Dublin victory a boost for flagging fortunes of seniors
The sentiment was conveyed in the words of manager Tommy Lyons afterwards when he talked about going forward and the hope expressed by team captain Alan Brogan that it might be the a stepping stone, "to winning a few All-Irelands".
A chastened Tyrone, foiled in their bid to complete the double last achieved by Cork in 1989, could have had no real complaints. Indeed they could not quite match the hunger of Lyons' team.
Selector Paul Caffrey best summed up the approach when he said: "the work rate of everybody from number 15 back was phenomenal. In that sense our greater work rate and zeal was probably the difference. It was a case of once bitten, twice shy.
"We came with what we thought was a very good team last year and Galway blew us out of the water in the first half. We put a huge emphasis on the lads actually performing today. We didn't talk too much about winning or losing but performing and doing themselves justice."
Equally, the management had something to prove, he said: "we took quite a bit of stick locally for what happened with the seniors. The development squads in Dublin have done a huge amount for under-age football. We are only carrying on their work. Maybe it's not all doom and gloom."
Lyons made the point that their early exit from the senior championship enabled them to re-group and re-focus, and to build on the work done by Jim Gavin and Declan Darcy since early January.
"The final last year was the catalyst for us. I think you have got to hurt a bit to really drive yourself on. We were very hurt after last year's final, hurt that we didn't play, not that we were beaten."
Clearly influenced by the strategy adopted by the Tyrone seniors, Dublin's tactic of getting players behind the ball when they were under pressure was especially effective in the second half.
However, in the sense that they produced six points in each half, their consistency in a defence in which seniors Paul Griffin and Brian Cullen were prominent, was crucial.
Notably, Tyrone never managed to go in front and the best they managed was to be level at 0-2 apiece after seven minutes.
That was a tribute to the cover of the Dublin backs. It needed to be good at times when Aiden McCarron was to the forefront in the full-forward line, Sean Cavanagh (who started at centre-forward) was in possession and Joe McMahon was doing good work around midfield.
In time, Dublin gained a foothold in the half-forward line, where dual star Conal Keaney did great work on the right wing, while Alan Brogan provided good leadership inside.
By the 23rd minute they were three points clear, whereas Tyrone (denied a goal by keeper Paul Copeland's good save from McCarron) went 20 minutes without a score before Cavanagh responded.
At the break, it was 0-6 to 0-3.
Adding two quick points within seven minutes of the second half, Dublin's lead was never less than four points all the way to the finish. John Noonan, who kicked two good scores from frees, made an important contribution at left corner-forward, while Declan O'Mahony was seen to better effect at midfield.
Overall, Dublin were playing the better football and while Tyrone built up a lot of attacks team captain Peter Donnelly doing some great work around midfield they found it extremely difficult to penetrate.
Team manager Peter Doherty readily acknowledged the strength of the challenge that confronted them. "Dublin had manufactured the lead in the first half and it was a case of them defending that lead and catching us on the break. And, they were able to do that very effectively in the second half," he said.
Donnelly agreed. "Dublin were very disciplined and physically strong. They learned from mistakes last year and they were really focused," he said. "We were well up for the game. Tyrone seniors inspired us. We wanted to be winners like them, but it just didn't happen on the day!"
Gerry Kinneavy was fussy about frees being taken from the correct position, but missed a few obvious fouls. On balance, however, he gave a good display.
Scorers: Dublin A. Brogan 0-3; J. Noonan 0-3 (0-2 frees); D. Lally and G. Cullen 0-2 each; C. Keaney and D. O'Mahony (free), 0-1 each.
Tyrone: L. Meenan 0-2; A. McCarron 0-2 (0-1 free); S. Cavanagh, J. McMahon and T. McGuigan 0-1 each.
DUBLIN: P. Copeland; N. Kane, M. Fitzpatrick, P. Griffin; N. Cooper, B. Cullen, C. Prenderville; D. O'Mahony, P. Brennan; C. Keaney, L. Og O hEineachain, D. Lally; A. Brogan (capt.), G. Cullen, J. Noonan. Subs: D. Murray for Cooper (46th minute); M. Lyons for O hEineachain (60th); S. Walsh for G. Cullen (61st).
TYRONE: J. Devine; S. Sweeney, K. McCrory, D. Carlin; O. Devine, M. Garry, P. O'Farrell; P. Donnelly (capt.), J. McMahon; K. Hughes, S. Cavanagh, R. McCann; M. Penrose, L. Meenan, O. McCarron. Subs: T. McGuigan for McCann (36th minute); P. Armour for O'Farrell (41st); D. McDermott for Penrose (49th).
Referee: G. Kinneavy.
