Gaelic Games

Omagh defy odds in Ulster

Favourites Crossmaglen left short-handed and stormed in final quarter

Omagh’s Jason McAnulla holds possession despite the attentions of Paul Hughes of Crossmaglen during the Ulster Senior Football Club Championship quarter-final at Healy Park. Photograph: Inpho.
Omagh’s Jason McAnulla holds possession despite the attentions of Paul Hughes of Crossmaglen during the Ulster Senior Football Club Championship quarter-final at Healy Park. Photograph: Inpho.
Sun Nov 02 2014 - 18:26

Omagh 2-8 Crossmaglen 1-9

Title favourites Crossmaglen were dumped out of the Ulster Club Senior Football Championship at Healy Park by an Omagh side that overturned a seven-point deficit to claim a sensational win.

The Armagh champions and 10-times provincial winners had two men sent off in the final quarter, and in the end succumbed to a superb display of finishing from Tyrone attacker Ronan O’Neill, whose 1-4 made all the difference.

Key man

A vomiting bug robbed the Rangers of key man Aaron Kernan, but they dominated the opening half with an impressive display of support play and kick passing. They led by six at the interval, but managed just one point in the second half.

Crossmaglen overcame the handicap of conceding an early goal to Ronan O’Neill, who skipped past marker James Morgan to plant the ball in the net past Paul Hearty.

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Jamie Clarke and Tony Kernan, along with Johnny Murtagh and Kyle Brennan, scored points for Rangers as they built up a 0-8 to 1-1 lead.

The Armagh men bagged a goal in the 29th minute, Pádraig Stuttard smashing the ball past Ryan Clarke from Stephen Finnegan’s pass.

Jason McAnulla responded with Omagh’s first point from play, but it was Rangers who led by 1-8 to 1-2 at the interval.

A series of significant events, allied to a now customary Omagh flourish, swung the game in dramatic fashion in the final quarter. Kyle Brennan’s 32nd minute point proved to be Crossmaglen’s final score.

The opening 10 minutes of the second half featured a series of skirmishes which prompted referee Ciarán Branagan to issue a handful of yellow cards.

Omagh were on the rise even before Callum Comiskey, already booked, was black-carded on 48 minutes.

Worse was to follow for the 10-time Ulster champions. Centre back Barry Tierney made a run to get on the end of Conor O’Donnell’s cross and punch to the net.

Tony Kernan’s red card reduced Cross to 13 men with 10 minutes to play, and the Rangers were hanging by a thread.

Conan Grugan brought them level, and it was O'Neill who gave Omagh the lead for the first time on 57 minutes, before sealing it in stoppage time.

OMAGH: R Clarke; H Gallagher, Justin McMahon, S Mullan; C McLaughlin, B Tierney (1-0), C McMahon; Joe McMahon, C Grugan (0-2, 1 free); A Grugan, J McAnulla (0-1), C McCarron; C O'Donnell (0-1), R O'Neill (1-4, 0-1 free), C Meyler. Subs: C O'Neill for McCarron (h-t), J Colton for C McMahon (56 mins), D Kerr for McLaughlin (60 mins).
CROSSMAGLEN: P Hearty; S Finnegan, J Morgan, P Hughes; P Stuttard (1-0), P McKeown, M Aherne (0-1); J Hanratty, R Kelly, T Kernan (0-3, frees), J Clarke (0-2, 0-1 free), M McNamee, K Carragher, C Cumiskey, K Brennan (0-2). Subs: J Murtagh (0-1) for Carragher (5 mins), D McKenna for Brennan (43 mins), A Kernan for Finnegan (48 mins), A Cunningham for Hanratty (59 mins).
Referee: C Branagan (Down).