg.

A late onslaught of Derry scores made for a nervy enough final few minutes, but more or less the entirety of the second-half belonged squarely to the Red Hands, whose ability to pick holes in the opposition defence and pounce for goals made all the difference on the scoreboard.

To set the scene, Tyrone were 3/1 odds for this one. Yes, the team is stacked with members of last year’s All-Ireland U20 winning team, but Derry won the last two national titles at minor level and had been utterly imperious en route to last Wednesday’s game, racking up ridiculous tallies and finishing top of their respective group almost at their leisure.

A random but relevant fact: five of the team that played against Tyrone are starting members of present Derry senior champions Newbridge, so they’re a serious, serious outfit and it was going to take one almighty effort to beat them.

Thankfully that’s exactly what transpired. In the first-half, Derry looked the more threatening team and rattled off five points on the spin to open up a 0-9 to 0-5 lead with 29 minutes on the clock.

They’d played some good stuff – Tommy Rogers and Danny McDermott made hay in the middle sector while their half-forward line of Eamon and Sean Young (brothers, by the way) and Johnny McGuckian were beginning to cause Tyrone real bother.

Yet for all their good work, they led by a solitary point at the break thanks to a couple of late scores from Tyrone full-forward Ruairi McCullagh (a badly needed tap-over free followed up by a two-point free in the dying embers of the half).

There were a few tactical tweaks, yes: they applied much more pressure on restarts without neglecting their defensive duties; then their half-backs, exemplified by a sensational performance by Caolan Donnelly, showed much more dash and adventure, and well, Derry had no answer to all that Tyrone brought to the table.

And now, as a result of it all, we stand only two days out from their looming Ulster Championship final against Donegal. It will be their second meeting of the campaign – Donegal were full value for a 3-16 to 0-17 group stage win at Ballybofey a few weeks back and they’re a damn fine team, but you know what they say – you learn most from defeats and Tyrone seem to have tightened up considerably at the back on the evidence of their three outings in the mean-time.

So let’s go back to the start. Derry, who were absent two key players, namely captain James Sargent and Fionn McEldowney, chalked up the first score of the game via  midfielder Tommy Rogers in front of a bumper crowd at Owenbeg.

It was evident that Tyrone were adopting a kicking strategy, which they used to good effect for their opening score of the game, Eoin McElholm (who scored 1-3, all from play), firing over the bar mere seconds after the ball was turned over at the other end of the pitch.

Matthew Quinn knocked over their second  after more expansive build-up play, before Liam Og Mossey opened up a two-point lead for the visitors.

Derry had plenty of possession but they were getting bogged down in attack with Conor Devlin, to cite just one example, proving a hugely sticky man-marker, though they got the next two scores of the game, a Oisin Doherty free and a beautiful individual effort from Eamon Young, jinking his way through the Tyrone defence.

The teams traded further scores, including an eye-catching effort from distance from Tyrone midfielder Conor O’Neill, leading into a period of Derry supremacy, where they rattled off five points in a ten-minute spell – and they nearly got themselves a goal only for Conor McAneney’s first of his three saves on the evening.

Their good work was almost undone, however, when Tyrone got three points right at the end of the half, including a two-point free from Ruairi McCullagh, leaving the scoreboard reading 0-9 to 0-8 in Derry’s favour at the interval.

All to play for then, and Tyrone seized the initiative within seconds of the restart, Noah Grimes and Matthew Quinn playing provider for rampaging midfielder Cónán Devlin, who bundled the ball across the line after his shot was initially parried.

And it really and truly set the tone for a sensational second-half performance from Tyrone, who now led by 1-8 to 0-9.

Derry sub Conall Higgins did well to get the next score, preceding an excellent effort from the on-song Eoin McElholm, who showed real determination and skill to cut inside from the end-line and maintain Tyrone’s advantage.

Half-forward Conall Sheehy got his name on the scoresheet after a Derry free went awry, and then the Red Hands opened up a four-point advantage, Conor O’Neill with a smashing finish to the net after intricate yet purposeful build-up play from Callum Daly, who was among those who had a really big second-half, and Ben Hughes and Noah Grimes.

Tyrone were really starting to dominate with Ruairi McCullagh having a big say in the middle of the park, while the oustanding Caolan Donnelly scored two points from play in between a two-point free from Derry’s Ger Dillon. Generally speaking, Derry’s one-dimensional running game was meat-and-drink to a hard-working and well-drilled Tyrone defence.

Conor McAneney was on hand to prevent a certain goal with an excellent save from Eamon Young, while Tyrone were much more clinical down the other end with Eoin McElholm almost breaking the net with a ruthlessly taken goal, opening up a 3-12 t0 0-14 lead as injury time approached.

That surely was that but Derry, having been thoroughly out-played for the previous half hour, summoned one last effort in injury time, rattling off a number of scores to leave Tyrone fans living on their nerves, if only for a moment. It was a case of too little, too late, and Tyrone deservedly march on to another Ulster final.

Scorers

Derry: Eamon Young (0-5, 0-2f), Ruairi Forbes (0-4, 1tp), Sean Young and Conall Higgins (0-2), Ger Dillon (0-2, 1tpf), Tommy Rogers, Danny McDermott, Oisin Doherty and Conleth McGrogan (0-1 each)

Tyrone: Eoin McElholm (1-3), Conor O’Neill (1-1), Conal Devlin (1-0), Ruairi McCullagh (0-3, 1f, 1tpf), Caolan Donnelly (0-2), Matthew Quinn, Liam Og Mossey and Conall Sheehy (0-1 each)

Teams

Derry: Karl Campbell, Rory Small, Conleth McGrogan, Padraig Haran, Luke Grant, Patrick McMullan, Ruairi Forbes, Tommy Rogers, Danny McDermott, Eamon Young, Sean Young, Johnny McGuckian, Jude Bryson, Ryan McNicholl, Oisin Doherty. Subs: Conall Higgins for McNicholl, Ger Dillon for Doherty, Cathaoir Bradley for McGuckian

Tyrone: Conor McAneney, Fiachra Nelis, Ben Hughes, Conor Devlin, Callum Daly, Joey Clarke, Caolan Donnelly, Conan Devlin, Conor O’Neill, Conall Sheehy, Eoin McElholm, Matthew Quinn, Noah Grimes, Ruairi McCullagh, Liam Og Mossey. Subs: Shea McDermott for Grimes; Shane McCaul for Daly, Conor Holmes for R McCullagh