Forty-eight years of disappointment in senior football for Antrim ended in unconfined joy yesterday with victory over favourites Fermanagh in a rousing All-Ireland senior B final at a dank and cold Casement Park. Antrim's last big win came in 1951, when they beat Cavan to take the Ulster crown, but yesterday they found new heroes.
Joe Quinn, whose 21st-minute goal came after a determined 40-yard run through the heart of the Fermanagh defence surely qualifies, as Antrim had been quite ineffective up to that stage.
Fermanagh's Donal McNulty had been denied a goal after 14 minutes when his shot, which came at the end of the best move of the match, struck a post. A Fermanagh goal at that stage would have put them into a commanding six-point lead.
Quinn's goal levelled the scores and wing back Peter McCann soon afterwards gave Antrim a lead which they were never to relinquish.
Fermanagh lost control of the game, and their backroom team struggled desperately to find a remedy for and Paul Brewster, who had not started the game, was drafted in before the half hour, and five substitutes in all. Resting many of the Enniskillen Gaels players may have backfired.
Antrim's dominance owed much to the excellent half-back line of Gearoid Adams, a son of the Sinn Fein leader Gerry, Anto Finnegan and Peter McCann. In the attack, Kevin Brady and Kevin Madden were also highly dangerous.
Antrim had led by 1-7 to 0-4 at half-time, despite eight wides against one for Fermanagh. They were to hit another nine wides in the second half, but doubled their goal tally 15 minutes into the half, when Con Coleman set up Kevin Madden for a great strike which put Antrim 2-8 to 0-8 ahead. Raymond Gallagher's goal for Fermanagh a few minutes later cut the deficit, but they did not build on it.
Antrim: S McGreevy; E McLarnon, M Mulholland, K Anderson; G Adams, A Finnegan (0-1), P McCann (0-1); J Quinn (1-1), S McQuillan (0-1, free); K Brady, C Coleman (0-1), E McKee; J McManus (0-1), D Niblock, K Madden (1-4, three frees). Subs: E McCann for McKee (45 mins); E McKenna for McManus (53 mins); K Killyleagh for Anderson (63 mins).
FERMANAGH: P Maguire; P McGuinness, P Courtney, S Beggan; T Callaghan, T Collins, K Gallagher; L McCarron, D McNulty (0-1); S McDermott (0-1), S King (0-2, one free), R Johnson; R Gallagher (1-2), S Quinn (0-1), D Fitzpatrick (0-1). Subs: P Brewster for Collins (29 mins); P Quinn for McNulty (half-time); C Bradley (0-1) for Fitzpatrick (45 mins); K Cassidy (0-1) for McDermott (54 mins); B Carthy for Beggan (63 mins).
Referee: N Cooney (Offaly).
