ST MICHAEL'S .........................1-9

ST PATRICK'S DUNGANNON ....0-13

BY DAMIAN CAMPBELL

Bitter, bitter disappointment for St Michael's in this pulsating MacRory Cup decider, the title snatched from their grasp in the dying moments of a contest that had a thundering climax.

St Michael's had led from the fifth minute and were not to surrender their advantage until the final whistle was looming but as the second half had progressed the momentum being built up by a resurgent Dungannon team began to look unstoppable.

St Michael's were desperately hanging in, unable to lift the siege and in the end there was a sense of inevitability about the outcome.

But this was a desperately frustrating day for St Michael's and when they probe the reasons for this numbing defeat they will have no shortage of answers.

A key moment arrived in the middle of the opening half when, in an entirely accidental collision for a loose ball, team captain Daryl Keenan was injured. He was to continue after treatment but the damage had been done.

Keenan, who has been the orchestrater in chief for the attack, was to be a waning influence and in the second half he became a peripheral figure on the edge of the square. St Michael's attacking strategy which has been essentially channelled through him, withered into sterility.

St Michael's will also point to the failure during their scintillating opening burst in the first quarter, to bury the opposition. In this spell, St Michael's looked far and away the much superior team but that was not being translated into sufficient scores.

They were playing with assurance and precision and Dungannon seemed to be headed for oblivion. But though St Michael's were to shoot five points ahead they had not been completely clinical in their finishing.

It was a failure that subsequently came back to haunt them as the game roared to a nailbiting finale.

Just one goal scored but it really could have been a triple whammy handed out to labouring Dungannon. St Patrick's keeper Niall Morgan pulled off one terrific stop at the expense of a point, another shot from Joe O'Brien smacked back off the crossbar and Tomas Corrigan scuffed a close in effort wide off the post as he came under heavy pressure.

St Michael's were to go in at the interval still those five points clear but in the lead up to the break, the signs had been growing that Dungannon were beginning to find their feet.

And it would also have to be registered, that a couple of hard refereeing calls didn't help the cause of the team struggling to stem the increasing flood tide of Dungannon attacks.

The lack of Keenan's vision at the heart of the attack was also be sorely felt after the changeover and all these factors accumulated to eventually send the team tumbling to a heartbreaking defeat.

In the end the victory was seized by a St Patrick's side who blossomed with purpose and vigour once they had rode out their initial hesitancy.

And it would have to be acknowledged that the winners displayed admirable resolution in battling their way back. At one stage they were in serious disarray and their cause looked a forlorn one.

For them it was a case of chasing right through the hour but as the second half developed they were to be encouraged by the constant tonic of points being steered over, the bulk of them from the accurate place kicking of Dermot Thornton.

A splendid individual performance from him, all the more remarkable since he was a late substitute for original first choice Sean McKillon. Goalkeeper Niall Morgan was another who contributed massively to the Dungannon effort, two superb saves from him helping to restrict St Michael's to that solitary goal.

Defensively too Dungannon had ever improving figures in half back Gavin Teague with half forwards Paddy Doherty and Tiernan O'Hagan also chipping in with solid displays.

For St Michael's who as a unit had a blistering start to the match, goalkeeper Matthew Jackson matched his counterpart Morgan with two equally memorable stops.

Corner back Martin Quigley had a very tidy match throughout and midfielder Ryan Jones was a major presence in the first half. Up front the threat posed by Chris O'Brien and Tomas Corrigan was especially evident in the sparkling first quarter but the supply was to be reduced to a mere trickle as the second half moved on and in the end the amount of attacking possession now being enjoyed by Dungannon just couldn't be resisted.

A simply sizzling start from St Michael's and they threatened to sweep the opposition aside with ease. For those opening ten minutes or so there was only one team on the park.

It took five however to notch the first score, Keenan aiming for goal but the shot was deflected over the bar by the advancing Morgan.

A goal did arrive a minute later. A shade of fortune initially here with a Keenan free from the wing spilling down off the upright where it fell into the grasp of Brian Cox who did extremely well to strike his shot home from a kneeling position.

St Michael's were totally dominant and they might well have had a second goal after a fine ball in from Chris O'Brien found Tomas Corrigan but he was quickly bottled in and just couldn't get the precision needed to find the net, his shot skimming wide.

Still it was looking highly promising for the Enniskillen team and they raided smartly through for a well taken point from Corrigan on nine minutes.

St Patricks finally got off the mark with a sweet individual score from wing half forward Paddy Doherty but a finely judged free by Daryl Keenan kept St Michael's ticking over as the second quarter got underway.

It was at this stage that the collision occurred which was to effectively stifle Keenan's work but for the moment that was not to be especially evident. St Michael's were to have two more points, Joe O'Brien slipping his marker and Ryan Jones hoofing over a long range score close to the interval. O'Brien had also been unfortunate to see his crisp shot smack down off the crossbar.

A second St Michael's goal would certainly have put a different complexion on the game.But that goal wasn't delivered and St Patrick's were beginning to edge into the picture with scores from Sean Murphy and Tiernan O'Hagan the latter's effort a particularly good piece of individual play as he raced down the centre.

Dungannon had also been somewhat wayward with their shooting. They had never threatened a goal but a number of hopeful punts for points had sliced wide off target.

On the resumption with a reshuffled lineout up front it was St Michael's who first found the range, Keenan putting the team six clear.

It was a solid position but from there onwards it was a downhill slide as Dungannon gradually got a commanding grip. Winning most of the possession around the middle of the park they began to make inroads into the lead.

Their revival was opened with a Mark McLarnon point and this was followed by a three in a row spree from Thornton, two of these from placed kicks. The game had now become a nerve testing one, St Michael's had lost practically all of their early spark and Dungannon were visibly growing in stature.

A Dungannon victory which had once looked highly improbable had suddenly become a distinct possibility as St Michael's continued to sag.

Momentary relief for a beleaguered Enniskillen came with a Chris O'Brien point, Dungannon keeper Morgan parrying the fiercely hit shot over the bar. O'Brien was to shoot another score out of the top drawer when he lofted over from distance but these scores were isolated.

Dungannon were not in full cry.

They notched further scores from the dependable Thornton and from McKenna and yet another Thornton strike closed the deficit to one. Again there was momentary reprieve for St Michael's when Daryl Keenan coolly lobbed over a free from some thirty five metres but the leaders were now coming under intense pressure.

Two more Thornton frees were slotted over to tie up the match and the impetus was not most decidedly with Dungannon. They were denied a goal by a terrific stop by Jackson but in the ensuing scramble the ball came to substitute Conal McGarrity who arched over his shot from close in.

It was the lead for the first time for Dungannon and St Michael's had shot their bolt. One last attack from Enniskillen failed to create a levelling chance and the day had been won in stunning fashion by the team who had been chasing the game from the opening minutes.

Among many factors that chiselled out the Dungannon win their sheer persistence had to be admired for at one stage they were a team who looked destined for a trimming.

St Michael's will agonise for a long time over this reversal.

Final Teams

St Michael's

Matthew Jackson; Martin Quigley; Matthew Donnelly; Conal Smyth; Ryan Leonard; PJ Rogers; Niall McElroy; Ryan Jones; Richard O'Callaghan; Michael McAleer; Daryl Keenan; Brian Cox; Tomas Corrigan; Chris O'Brien; Joe O'Brien; Subs; Gavin Leonard for M McAleer; Manus Maguire for J O'Brien;

St Patricks

Niall Morgan; Brian Kelly; Louis O'Neill; John Loughran; Ryan Pickering; Gavin Teague; Dan Toner; Niall McKenna; David Lavery; Sean Murphy; Tieran O'Hagan; Pat Doherty; Mark McLarnon; Dermot Thornton; Gavin Gervin; Subs; John Grimley; Conal McGarrity;

Referee J McKee Armagh