Murphy penalty the clincher for Donegal

NOT for the first time, a controversial refereeing decision played an inordinately prominent part in deciding the outcome of a game in Croke Park but, this being the second tier of the league, no-one got too hot and bothered about it all.

When Marty Duffy blew his whistle for the last time, the Donegal boys didn’t sink to the turf in knee-bending joy. Neither did their Laois counterparts succumb to gravity after the latest example of sport’s unending appetite for the controversial.

Hey, it is still April after all.