Tyrone have been crowned Allianz National Football League champions after a 0-16 to 0-7 win over Cavan at Clones today. The win gives Tyrone their first ever National Football League title.
They did it in style with a resounding nine-point winning margin which could have been even greater, as on today's display they were infinitely better than the Breffni men. It was a true team performance; goalkeeper Peter Ward was called into serious action only once but his save in the 19th minute of the second half from Anthony Ford's goal effort was superb. The Tyrone defence was outstanding throughout, with Brian Robinson and Ryan McMenamin inspiring in everything they did, with the latter notching two points for Tyrone.
It was the type of game that play was never vital around midfield as Tyrone moved in numbers, passing quickly and always making ground. This put the Cavan defence under great strain and it simply couldn't cope with the pace and purpose of Tyrone's play. Once again Peter Canavan was the principal scorer with a total of six points, but it was his silken movements into good positions that really opened up the Cavan defence. Gerard Cavlan won a great deal of good possession, but did not always make the maximum use of it – ending up with only one point to his name. As usual, Stephen O'Neill was strong and solid for Tyrone, and contributed four very timely points.
Cavan were in trouble early on and only two points of their total of seven came from play. Finbar Reilly pointed four frees and scored one from play, while Paul Galligan and Peter Reilly registered one apiece. Anthony Ford at centre-back was their best player, but their forwards simply didn't get the opportunities from a brilliant Tyrone defence.
Kerry have won the Division Two title with a well-merited 1-09 to 1-05 victory over Laois at the Gaelic Grounds. Conditions made life difficult for both sets of players, but Kerry adapted much better. They were strong in defence, more than capable in midfield, while Noel Kennelly and newcomer Colm Cooper landed good scores.
The impressive Cooper scored a superb goal as early as the fourth minute when he weaved past the Laois defence to beat goalkeeper Fergal Byron. Greg Ramsbottom scored the Laois goal in the 20th minute as the Leinster side led by 1-04 to 1-02 at the break.
Kerry, with a strong breeze behind them, dictated the pace in the second half. Kennelly scored three points and Cooper added two more as the Munster men controlled the game. Their defence closed down the Laois attack at every opportunity, limiting them to a single point in the second half.
Filed by Tom Grealis
