Tyrone 0-12 Armagh 0-9
Tyrone out-scrapped bitter rivals and last year's champions Armagh to win the All-Ireland senior football title for the first time today, gifting manager Mickey Harte the Sam Maguire trophy in his first year in charge.
Winning captain Peter Canavan, viewed by many before today's contest as the best inter-county player never to win an All-Ireland medal, duly collected his honours in the Hogan Stand, raising Sam Maguire over his head to a deafening chorus from the thousands of Tyrone fans who had broke out onto the pitch below.
While the game itself failed to live up to pre-match expectations, the Tyrone fans among the 79,391 attendance will pay no heed to the performance but more to the fact that they mirrored their opponents feat of 12 months ago in lifting their first senior title.
Tyrone's dogged defending and ability to close out Armagh's attacks ultimately proved decisive in a game that never sparked to life. A litany of fouls and off-the-ball incidents marred the spectacle, reducing the game to a physical, bruising slug match between two sides with a fear of losing.
Both sides started well but it was Tyrone who edged ahead in the opening minutes. The pace of Eoin Mulligan, Gerard Cavlan and at times Canavan - struggling with an ankle problem - troubled the Armagh defence and reduced them to fouling the Tyrone players. Cases could be made against suspect diving on occasion but nevertheless Canavan profited and had three scores to his name by the 16th minute.
Armagh's star corner forward Stephen McDonnell pointed in the 18th minute to leave four between the sides but although still well in the contest, it was, worryingly, the reigning champions first score since the third minute.
Tyrone were unable to punish Armagh for their lack of creativity but should have done so when midfielder Sean Kavanagh inexplicably missed a goal opportunity midway through the half.
Incredibly, Tyrone were gifted another opportunity to finish off struggling Armagh. In first half injury time, Enda McGinley burst through on goal, but instead of passing ahead to the unmarked Canavan, the corner forward let rip himself only to see his effort cannon off the legs of 'keeper Paul Hearty. Tyrone, who could of gone seven up at the break with that goal, led by just four at half-time (0-8 to 0-4).
The second half was a dismal affair with little enough football actually played during the 35 minutes. Neither team settled well and both sides certainly feared losing, thus creating a negative, defensive game with little of note to rouse the fans in the stands.
Tyrone missed yet another goal opportunity 10 minutes in and Cavlan will be left kicking himself as his was the easiest of the three chances. Substitute Stephen O'Neill played a sweet ball in behind the Armagh full back-line which the Tyrone attacker collected. Cavlan was gifted time to compose his shot but instead rushed his effort as Hearty raced off his line. The final ball trickled tamely wide of the right hand upright. Armagh, off the hook once again.
With that warning shot perhaps stirring something within, the All-Ireland champions bit back and Paddy McKeever and Diarmuid Marsden set about reducing the gap with a brace. However, with 13 minutes to play and trailing Tyrone by three points, Armagh's title aspirations were dealt a significant blow when Marsden was dismissed for striking Conor Gormley off the ball.
Reeling from the sending off and suffering from a lack of self belief, Armagh never got their challenge back on track. Tyrone boss Harte, however, played a psychological trump card with the re-introduction of Canavan - substituted at half-time - for the final eight minutes.
The Red Hand players - none more so than Gormley -duly reacted at the sight of their returning leader and lifted their game another step.
Gormley produced a match saving block on McDonnell as the Armagh attacker wound up for a shot on goal with two minutes to play. The young defender spread himself and somehow poked the ball off McDonnell's foot, a timely intervention as a goal would have levelled matters.
But despite an Oisin McConville free late on, Tyrone held out for victory as O'Neill added his second in injury-time to rubber stamp the result. A sweet victory for Tyrone, their first All-Ireland senior title, and an even sweeter success for Peter The Great.