Sean Cavanagh: 'We became men today'

Tyrone 0-13 Donegal 0-11: “We became men today.” Seán Cavanagh had proven long before now that he is most certainly one of those but you knew what he meant. This Tyrone team hadn’t earned their spurs before yesterday. Now they have.

It needed Cavanagh and his brother Colm to bring this victory to bear, in doing so ending the county’s six years without a provincial title. But then the kids played their part too as evidenced by the impressions made by the handful of young twentysomethings who came off the bench.

Having lost Mattie Donnelly to a black card and trailed in Donegal’s wake by four points at the break, Tyrone looked anything but champions only to recover in a most convincing manner.