Relentless Armagh thumb noses at football's Style Council

Armagh 2-17 Laois 1-11

After what a philosophical Mick O'Dwyer described as 'one of those days' for his Laois team, the Orchard county gained the satisfaction of going a step further than they did 12 months ago. And, much more satisfying for players and management, they did so in style, with some terrific scores.

It saw them produce a quality of football beyond what Laois (hit by injuries) were capable of and it contributed hugely to another manly contest further adorned by excellent refereeing. "I think we have answered all the critics who said we can't play football,'' said Kernan afterwards. "But, in fairness to Laois, they allowed it to be the game that it was. Last Saturday both teams (Dublin and Tyrone) played great stuff and opened up the championship 'big-time.' And we added a bit today."

While the belief is that Armagh would wish to avoid another confrontation with their great rivals, he was non-committal when asked if he had a preference. "I honestly don't care,'' he responded. "We are in the position we wanted to be in. It's a nice position to be in, but it will be no good doing all the things we have done if we can't win the next match.'

O'Dwyer didn't offer any prediction about their likely opponents either, but made the pronouncement that it would take a damn good team to beat them. "Armagh have great finishing forwards - and it's finishing forwards who win All-Irelands. That forward line is going to take stopping."

Armagh had a poor opening 20 minutes but recovered splendidly to produce an injury-time goal and turn over with a five points lead. After that, there was never a doubt about the result - which from O'Dwyer's perspective was frustrating, given that en route to the quarter-final, they had reserved their best football for the second half. "We started well but finished badly,'' he remarked.

Ross Munnelly started well and was their best hope for scores all through but didn't always get the space he needed. Billy Sheehan made a big contribution and like Padraic Clancy, who excelled at midfield for two-thirds of the game, came close to getting a goal. The team were quite effective over the first quarter, with Joe Higgins giving Steven McDonnell little scope and Tom Kelly more than holding his own at centre-back.

Additionally, Barry Brennan was making good progress at centre-forward - where he was opposed by Aidan O'Rourke in the absence of Kieran McGeeney (who wasn't risked, after a hamstring strain). The only negative was that progress in the full-forward line was minimal, with Brian McDonald clearly not recovered from last year's horrific injury. And, measured against the return Armagh gained from their front three, it highlighted the main difference between the teams. It was to prove very costly.

It was 0-6 to 0-3 for Laois after 15 minutes, but they weren't to score gain until a minute into the second half, when trailing 1-8 to 0-6. That was after Ronan Clarke set up McDonnell for a brilliant goal. The lead had been stretched to nine points before Barry Brennan got the Laois goal in the 50th minute. And, with the Midlanders sacrificing points in their search for a goal, the result was a foregone conclusion long before the final whistle.

Oisin McConville, who scored Armagh's second goal near the end, agreed that they would have been better to get a tougher challenge: "When you get a comfortable win like this, the next game tends to be a lot tougher. We will try to keep our feet on the ground as best we can.

"We slipped up at this stage last year (to Fermanagh). That was the reason why we were so on the ball. We played well at stages, but it's going to be a lot more difficult in the semi-final. For a championship match I suppose there wasn't that much 'hitting' in it. We will just have to be ready for a lot tougher game the next day."

The Crossmaglen star has no preferences either. But he agreed it was nice to get away from playing Ulster teams and they were able to play 'some nice' patches of football. Kernan echoed that, saying local derbies like those between Cork and Kerry, Dublin and Meath, Galway and Mayo were invariably tough.

"But, when you play teams you do not meet that often, they are going to be more open," he said.

Maybe they will get that second title Kernan obviously craves. Based on this display and the combination of their attacking qualities and experience, nobody will take them for granted.

Scorers: Armagh: S. McDonnell 1-5 (0-1 free); O. McConville 1-3 (0-2 frees); R. Clarke 0-3; M. O'Rourke 0-2; A. Kernan 0-2 frees; P. McGrane and J. McEntee 0-1 each. Laois: B. Brennan 1-1; R. Munnelly 0-4 (0-3 frees); B. Sheehan 0-3; S. Kelly, P. Clancy and C. Conway 0-1 each.

ARMAGH: P. Hearty; C. McKeever, F. Bellew, E. McNulty; A. Kernan, A. O'Rourke, A. Mallon; P. Loughran, P. McGrane (capt.); M. O'Rourke, J. McEntee, O. McConville; S. McDonnell, R. Clarke, B. Mallon.

Subs: T. McEntee for J. McEntee (53rd minute); K. McElvana for A. O'Rourke and S. Kernan for B. Mallon (64th); A. McCann for A. Kernan (65th); M. Mackin for M. O'Rourke (68th).

LAOIS: F. Byron; A. Fennelly, D. Rooney, J. Higgins; C. Begley, T. Kelly, P. McMahon; P. Clancy, N. Garvan; R. Munnelly, B. Brennan, B. Sheehan; D. Brennan, S. Kelly, B. McDonald.

Subs: G. Kavanagh for McDonald and C. Conway for S. Kelly (second half); M. Dunne for Garvan (61st).

Referee: J. Geaney (Cork). John Geaney's refereeing, undoubtedly assisted by the positive approach of the teams, was outstanding - certainly one of the best of the season.

*Att: 32,187.