Donegal beat Armagh again in titanic Ulster battle

Donegal's victory earned the county their 12th Ulster title

Donegal retained the Ulster Football title by edging out All-Ireland champions Armagh 2-23 to 0-28 after extra-time following another titanic struggle at Clones.

Unlike last year, this final meeting didn't require penalties but it was another epic encounter between two well-matched teams.

Following the final whistle as the holders had been able to retain possession for the last minute of action before the hooter sounded, there were unsavoury scenes as a melee broke out after a track-suited member of the Armagh squad appeared to strike a Donegal player who had been celebrating vigorously immediately in front of the Orchard County bench.

It took a minute or so for order to be restored before Donegal celebrations could begin again following their 12th Anglo-Celt Cup triumph.

For Armagh, their wait for a first Ulster title since 2008 goes on although they showed last year that they were more than capable of regrouping from provincial final heartbreak for the All-Ireland series.

Donegal's victory means they avoid the so-called 'group of death' in the All-Ireland series with Armagh now facing Galway, Dublin and Derry in Group Four and the Ulster champions' Group One opposition Mayo, Tyrone and Cavan.

With Oisin Gallen hitting four first-half points from play, Donegal led 0-14 to 0-11 at half-time after having been seven ahead three minutes before the interval.

Armagh continued to claw into Donegal's lead after the restart as they trimmed the margin to 0-16 to 0-15.

The defending champions appeared to have regained control as Hugh McFadden's bundled goal was followed by three points which put them seven up once more.

However, Donegal only managed a solitary Jason McGee point in the closing 21 minutes of normal time as Oisin Conaty's continuing brilliance and the introduction of Stefan Campbell helped reeled in their advantage.

Conaty's sixth point from play in the closing 10 seconds of normal time meant extra-time after Donegal's attempts to run down the clock had unravelled.

A Jarly Og Burns point put Armagh ahead for the first time after the action had resumed but the sides were still locked together at 0-25 to 1-22 after the first 10-minute period.

A Stefan Campbell score nudged Armagh ahead once more at the start of the second period of extra-time but after Rory Grugan missed a chance to extend their lead, Ciaran Moore then hammered in Donegal's second goal to the roof of the net after being set up by Michael Langan.

A two-point free by Armagh keeper Ethan Rafferty levelled the contest once more but Niall O'Donnell's 88th-minute point proved the winner before tempers flared after the final whistle.

Rian O'Neill travelled with the Armagh squad to Clones but wasn't included in the matchday squad

The was intrigue before the throw-in as Rian O'Neill's absence from Armagh duty seemed set to end as he walked out on to the pitch with the other squad members at half-time during the Ulster Ladies Final between the two same counties.

However in the event, O'Neill wasn't drafted into the 26-man matchday squad which included his brother Oisin, who started at left full-forward.

When the game did get underway, Langan created an immediate goal chance for himself but Ethan Rafferty spread himself to make a fine save.

The first of two first-half two-pointers from Ciaran Thompson helped Donegal lead 0-4 to 0-2 and Armagh needed Conaty's brilliance to stay in touch in the opening 20 minutes as his two initial scores restricted the holders' advantage to 0-6 to 0-5.

But Gallen was proving equally effective in Donegal's attack as he tormented Barry McCambridge and his three points from play in as many minutes during a period when Michael Murphy also tagged on a score from play left Jim McGuinness' side 0-10 to 0-5 up.

It got even better for Donegal as Thompson's second two-pointer helped extend their lead to 0-13 to 0-6 as Armagh were being run ragged, with Ethan Rafferty's struggles on his kickouts central to the All-Ireland champions' difficulties at that stage.

However, Paddy Burns' switch to shadow Gallen helped steady Armagh as two Ross McQuillan points also stopped the bleeding.

And Armagh finished the opening half strongly as Conaty's third point and a two-pointer from Oisin O'Neill, followed by another score from the Crossmaglen man, left only three between the sides.

Oisin Gallen's brilliance helped Donegal lead by seven points in the first half although Armagh cut the margin to 0-14 to 0-11 by the interval

A Murphy point extended Donegal's lead to four after the break but Armagh responded with four of the next five scores which included McQuillan's third point as his fisted effort left the minimum between the teams.

However, then came McFadden's goal which was a scrappy concession from an Armagh point of view as Donegal's Finbarr Roarty lost possession following his charge towards goal only the ball to squirt towards the midfielder who hammered to the net soccer style.

Darragh McMullen wasted an immediate goal chance at the other end by blasting wide while Donegal soon had another escape as a deflected Ben Crealey shot hit the foot of an upright and flew across the goal-line before being cleared.

As Murphy, Conor O'Donnell and Moore tagged on further Donegal points, Armagh were seven in arrears once more but inevitably Conaty was the man who sparked the Orchard County's revival as he responded with a 50th-minute score.

Campbell, only on the field a few seconds, immediately notched another Armagh point and by the 55th minute, Donegal's lead to was trimmed to down as an Oisin O'Neill score was followed by his own two-point free after the holders had been deemed to have committed a three-up offence.

Substitute McGee's 55th-minute point was Donegal's last in normal time as efforts from Campbell, another substitute Jason Duffy and the superb Conaty in the final seconds ensured extra-time after the champions had lost possession in the final minute when chasing an insurance score rather than running down the clock.

Extra time the usual chaotic affair

Extra-time was the usual chaotic and disjointed affair of bodies struggling with cramp and players coming back on after earlier having gone off.

Armagh initially looked to have the fresher legs as Jarly Og Burns kicked them ahead for the first time but there were only three more scores in the first 10-minute period as a Niall O'Donnell left the sides deadlocked once more.

Campbell nudged Armagh ahead once more after the resumption but Donegal were suddenly back in front after Langan set up wing-back Moore to hammer to the roof of the net.

Inevitably, Armagh weren't going to quit and a Rafferty two-point free had the sides level again before referee Brendan Cawley made a big call by ruling that Campbell had over-carried rather than being fouled after he ended up on the turf on Donegal's 13-metre line.

From Shaun Patton's resultant kickout, Donegal worked the ball downfield for Niall O'Donnell's winner as they were able to successfully run down the clock before tempers frayed immediately following the final whistle.

Armagh: E Rafferty (0-3); P Burns, B McCambridge, A Forker; R McQuillan (0-3), G McCabe, J Og Burns (0-1); C O'Neill (0-1), B Crealey (0-1); D McMullan, R Grugan, O Conaty (0-6); T Kelly, A Murnin (0-1), O O'Neill (0-7).

Subs: C Turbitt for Kelly 41, S Campbell (0-3) for C O'Neill 49, P McGrane for McCabe 54, J Duffy (0-2) for O O'Neill 59, N Grimley for Forker 6i, C Mackin for Murnin 71, C McConville for Conaty 78, S McPartlan for Grugan 83, T McCormack for McQuillan 87.

Donegal: S Patton; F Roarty, B McCole, P Mogan (0-1); R McHugh, C McGonagle, C Moore (1-1); C Thompson (0-4), M Langan (0-2); D O Baoill (0-1), H McFadden (1-0), S O'Donnell; P McBrearty (0-3), M Murphy (0-3), O Gallen (0-4).

Subs: C O'Donnell (0-1) for McBrearty 42, J McGee (0-1) for McFadden 49, J Brennan for O Baoill 5i, E McHugh for Moore 54, A Doherty for Gallen 64,N O'Donnell (0-2) for Brennan 71, McBrearty for Murphy 76, O Baoill for R McHugh 78, Moore for S O'Donnell 81, S McMenamin for McCole 83).

Referee: Brendan Crawley (Kildare)