Most were tipping the St Macartan's to emerge easy winners of this quarter final clash at Fintona yesterday. But the north Tyrone side, who finished right at the bottom of Division Three, produced a strong challenge.

Their disastrously poor form in the league this year meant that little was expected from Owen Roes. However, with Declan McCrossan returning to full fitness, they defied the odds by starting in spirited fashion.

It was clear from the beginning that they were fired up. Brendan Boggs raced out of defence on numerous occasions, the high catching of Christopher Kelly boosted their confidence and up front former Tyrone panellist, McCrossan also looked dangerous.

As a result they enjoyed the better of the opening exchanges. A good long range point from Christopher Kelly got them going and they displayed an admirable sense of adventure in front of goals as well. Indeed they came close to grabbing a goal twice, with Michael Dooher hitting the crossbar with a great shot and then Declan McCrossan being denied when his quick free was well saved by Sean McElroy.

That reprieve, though, galvanised Augher who proceeded to take the initiative. By the end of the first quarter they were level thanks to Fran McMeel and the efforts of Mickey Donnelly, Stephen McCaffrey and Conor Hackett were soon yielding impressive dividends.

Augher's speedy attacking play combined with their quick passing saw them dominate from then on. It wasn't long, too, until they were beginning to forge ahead on the scoreboard as well.

Swapped points between Aidan McElroy for them and then Kevin O'Neill for Owen Roes momentarily kept things in the balance. But it wasn't long until Augher forged ahead in impressive fashion.

Central to their efforts was the accuracy of Jamie Donnelly from frees. He hit four in a row to leave them 0-6 to 0-2 ahead before adding a great point from play to emphasise what was now their total dominance.

Most expected them to take that healthy advantage into the interval break. However, to their credit, Owen Roes once again fought back to ensure that there was always some doubt about the result for the rest of the game.

Points from Aidan McCrossan and Stephen Dooher reduced the deficit to a more manageable three points by half-time. On the resumption, too, Owen Roes, showed the greater resolve and were quickly back on terms.

Good play from Christopher Kelly at midfield, Marcus McGinley and Kevin O'Neill up front highlighted their composure. Kiernan Kelly got them going after good work from Declan McCrossan and added two more points to bring the sides level only five minutes after the restart.

Owen Roes were now showing good composure and were certainly capable of forging ahead. However, their efforts were undermined by a series of wides that meant their sustained period of control wasn't translated onto the scoreboard.

As a result, Augher always seemed the most likely winners subsequently. The economic approach adopted by players such as Damien McElroy, Kevin Hackett, Aidan Cassidy and Francis McElroy saw them come good at just the right time.

Conor Hackett came close to getting a goal when he hit the side-netting. But there was still no stopping Augher as the game entered its final quarter. Conor Hackett made amends with a point from play set up by Francis McElroy and they were on course for victory when Jamie Donnelly, Aidan Cassidy and Donnelly again stretched the lead to 0-11 to 0-7 with only eight minutes left.

For all that, though, the game was never totally put beyond reach. While there was never any real danger of Augher slipping up, a point from Aidan McCrossan meant a goal would have brought the teams level.