In the last Ulster Minor Championship final at U18 level, Derry and Cavan served up a fitting finale with this high-scoring, entertaining contest played in almost perfect conditions in Clones yesterday, writes JP Graham.
The Oak Leafers were the more resilient and more imaginative side and were always able to respond any time that Cavan threatened.
They were never headed in the entire contest and the best that Cavan managed was being level at 1-1 to 0-4 after seven minutes.
Derry led at half-time by four points and while Cavan got the margin down to two on two occasions in the second-half, Derry were always in control.
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Man-of-the-match Padraig McGrogan had an excellent game in midfield and full-forward Lorcan McWilliams along with Ben McCarron and Declan Cassidy always posed a big threat.
Derry got off to a flying start and reeled off four quickfire points from Patrick Quigg, Lorcan McWilliams, Conleth McShane, and then Oisin Mcwilliams from a free.
The Breffni boys opened their account in the sixth minute with an opportunist goal by James Smith and they were level some 30 seconds later with a point by Cian Madden.
Derry responded with points apiece from Lorcan McWilliams and Ben McCarron.
And while Cavan pulled back one from a free by Oisin Pierson Derry reeled off five on the trot from Patrick Quigg (0-2), Declan Cassidy, Ben McCarron and Padraig McGrogan to open up a six-point lead.
Cavan battled back for points apiece by Patrick Lynch and Philip Rogers to reduce the margin to five before Lorcan McWilliams put Derry six in front on the half-hour.
Points apiece in stoppage time by substitute Tiarnan Reilly and Philip Rogers left the half-time scoreline at Derry 0-14, Cavan 1-7.
The Blues started the second-half well with a brace of points from Oisin Pierson to reduce the margin to two after 32 minutes, but by the 40th minute Derry had pushed their advantage out to five with points by Ben McCarron, substitute Tiarnan McHugh and Declan Cassidy.
Cavan were now thrown a lifeline in the 11th minute when Philip Rogers got the vital touch in a goalmouth scramble to reduce the margin to two again, but Derry’s response was immediate with points apiece by Patrick Quigg and Lorcan McWilliams to keep the margin at four entering the final quarter.
Cian Madden pulled back a point for Cavan.
Yet any chance they had of making it a close finish was dealt a severe blow as Derry registered 1-1 in the space of three minutes, the goal by Ben McCarron putting the Oak Leaf lads seven in front with the finish line in sight.
Sean Keogan and substitute John Cooke pulled back points apiece for Cavan to reduce the margin to five, but Derry finished the game out as they had started – on all-out attack.
Points apiece by substitutes Alex Doherty and Fergal Mortimer clinched a second minor championship title in three years to set-up an All-Ireland quarter-final with Sligo.
Cavan, meanwhile, will now face Galway in the last eight.
Derry: O Hartin; O McGill, C McCluskey, S McKeever; S McErlain, D Rafferty, C McShane (0-1); P Grogan (0-1), O McWilliam (0-1 free); P Quigg (0-4, 0-1 free), R Mullan, D Cassidy (0-3); P McCarron (1-3), L McWilliams (0-6, 0-2 frees), M McGrogan.
Subs: P McHugh (0-1) for M McGrogan, C Brown for R Mullan (h-t), A Doherty (0-1) for O McGill (38), M Bradley for D Cassidy (47), F Mortimer (0-1) for P Quigg (55), C Murphy for B McCarron (59).
Cavan: G O’Rourke; E Fortune, P Meade, K Brady; D Cusack, C Timoney, K Hendrick; R Patterson, J Smith (1-0); O Kiernan, C Madden (0-3), P Rogers (1-2); O Pierson 0-3, 0-2 frees), P Lynch (0-1), S Keogan (0-1).
Subs: J Cooke 0-1 for P Meade (21), T Reilly 0-1 for J Smith ( black card 23), P Nulty for K Hendrick (38), N McCabe for S Keogan (50), C Lynch for O Kiernan (51).
Referee: M McNally (Monaghan)
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DERRY boss Damian McErlain has warned his players that the pressure is on and the challenges will grow tougher with every step they take in the All-Ireland Minor Football Championship, writes Francis Mooney.
The Magherafelt man could find no fault with his team’s performance at Clones yesterday, but he wasted no time in bringing the players back down to earth after they had landed a second Ulster MFC title in three years.
The Oak Leafers face Connacht runners-up Sligo in the All-Ireland quarter-final in three weeks time.
“The quality goes up, so that’s the way it will have to be with ourselves,” he said.
“We want to be competitive there for sure. We go on now and we play Sligo next, a team we have played twice already this year actually,”
he said.
“But these boys are a fairly mature group, they’re ambitious and we have got to reset now and go at it. The standard goes up now.”
The young Oak Leafers played some sparkling football as they carved out a 1-22 to 2-12 win over Cavan at St Tiernach’s Park.
It was exhibition stuff at times, but the manager was less than happy with the two goals conceded.
“It’s a great achievement, the lads are really happy about it, the boys delivered on the day, took their scores,” he said.
“There was a couple of goals we wouldn’t be happy about, but the work ethic was great, we took some tremendous points there.”
But McErlain was not surprised that Cavan’s attack caused problems throughout the game.
“We weren’t surprised. They had very good forwards coming into the game, and we knew that,” he added.
On a baking hot day at Clones, Derry’s heroes ran themselves to a standstill.
“It was really suffocating heat, it was energy-sapping,” said McErlain.
“The likes of Declan Cassidy, who had an absolute blinder, we took him off with 10 or 15 minutes to go. That was the sort of shift we were getting.”
“All the way through the championship the squad has been massive.
“It was another hot day and we needed that freshness coming in and that quality coming in.
“Different players come in, and with subs coming in it’s difficult for manager to adjust their head as to what’s coming at them. It’s a good thing to have.”
