Armagh 1-18
Kerry 1-16
AET
GIVEN THE WEEKEND THAT was in it, you can easily envisage the effect that thousands of Orangemen marching through Leinster to claim the spoils against the establishment, and how that felt.
Armagh have made it to the fifth All Ireland final in their history, following the teams of 1953, 1977, 2002 and 2003. For the last two, Kieran McGeeney was their captain, leader and north star.
Now, he is their manager. The effect remains the same. Over the past ten years he has managed to keep an astonishing number of players committed to a cause instead of drifting off. And in recent seasons there has been nothing there for them but cruel heartache.
At half time it looked like the story wasn’t for changing.
In the first half, Kerry looked as if they were just operating on a higher plane. Their tackling was crisp, they were forcing turnovers and their shooting was economical with 10 scores for 12 chances.
Armagh by contrast looked as if the occasion was at that. Six scores from 15 chances, sloppy efforts and getting pinged for steps and charging offences. The Kerry lead of 0-10 to 0-6 was fitting and appropriate.
Once Kerry were back on the pitch, Armagh took their sweet time. They emerged, the speaker blared out David Bowie, and then they let themselves dance.
The first ten minutes of the half, Armagh won 0-3 to 0-1. They forced wides from Paul Geaney and Brian ÓBeaglaíocht but got lucky when Sean O’Shea set up Tom O’Sullivan for a goal chance that he blazed wide.
A few minutes later, disaster for Armagh. David Clifford took a ball on the loop, his shot was drifting wide of the goal but Diarmuid O’Connor spiked the ball back into the centre for Paul Murphy to slap to the net.
That was on 46 minutes.
Armagh’s response was to hit 1-5 between then and the end of the game.
Stefan Campbell, on at half time, was making an impression with huis running power. He was fouled for a Conor Turbitt free. Then Rian O’Neill steered over a brave shot that oozed leadership qualities.
There was a sense though that they needed a slice of luck. Luck has never been their friend in recent times.
On 55 minutes, another O’Neill effort was dropping short. Kerry goalkeeper Shane Ryan looked to have it dealt with but while he rose to smother it into the bread basket, it hopped off his chest.
Barry McCambridge reacted first, punching it to the tiny space between the goalpost and stanction that wasn’t squared off by Kerry players.
Paudie Clifford replied with a point but it felt a mere interruption to the flow of momentum.
Up stepped Campbell to come off a loop and kick a point with seven minutes to go. Two minutes later he bravely took possession just inside the ‘D’ and even though Gavin White was hanging out of him, still squeezed his shot over.
Level.
Code red for Armagh. This is the team that have been labelled and mocked. The side that have lost the last two Ulster finals to Derry and Donegal, on penalties. The side that lost the last two All Ireland quarter finals to Galway and Monaghan, on penalties.
Immediately after the second point, goalkeeper Ryan made an infringement. Referee David Gough ordered a throw-up ball. It ended in Armagh hands and O’Neill pointed again. Armagh were now in the lead with two minutes left.
Oisín O’Neill had the chance to clinch it. He hit a poor wide. His story wasn’t written yet, though. In the face of relentless pressure, turnovers were occurring every minute. Aidan Nugent was the victim of one and after a long patient build up, Kerry sub Dylan Geaney squared it up on 70 minutes.
Onto extra time.
Armagh put on Jarly Óg Burns and placed him in midfield. He immediately launched himself into the fray and opened the scoring in the third minute.
At this time, the lack of road-testing for Kerry became apparent. The side that looked so well conditioned in the first half now looked exhausted. Poor wides from David Clifford and Sean O’Shea just deflated them.
Another Burns run put Conor Turbitt in the clear to stretch the lead to two.
After the quick break, Ross McQuillan made it three to Armagh.
The old Kerry pride showed with two defiant points from Cillian Burke and Paudie Clifford. But when Sean O’Brien was turned over in the Armagh half, a final counterattack was still in their weaponry. Turbitt – who had been taken off and was back on again, outpaced the retreating Kerry defence to handpass over the bar.
55,548 were in the crowd. The vast majority of them were Armagh fans. They went bananas.
And the county will be an official state of bananas for the next fortnight.
Scorers for Armagh: Conor Turbitt 0-5 (3f), Barry McCambridge 1-0, Rian O’Neill 0-3, Niall Grimley, Aidan Forker, Stefan Campbell 0-2 each, Peter McGrane, Ross McQuillan, Jarly Óg Burns 0-1 each, Rory Grugan 0-1f.
Scorers for Kerry: David Clifford 0-4 (2f, 1 mark), Sean O’Shea 0-4 (1f, 1x 45), Paudie Clifford 0-3, Paul Murphy 1-0, Diarmuid O’Connor, Tony Brosnan, Dara Moynihan, Cillian Burke, Dylan Geaney 0-1 each.
Armagh
1. Blaine Hughes (Carrickcruppin)
2. Paddy Burns (Burren) 3. Aaron McKay (Dromintee) 4. Peter McGrane (Ballyhegan)
5. Barry McCambridge (Clann Eireann) 6. Tiernan Kelly (Clann Eireann) 7. Aidan Forker (Maghery)
8. Niall Grimley (Madden) 9. Ben Crealey (Maghery)
10. Oisín Conaty (Tír nan Óg) 11. Rian O’Neill (Crossmaglen) 12. Joe McElroy (Armagh Harps)
13. Rory Grugan (Ballymacnab) 14. Andrew Murnin (Naomh Pól) 15. Conor Turbitt (Clann Eireann)
Subs:
22. Stefan Campbell (Clann na Gael) for McGrane (HT)
18. Jason Duffy (Cullyhanna) for Conaty (49)
20. Aidan Nugent (Cullyhanna) for Crealey (57)
24. Ross McQuillan (Cullyhanna) for Forker (59)
21. Oisin O’Neill (Crossmaglen) for Murnin (62)
25. Jarly Óg Burns (Silverbridge) for Kelly (ET 1)
23. Shane McPartlan (Clann na Gael) for Turbitt (ET 1)
15. Conor Turbitt for Nugent (ET 10)
10. Conaty for Grugan (ET 15)
Kerry
1. Shane Ryan (Rathmore)
2. Paul Murphy (Rathmore) 3. Jason Foley (Ballydonoghue) 4. Tom O’Sullivan (Dingle)
5. Brian ÓBeaglaíoch (An Ghaeltacht) 6. Tadhg Morley (Templenoe) 7. Gavin White (Dr Crokes)
8. Diarmuid O’Connor (Na Gaeil) 9. Joe O’Connor (Austin Stacks)
10. Tony Brosnan (Dr Crokes) 11. Paudie Clifford (Fossa) 12. Dara Moynihan (Spa)
13. David Clifford (Spa) 14. Sean O’Shea (Kenmare) 15. Paul Geaney (Dingle)
Subs:
18. Cillian Burke (Milltown-Castlemaine) for Moynihan (47)
23. Killian Spillane (Templenoe) for Paul Geaney (47)
25. Dylan Geaney (Dingle) for Brosnan (59)
26. Graham O’Sullivan (Dromid) for ÓBeaglaíoich (64)
22. Barry Dan O’Sullivan (Dingle) for Joe O’Connor (70)
17. Dylan Casey (Austin Stack) for Tom O’Sullivan (ET 4)
4. Tom O’Sullivan for Foley (ET 9)
24. Stephen O’Brien (Kenmare) for Diarmuid O‘Connor (ET 11)
20. Sean O’Brien (Lispole) for Murphy (ET 15)
Referee: David Gough (Meath)
