Standing ovations in Casement Park? Well, so much for finding the predictable in the world of Ulster hurling. Where image is frequently more important than reality, this game was larded with excitement as Down were caught by Derry's storming finish.
Yes, they said the first of Saturday's semi-finals would be close, but four goals each, a juggling exchange of the lead, and a couple of fiery performances from Derry's
Geoffrey McGonigle and Oliver Collins ensures this match will stick in the memory for a while. And another referee talking point thrown in for good measure.
At least twice it appeared that Down were safely on their way. With goal number three coming from Barry Coulter a minute into the second half, they kept Derry at a six-point distance. With goal number four, again through Coulter, they were 4-8 to 2-9 in front and only 15 minutes left on the clock. Then McGonigle found another gear, Collins stretched further out of midfield, and Down failed to score again, Still, any side that can manage 2-7 without reply in the last 10 minutes deserves to win.
Exactly where McGonigle gets his energy from is hard to fathom. In physical terms, he is far more suited to his alternative role in football, yet here he was rolling along fitter than most as time ran out, claiming four points in the last four minutes.
Down's ultimate downfall was perhaps the strength of their start. Playing with the unseasonably strong breeze, they went for some extensive positional shifting and had jumped into a six-point lead by the 10th minute. Martin Coulter Junior had little trouble sneaking through the highly unsettled Derry defence for the first goal and Emmet Trainor and Michael Braniff were giving an early indication of their ability to score from the full forward line. It seemed all too easy.
Derry continued to struggle and midfielders Oliver Collins and Conor Murray were let down by their first touch. The defence was even more sluggish, with Barry Kelly replacing Davy McCloskey at full back in the 19th minute as things become increasingly desperate.
They finally broke into the game with a goal through Murray after 21 minutes but it took quite an effort. Oliver Collins had a penalty blocked after Michael Collins was pulled down and it took a succession of rebounds before Murray found the net.
Down, however, still carried the momentum, adding another goal through Paul Coulter and pressing ahead to leave it 2-6 to 1-6 at the interval. There was some confusion as to when that actual break occurred. Referee Pat Aherne blew up after 30 minutes and as the players jogged towards the stand, it took a hectic intervention from his linesman to remind him about the other five minutes left.
When Barry Coulter blasted Down's third goal from 25 yards out immediately after the break, it appeared more likely than ever that it wasn't Derry's day. Down seemed well capable of holding on, as Coulter Junior and Paul Coulter kept the points coming and Derry's wides kept adding up.
Suddenly the balance of power shifted and Gregory Biggs and his brother Gary increased their presence. As the clock ticked past the hour, Oliver Collins produced a timely reminder of why he was player of the year in Ulster last season with a rocket of a goal that was soon followed by their fourth through substitute John O'Dwyer. McGonigle fittingly ran out the clock with a succession of points.
"They made it very difficult, and you won't get a harder Ulster semi-final than that," said Derry manager Frank McNaughton afterwards. "We will need to improve if we are to come through against Antrim."
For Frank Dawson in the opposite dressing-room, the words `stunned' and `disappointed' went hand in hand. "Still, we are proud of that performance," said the Down manager. "I don't think anybody expected us to play that well and in many ways it's a game we lost rather than Derry won. It's just hard to think we gave that away after playing so well for so long."
