Cavan 3-07 Tyrone 0-16
Following on from the thriller in Castlebar last night, Cavan and Tyrone served up another provincial cracker in Clones today in which the sides could not separated in the finish.
Two first half goals put Cavan one point in front at half-time of this Ulster SFC semi-final but Tyrone hunted for scores in the second half and a flurry of points enabled them to take a somewhat commanding lead heading into the final stages of the game.
And with a three point lead behind them and a goal chance for the taking, Tyrone really should have secured a victory in the concluding five minutes of the contest. A deft chip over the Cavan defence from Ronan O'Neill, presented Padraig McNulty with a one on one situation, but the resultant shot ricocheted off Cavan keeper Raymond Galligan, when it should have been settling in the bottom corner of the net.
Weird one - last three times Tyrone have conceded three or more goals in champ has resulted in 0 defeats - Down (03, 14) and Cavan (16) #GAA
— Niall McCoy (@McCoyNiall) June 19, 2016
And credit to Cavan, they persisted in looking for the equaliser, which came from David Givney as the game approached injury time. A dangerous ball dropped in to the Tyrone goalmouth and Givney jumped highest to palm it into the net.
But further drama was to follow. Tyrone were gifted three additional opportunities to take a one point win. Niall Sludden's slice shot off the outside of his boot tailed the wrong side of the post and was adudged to have taken a touch from a Cavan player on the way, which led to a '45.
Darren McCurry had previously converted a '45 but his second attempt failed to recreate the accuracy of the first. And with the score still reading 0-16 to 3-07, Sludden found himself in possession of the ball in another scoreable position but his shot lacked the power to split the posts.
The two sides will meet again in Clones in a fortnight.
Still shaking. Lucky escape for Tyrone. Cavan lucky but dogged and did not give up. Classic Tyrone lethargy in first half. #TYRvCAV #GAA
— The Plath Diaries (@theplathdiaries) June 19, 2016
Some ending to that one. #tyrone thought they had it won. Fair play tp #cavan.. Ulster always puts on a good show! #UlsterSFC @TheSundayGame
— Antoin Fletcher (@Antoinfletch) June 19, 2016
Really good game between Tyrone and Cavan. After Galway's surprise win last night is the championship finally coming to life?
— Green Scouser (@Green_Scouser) June 19, 2016
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