Gripping draw as Galway and champions slug it out

Tyrone 1-16 Galway 1-16 (aet)

This absorbing football match had the 10,000 or so in Omagh glued to their seats.

You simply could not take your eyes off this one. Tyrone's flying start in the opening five minutes aside, this game was perpetually in the balance.

There will be plenty of talking points this morning.

Two players Padraic Joyce and Kevin Hughes saw red, a few incidents of gamesmanship, some sensational scores and the erratic refereeing of Micheal Monahan.

"I think there was some play-acting by some of the Galway players that might have helped the referee make his decision," Tyrone boss Mickey Harte claimed.

"But what we really have to do is sit down, all of us, and look at the video footage, look at footage of this game and other games and decide what constitutes a tackle, what is a foul, and get a basic set of rules that aren't open to personal interpretation."

While both sets of players embraced at the end, there might be some bad blood carried over for the replay in Pearse Stadium.

Galway and Tyrone are seen as teams of contrasting styles and the match itself was a game of contrasting halves. The first half was all about flowing football, wonderful scores and two teams playing football the way it should be played.

After the interval, as a shower or two fell, the game grew more intense as both defences tightened up.

Padraic Joyce brought the game into the extra-time it always seemed destined for, with a free on the brink of full-time. Of course, this came after Mark Harte was called up for taking a free from the wrong place, one of many bones of contention that Tyrone supporters had with Monahan.

The champions burst from the blocks, and were six points up before Galway supporters even drew breath.

Owen Mulligan, in particular, started the match as if this was an All-Ireland final, opening Tyrone's account with a free, before ensuring Sean Cavanagh's deep run from midfield didn't go unrewarded. He picked out the midfield powerhouse whose shot pierced the net.

Five minutes gone and Galway, yet to mount an attack, were 1-3 to 0-0 down. Joyce, who was borrowing from his 2001 vintage most of the afternoon, opened Galway's account with a free, but Tyrone's blistering start shell-shocked Galway.

And then, 10 minutes in, a break. Sean De Paor fielded John Devine's kick-out, found Tommie Joyce with a pinpoint pass. Eventually, John Devane got inside the Tyrone defence and buried the ball past Devine.

The goal inspired Galway into their first period of dominance.

By the 27th minute, they had created enough to go ahead, through another excellent Joyce point, by 1-6 to 1-5. Joyce was playing alongside Micheal Meehan in a two-man full-forward line, a system that appears to work very well against the beaver-like mentality of Tyrone's defence.

Colm McCullagh levelled matters for the All-Ireland champions before the free-flowing football dissolved into a bit of a ruck.

In a four-minute period before the break there was a rash of bookings, including one each for Joyce and Hughes, which was to have repercussions later. The sides left the field locked at 1-7 apiece, it was felt that it was a fair reflection on what had been a cracking half of football.

On the restart McCullagh scored two marvelous points, while Brian McGuigan was again Tyrone's most creative force.

Conor Gormley was moved in to curtail Joyce's scoring and he certainly clipped the full-forward's influence. But, as they did in their prime, Galway discovered scorers in other sectors of the field. Meehan, Donnellan and Joe Bergin all chipped in.

There was a fair bit of niggle in the battle between Gormley and Joyce. But how Monahan decided Joyce was more guilty of the two and deserved a second booking, only he will know.

That was in the extra-time that Joyce's free took the game into. Like the match itself, Tyrone started brighter in the first period and when local lad Joe McMahon ran the pitch and tapped over a point in the fourth minute of extra-time, Tyrone once more looked in the ascendancy.

Micheal Donnellan, taking more responsibility as a disgusted Joyce watched from the side-lines, evened things up with two frees before the teams split for the second period.

By that stage, a draw looked inevitable. A point by Meehan, M who used his skill to work his way into a scoring position, was swiftly followed by Cavanagh knocking one over.

Micheal Meehan's, and Galway's-final score of the game, was followed by a wonderful effort from McCullagh. The game ended in recrimination and a second red card, for Hughes. There was even time for the managers to exchange heated words.

"Croke Park has opened channels where we can talk about our frustrations and I would rather communicate through the proper channels to address any matter," Galway boss John O'Mahony said.

Scorers: Tyrone: S Cavanagh(1-1), M Harte (0-4, all frees), C McCullagh (0-3), E Mulligan (0-3, 2 frees), B McGuigan (0-2), B Dooher, B Donnelly, J McMahon (0-1 each) Galway: P Joyce (0-7, 2 frees), M Meehan (0-3), J Devane (1-1), M Donnellan (0-4, 3 frees) J Bergin(0-1)

TYRONE: J Devine; R McMenamin, C Goruley, C Gormley, B Donnelly, G Devlin, P Jordan; K Hughes, S Cavanagh; B Dooher, B McGuigan, C McCullagh, M Harte, E McGinley, E Mulligan Subs: J McMahon for Gourley (61 mins), M McGee for Devlin (64 mins)

GALWAY: A Keane; M Comer, G Fahey, C Monaghan, D Meehan, P Clancy, S De Poar; S O'Domhaill, J Bergin; M Clancy, M Donnellan, J Devane, M Meehan, P Joyce, T Joyce Subs: K Fitzgerald for Monaghan (29 mins), N Joyce for O'Domhaill (68 mins) D Savage for Devane(59 mins), Devane for Clancy (84 mins) T Meehan for D Meehan (85 mins)

Referee: M Monahan (Kildare)