MORE than a week after Hallowe’en, but it was still surprising that this turned out to be such a damp squib.
Credit to Errigal Ciaran, of course, for extinguishing any Cargin hopes with a dominant display, but this was a match for which the Antrim champions never really sparked, far less sparkled.
In front from the opening minute, Errigal were never pegged back, and really should have run out much more convincing winners on the scoreboard.
Poor shooting from the Tyrone team, with seven wides before the break and another in the second half, meant they never streaked massively clear.
However, Cargin were barely getting any scoring opportunities, never mind missing them, so they never looked like battling back. Indeed, they didn’t register a single wide in the first half, and only two in the second period, as they lived off scraps.
That was due to a traditional strength of the Toome men instead being displayed by Errigal, winning break ball and turning over possession, displaying ravenous hunger for the ball. All their hard work made this look an easy victory.
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The early moments were especially good for Errigal for other reasons – not only going ahead, but doing so because the referee penalised an off-the-ball tug on Darragh inside 30 seconds, with Tommy Canavan converting the free.
The Monaghan official was consistent, punishing a similar foul by Errigal in the middle third, but another Tommy free followed for another off-the-ball pull, this time on Ruairi Canavan.
When Ruairi won a loose ball in the fourth minute and sent it over the bar his side were already three points up.
With the Cargin corner-backs aware that any indiscretions against the Canavan brothers were likely to be spotted, the dynamic duo were able to link attacks effectively.
With their wing-backs and midfielders pushing forward too, Errigal were carving out chance after chance – but, luckily for Cargin, then began missing them.
At the other end, though, the Ballygawley men their match-ups right and also hunted in packs when their opponents did get possession.
Cargin were penned in, so tried to go long to their big men up front, but Ben McDonnell was sticking closely to Eunan Quinn with the experienced Aidan McCrory on the giant Pat Shivers.
Indeed Cargin’s opening score, with a quarter of an hour played, came from their goalkeeper John McNabb, stepping up to boom over from distance.
McDonnell soon matched that, but for the first time a contest broke out. Cargin centre half-back Sean O’Neill struck another uplifting score and the free-taking of Tomas McCann kept them in touch, just 0-4 to 0-6 behind after 25 minutes.
It seemed like Errigal might rue those series of misses, but then they finished the half very strongly, scoring all sorts: following a cross-field kick-pass, then after a hand-pass exchange; from a free, then pouncing when a Cargin back slipped while trying to collect a kick-out. Skipper Darragh came in for some ‘treatment’, but he scored the first and last of those.
Trailing by six points, 0-10 to 0-4, unsurprisingly Cargin boss Ronan Devlin made two half-time changes, sending on Paul McCann and Benen Kelly for David Johnston and Justin Crozier, soon followed by Conan Jonston for Quinn. McCann made a decent impression, but Errigal were still on top.
Their all-round effort was exemplified by Ruairi Canavan striking the upright at one end one minute, the next tracking back to dispossess his opposite number Conhuir Johnston – and fist-pumping as if he had scored.
Cargin also struck the woodwork twice with high attempts but it wasn’t to be their day in any way, with not a single score from play by their starting six forwards.
The pattern of the game, with Errigal’s lead slowly extending to eight points by the three-quarter mark, made it obvious that Cargin would need to find their opponents’ net.
Goalkeeper McNabb had launched an up-and-under as early as the fifth minute of the second half, but that was punched clear. The likes of McCrory, McDonnell, Odhran Robinson got back to protect their defensive square from further hopeful high balls and got even more numbers deep to safely survive several scrambles.
The versatility, adaptability, and all-round ability of the Ballygawley men was much too much for Cargin. McDonnell pushed out at times to win ball around midfield, Joe Oguz rampaged forward for a second score from play, and also set up Ciaran McGinley to match that tally, with the wing-forward having put in a great defensive shift.
Cargin, of course, never kept trying, never gave up, scoring twice in added time – but Errigal cancelled those out, through sub Mark Kavanagh, then – fittingly – Ruairi Canavan having the final say with a left-footed beauty from the left wing.
Errigal now set their sights on reaching a fifth Ulster final, but a first for 22 years. On this showing they can look forward with some confidence.
Cargin: J McNabb (0-1); K O’Boyle, R Gribbin (0-1); J Crozier, S O’Neill (0-1), J Laverty (capt.), J Gribbin; K McShane, J Carron; D Johnston, M McCann, T McCann (0-6, 0-5 frees, 0-1 45); Conhuir Johnston, E Quinn, P Shivers.
Substitutes: B Kelly for Crozier (h-t); P McCann for D Johnston (h-t); Conan Johnston for Quinn (37); R Devlin for Kelly (46); T Shivers for Conhuir Johnston (50).
Errigal Ciaran: D McAnenly; Cormac Quinn, B McDonnell (0-1), A McCrory; P Og McCartan (0-1), N Kelly, T Colhoun (0-1); O Robinson, J Oguz (0-2); P Traynor, P Harte, T Canavan (0-2 frees), C McGinley (0-2); R Canavan (0-5, 0-3 frees), D Canavan (capt.) (0-2).
Substitutes: Ciaran Quinn for Colhoun (45); M Kavanagh (0-1) for Traynor (45); P McGirr for T Canavan (51); E Kelly for Robinson (51); R McCrory for D Canavan (57).
Referee: Martin McNally (Monaghan)
