Donegal seal comfortable win to seal Ulster SFC

Donegal 1-11 Derry 0-8

Donegal bridged a 19-year gap with a first Ulster SFC 1992, scoring a comfortable win over Derry at Clones.

On the last occasion the men from the north-west won the Anglo-Celt Cup, they went on to score the county’s one and only All-Ireland triumph, and they will head into the quarter-finals in buoyant mood after this much celebrated success.

Skipper Michael Murphy scored the game’s only goal from a second half penalty, and Derry, in the absence of the injured Bradley brothers, just didn’t have the firepower to rescue the game.

Colm McFadden and Anthony Thompson pushed Donegal into an early lead, but Derry, withy Joe Diver and Michael Friel giving them the edge at midfield, created a string of scoring opportunities.

However, their finishing let them down badly, the names of the injured Bradley brothers were on the lips of virtually every one of their supporters in the 28,364-strong crowd.

Nevertheless, they were just a point behind midway through the first half, after James Kielt converted a free, moments after Michael Murphy had slotted a Donegal point.

Ryan Bradley was also on target, before wing back Thompson pressed forward to hit second.

Derry centre back Charlie Kielt fired over his second point of the afternoon from long range to narrow the gap to two with 10 minutes to play in the opening half.

Substitute Martin Donaghy brought Derry level on 31 minutes, and Donegal failed to score during the final 17 minutes of the half, with skipper Murphy kicking wide from a straightforward free in stoppage time.

The sides went in level on 0-5 each at the break, but Donegal struck a massive blow three minutes into the second half when Murphy drilled home a penalty after he had been brought down by goalkeeper Danny Devlin.

Michael Hegarty opened out a four points lead, but Derry responded with two James Kielt points, one of them a sublime effort from play.

The Oak Leafers dug deep, but a series of unforced errors and stray final passes stifled their efforts to get themselves back in contention.

Murphy sent a booming effort between the posts from distance at the other end, and Hegarty capped a wonderful performance with his second point as the finish line moved into sight for the Donegal men.

The scores had dried up totally for the Oak Leafers, until James Kielt’s effort ended a 22 minute barren spell, but it was too late for Derry, and the final whistle sparked a mass pitch invasion by the Donegal faithful.

Donegal scorers: M Murphy 1-2 (1-0 pen), C McFadden 0-4 (2f), M Hegarty, A Thompson 0-2 each, R Bradley 0-1.

Derry scorers: J Kielt 0-4 (2f), C Kielt 0-2, C Gilligan (f), M Donaghy 0-1 each.

Donegal: P Durcan, F McGlynn, N McGee, P McGrath, A Thompson, K Lacey, K Cassidy, R Kavanagh, N Gallagher, M McHugh, M Hegarty, R Bradley, P McBrearty, M Murphy, C McFadden.

Subs: M McElhinney for Kavanagh (32), D Molloy for McBrearty (52), D Walsh for Bradley (58), G O’Kane for B McGoldrick (61), PJ McCloskey for Muldoon (61)

Derry: D Devlin, SL McGoldrick, K McGuckin, D McBride, C Mullan, C Kielt, B McGoldrick, J Diver, M Friel, M Lynch, C O’Boyle, M Bateson, E Muldoon, J Kielt, C Gilligan.

Subs: M Donaghy for Bateson (27), K McCloy for Mullan (46), E McGuckin for Gilligan

Referee: M Deegan (Laois).