Fermanagh - 1-9 R Gallagher 0-7, one free; M O'Donnell 1-0; K Donnelly 0-1; T Brewster 0-1

Donegal - 0-11 A Sweeney 0-3, all frees; B Roper 0-2; M Hegarty 0-2; J McGuinness 0-1; P McGonigle 0-1; J Gildea 0-1; B Devenney 01, free

REFEREE: M Curley (Galway)

ATTENDANCE: 6,000 (est)

They have waited a long time around the Erne for these sweet days. On Saturday evening, Fermanagh invited their neighbours into their backyard and visited upon them a late torture that will grow in lore over the years.

In the last minute, with the home team two points adrift, Raymond Johnston lobbed a ordinary-looking free into the heart of a Donegal defence that had been watertight since the game began. Paddy Campbell rose to fetch but misjudged the flight and the ball hopped into the path of Fermanagh substitute Mark O'Donnell, who calmly toe-poked the winning goal.

With that simple famous score ended the barren times and the rapturous scenes around the sunken pitch in Brewster Park confirmed a new faith. Donegal was a county that had kindly cuffed them about the head for too many decades. By visiting upon them a second consecutive defeat, Fermanagh sent out a statement of intent.

"And it was no fluke," declared Maughan afterwards. "There was talk of that last year, but I think we showed over the two games that we are more than a match for this Donegal team."

That they unquestionably did, but at the end of the match - blown 30 seconds prematurely by Brian White - most people were wondering how Donegal lost.

It was a match in which the visitors clearly invested their very souls. Eamon Doherty, seemingly the answer to Donegal's full back problems, handcuffed the mighty Stephen Maguire and kept the Belcoo man scoreless. His back line colleagues also kept clean sheets. The entire defence was superb which, of course, made the unlikely concession of a goal all the more devastating on them.

Donegal failed to attack with the same fluency as in the first game, but it was never that type of game. This was a dusty Saturday night scrap, no prisoners taken. Jim McGuinness flattened Paul Brewster with a shoulder early on and that set the tone for an evening of ferocious hitting.

The visitors' attitude was best illustrated by Brian Roper. As well as firing two fine points from play, the fiery half forward played the role of two men, a constant thorn in the Fermanagh defence.

John Gildea was also heroic, falling back to guard the path towards Stephen Maguire and bursting through for a beautiful point after 51 minutes. That score left Donegal 0-9 to 0-7 ahead and, two minutes later, Adrian Sweeney tapped over a simple free that put them in command of a game when scores came scarce.

Fermanagh stayed alive through the dead-ball abilities of Rory Gallagher. Damien Diver again minimised the pitch general's effectiveness in open play and the home team's celebrated attack was all but tied up by Donegal.

As the match entered the last quarter, it seemed that Donegal were just one point from a safe passage through. Fatally, they never found it. Fermanagh just grafted, waited, biding their time. Hang around the dance hall long enough and you'll finally get the floor.

Donegal tried to shore up. Noel Hegarty was drafted in but needed more than the four remaining moments to steady the lines. Fermanagh kept searching, never quit and found salvation in Mark O'Donnell.

"We'll take this on the chin," vowed Mickey Moran afterwards. The quiet Donegal manager has no time for the backdoor system but now finds his team among the first to be consigned there. "We have decided we are going to train hard and see what we can do. And I'll tell you what, we will go further than Fermanagh."

But on Saturday evening, Fermanagh folk were already in a faraway place. They will float on to the first round proper. "How far can ye go?," someone yelled at Maughan. "I don't know, I don't know," he laughed.

That promise was good enough.