Dublin 1-08 Tyrone 3-14: Tyrone rolled back the years against Dublin today and produced a performance reminiscent of their last All Ireland success in 2005. They may have entered the match as underdogs but they absolutely annihilated the Leinster champions and prompted Dublin boss Paul Caffrey to resign immediately after the match.
Dublin simply could not cope with their opponents' voracious work ethic, singularity of purpose and innate footballing skills in very difficult conditions. Tyrone outclassed their opponents all over the pitch, their backs denying the Dublin forwards time and space on the ball, while also using their athleticism to augment the attack.
Tyrone manager Mickey Harte demonstrated his tactical acumen, opting to start Colm Holmes in place of Ryan Mellon at midfield, employing Colm McCullagh and Brian McGuigan as a two man full forward line and encouraging Sean Cavanagh to take Dublin fullback Ross McConnell for a tour of headquarters.
Dublin struggled to cope with the switches, epitomised by Dublin corner back Paul Griffin marking three different Tyrone forwards in the opening 35 minutes. Bryan Cullen spent most of the half at fullback, picking up Brian McGuigan.
Tyrone flooded the midfield area and were sharper in picking up the loose ball. Their half back line also pushed forward to great effectepitomised by Conor Gormley's point on six minutes. Dublin's cause wasn't helped by the departure of Alan Brogan through injury after just five minutes and some careless shooting when it seemed easier to take a point at a stage when the game was a contest.
All over the field Tyrone dominated the personal duels, keeping the Dublin forwards well shackled and creating space for one another at the other end of the pitch through clever interplay. The Ulster county led by 0-5 to 0-2 after 23 minutes with McCullagh posting a brace a points and Brian Dooher grabbing a memorable effort.
Dublin simply couldn't find a way past Tyrone's cloying defence where the player in possession was often accosted by multiple tacklers. Cavanagh, who had been giving McConnell a rough time, grabbed the game's first goal on 25 minutes, shrugging off his marker on a 20 metre run before finishing powerfully.
To their credit Dublin did manage to respond when Conal Keaney fisted a Collie Moran sideline to the net but within three minutes Joe McMahon had grabbed a second Tyrone goal to nudge his side into a five point lead at the interval, 2-5 to 1-3.
Tyrone started the second half brilliantly; Dooher, Tommy McGuigan and McCullagh all knocking over points before a Mossy Quinn free and a fine long range point from Keaney temporarily lifted rapidly diminishing Dublin hopes.
The respite was short lived with Cavanagh kicking a point and then Davy Harte scampering up from the half back line to score a superb goal. There may have been 21 minutes left on the clock but with Tyrone leading 3-10 to 1-6 the only imponderable in terms of the result was the final margin of the Ulster county's victory.
The chants of "easy, easy" rang out from the Tyrone supporters and it was difficult to argue as Dublin's resolve at this point was somewhere around their sodden bootlaces. Tyrone could afford to kick a half a dozen wides and still canter towards the final whistle.
Both managers rang the changes, Caffrey in search of a miracle; Harte opting to give some of his panel a little game time.
Harte will now prepare his men to face Wexford in the semi-final, but Pillar Caffrey's future is more uncertain. After four years at the helm and as many Leinster titles, he tendered his resignation and thanked the players he coached for their efforts.
"I'm stepping down today after four years in charge of Dublin, and I'd like to praise the players, not only on today's panel, but the players that I've dealt with over the last four years, what they have given to the Dublin jersey and the pride they have put back into the Dublin jersey," he told reporters after the game.
"It certainly wasn't how we wished it to end today, but that's football, that's sport and we must accept it and move on."
Dublin: 1 S Cluxton; 2 D Henry, 3 R McConnell, 4 P Griffin; 5 C Moran, 6 B Cullen, 7 B Cahill (0-1); 8 C Whelan, 9 S Ryan; 14 C Keaney (1-1), 11 J Sherlock, 12 K Bonner; 13 A Brogan (capt), 10 D Connolly, 15 T Quinn (0-2, two frees). Substitutes: B Brogan (0-3) for A Brogan 5 mins; P Casey for Connolly 47 mins; M Vaughan (0-1, one free) for Sherlock 53 mins; B McManamon for Quinn 53 mins; E Fennell for McConnell 61 mins.
Tyrone: 1 J Devine; 4 C Gourlay, 3 Justin McMahon, 6 C Gormley (0-1); 5 D Harte (1-1), 2 R McMenamin, 7 P Jordan; 20 C Holmes (0-1), 9 E McGinley (0-1); 10 B Dooher (0-2), 11 B McGuigan, 12 Joe McMahon (1-1); 15 C McCullagh (0-3), 14 S Cavanagh (1-2, 1 free), 13 T McGuigan (0-2). Substitutes: M Penrose for T McGuigan 55 mins; D McCaul for Jordan 61 mins; R Mellon for Dooher 64 mins; K Hughes for Holmes 64 mins; O Mulligan for B McGuigan 68 mins.
Referee: A Mangan (Kerry)