Donegal win Ulster as Armagh shootout woes go on

Donegal clinched a dramatic Ulster Football Championship triumph as Armagh's penalty shootout hoodoo continued.

After the game had finished 0-20 to 0-20 following extra time before an enthralled capacity 28,896 attendance at Clones, the penalty shootout also went to sudden death as Shaun Patton's save to deny Shane McPartlan clinched a 6-5 victory.

Armagh looked set to end their 16-year barren spell in Ulster as a Stefan Campbell point put them 0-15 to 0-11 ahead after 53 minutes of normal time, with the Orchard men having kicked 13 of their scores from play.

But Armagh seemed to make the mistake of looking for the finishing line which allowed Donegal to draw level by the 64th minute as Patrick McBrearty completed a run of four straight points by Jim McGuinness' side.

Armagh sub Tiernan Kelly had a last-ditch free chance from 40 metres to clinch victory but pulled his effort wide which meant two 10-minute periods of extra time.

Kieran McGeeney's Armagh side led 0-18 to 0-17 after the opening period and looked likely winners as a towering Oisin O'Neill score and Aidan Nugent point put them 0-20 to 0-18 ahead with six minutes of extra time remaining.

But a Daire O Baoill score a minute later cut the margin to the minimum and after Oisin Conaty missed a chance to restore a two-point advantage, an Odhran Doherty effort ensured extra time.

Substitute McPartlan hit Armagh's first penalty and was handed the responsibility again in sudden death with the score at 6-5 after 11 successful efforts but Donegal keeper Patton spread himself to make a comfortable save to his right as the Orchard men suffered a fourth championship shootout defeat in three seasons.

Armagh went into the provincial decider seeking a first Anglo-Celt Cup triumph in 16 years - an eternity for a county who lifted seven out of 10 provincial titles between 1999 and 2008.

But this second successive agonising provincial penalty shootout defeat means McGeeney - the longest serving GAA senior inter-county manager - remains without silverware during his 10 seasons in charge.

Donegal, meanwhile, clinched their first Ulster title since 2019 amid the continuation of their remarkable rejuvenation inspired by the return of McGuinness following their annus horribilis of 2023.

The Tir Chonaill men's successful Division Two campaign included two tight jousts with Armagh as the sides drew at the Athletic Grounds in February before Donegal edged a one-point victory at Croke Park in the divisional final.

McGuinness' side then started their championship campaign with a stunning 4-11 to 0-17 victory over three-in-a-row seeking Derry before needing extra time to battle past Tyrone in the semi-final.

The seemingly lopsided nature of the Ulster draw had marked Armagh as strong favourites to make it back to a second successive provincial final but after outclassing Fermanagh 3-11 to 0-9 at Enniskillen, the Orchard men were fortunate to battle past Down 0-13 to 2-6 in their semi-final.

The Armagh fans who travelled to St Tiernach's Park in huge numbers will wonder how their side contrived to lost this contest.

Oisin Gallen's early brilliance, as he tormented marker Paddy Burns, helped Donegal move 0-5 to 0-3 up after 17 minutes.

But as Conaty subdued the Tir Chonaill men's playmaker Ryan McHugh and Conor Turbitt fired three points in a seven-minute period, Armagh moved 0-7 to 0-6 ahead and two Ben Crealey scores enabled them to keep their noses in front by half-time at 0-10 to 0-9 after heavy rain had started to fall.

Turbitt's fourth point started a run of three straight Armagh scores following the resumption as Donegal appeared to be running out of ideas.

Armagh third-quarter dominance was best summed by Conaty's 43rd-minute score as he burst upfield and delightfully dummied before firing over from 35 metres.

Stefan Campbell's punching of the air as he scored with his weaker left foot looked set to be one of the decisive images from the contest as Armagh led 0-13 to 0-9 after 44 minutes.

Donegal finally opened their second-half account in the 49th minute courtesy of a fine Niall O'Donnell score with the outside of his right boot but a 'mark' score from the otherwise subdued Rian O'Neill and further Campbell score seemed to have Armagh in control at 0-15 to 0-11 up after 53 minutes.

But incredibly Armagh didn't score in the next 27 minutes of action with their drought only ended by Andrew Murnin bringing the sides level at 0-16 to 0-16 seven minutes into extra time.

As has happened on previous occasions in recent years, Armagh's attempts to manage the game - via keep ball - in the closing stages of normal time unravelled as a point from the impressive Niall O'Donnell was quickly followed by a Gallen free and Jason McGee score from play which left a point in it after 57 minutes.

McBrearty's levelling 64th-minute point from play, as the Armagh defenders gave him too much room, was the only remaining score in normal time as Rory Grugan dropped a shot short before substitute Kelly was wide with his last-gasp free from inside 40 metres amid incredible tension.

As the sun returned, Armagh appeared to have successfully regrouped in extra time with three points from substitute Aidan Nugent helping them lead 0-20 to 0-18 after another McBrearty free had briefly put Donegal ahead for the first time since the 21st minute.

But with the finishing line once again in sight, Armagh faltered as O Baoill, by now back on after being substituted early in the second half, cut their lead before another substitute Odhran Doherty levelled with a minute remaining in extra time.

In between the two Donegal scores, Conaty, a contender for man of the match for his marking job on McHugh, had a chance which surely would have closed the door but fired wide after striding forward.

Bar Tiernan Kelly's penalty which went through Patton's legs into the net, the keepers didn't get a touch on any of opening 11 spot-kicks as Ciaran Thompson, Aaron Doherty, Michael Langan, McGee and O Baoill were on target for Donegal, with McPartlan, Conaty, Turbitt and Nugent also netting for Armagh.

But after Aaron Doherty slotted his second successful penalty, McPartlan attempted to respond in kind but was unable to do so as Patton made the save before he was engulfed by his team-mates.

Armagh: B Hughes; P Burns, A McKay, P McGrane; J McElroy, Ciaran Mackin (0-1), A Forker (0-1); R O'Neill (0-1m), B Crealey (0-2); S Campbell (0-2), R Grugan (0-1), G McCabe; O Conaty (0-2), A Murnin (0-2), C Turbitt (0-4).

Subs: J Og Burns for McCabe 61, T Kelly for Forker 70, J Duffy for McElroy ET, O O'Neill (0-1) for Crealey 65, A Nugent (0-3) for Turbitt 67, J Hall for McGrane 78, S McPartlan for Mackin 80

Donegal: S Patton; M Curran, B McCole, C Moore; R McHugh, C McGonagle, P Mogan (0-2); J McGee (0-1), M Langan (0-1); S O’Donnell (0-2), C Thompson, D O Baoill (0-2); E Ban Gallagher, O Gallen (0-6), N O’Donnell (0-2).

Subs: O Doherty (0-1) for Gallen ET, J MacCeallabhui (0-1) for Thompson 67, C McColgan for Curran HT, J Brennan for Gallagher 55, A Doherty for O Baoill 44, P McBrearty (0-2) for Moore 41, O Baoill for N O'Donnell 81, Thompson for McBrearty 87

Referee: Martin McNally