Ramor end 24-year famine to win SFC crown
Ramor United 0-10
Castlerahan 0-8
Paul Fitzpatrick
at Kingspan Breffni Park
Ramor United are the new Cavan senior champions after they finished strongly in today's replay to get past Castlerahan.
With such a long run-in to the final - the sides qualified 29 days ago - a slow-burner of a start wasn't a surprise but it was Castlerahan who took the game - before 4,400 fans - by the scruff of the neck early on.
Castlerahan, who have never won the senior crown, fell a point behind in the second minute after Conor Bradley pointed a free but would go on to dominate the following 10 minutes.
They levelled with a well-struck Cian McEnroe free and then added four points in succession, with Cian Mackey and corner-back Stephen Cooney grabbing two apiece as they took control.
However, Ramor – who started without both joint-captains, Damien Barkey and Jack Brady – slowly got to grips with their opponents and they were level by half-time following scores from Bradley (free) and Cathal Maguire and two from Adrian Cole.
The second half was a war of attrition but the Ballyjamesduff men – who had Armagh All-Ireland winner Justin McNulty as part of their management team – found it that bit more difficult to engineer scoring chances, relying on sporadic efforts from long range.
In truth, the game - which produced 40 frees - wasn't a great spectacle but that didn't take away from the joyous scenes for the winners at the end.
Cian McEnroe edged Castlerahan 0-6 to 0-5 in front five minutes into the second half but Man of the Match Cole levelled soon afterwards and Micheál McDermott's side hit the front on the three-quarter mark through Conor Bradley.
The introduction of county man Jack Brady, who immediately pointed, gave the Virginia men a lift and they rode their momentum to the finish, Cole and sub Killian Maguire, with a free, completing the scoring at the end of what was a hard-fought but lacklustre decider.
Ramor United: L Brady, M Smart, Matthew Magee, J McEnroe, Mark Magee, B O'Connell, E Somerville, S Monaghan, S Cadden, C Maguire (0-1), C Bradley (0-3, 2f), J Bradley, James Brady, A Cole (0-4), K Mulvany
Subs: Jack Brady (0-1) for Mulvany (38 mins), K Maguire (0-1f) for Monaghan (51 mins), J Doyle for James Brady (53 mins), G McNamee for J Bradley (57 mins)
Castlerahan: J Leahy, S Cooney (0-2), B Coleman, E O'Connell, F Reilly, R Flanagan, C McBreen, D Wright, C Daley, D Lynch, C McEnroe (0-2, 1f), S McSweeney, O O'Connell, S Brady, C Mackey (0-4, 1f)
Subs: P Brady for Lynch (50 mins)
Ref: Noel Mooney