Cavan 3-16 Tyrone 1-23: Red Hands need extra time to set up Donegal Ulster SFC semi-final

Tyrone squeezed into an Ulster Football semi-final meeting with Donegal next Sunday after a tense 1-23 to 3-16 extra-time win over a brave Cavan side.

The Red Hands appeared in control as they led 1-16 to 1-8 after 53 minutes.

But Cavan punished Padraig Hampsey's black card by hitting 2-1 as Padraig Faulkner and Niall Carolan netted which helped the home side force extra-time.

Tyrone hit only three points in extra-time but it proved enough as Cavan were unable to bring the game to penalties.

Cian Madden's goal gave Cavan an early 1-1 to 0-2 lead but Brian Kennedy's exchange of passes with Darren McCurry set up debutant Liam Gray to net for the Red Hands in the 18th minute and they pushed on to extend their advantage to 1-10 to 1-4 by half-time.

Tyrone, befitting their Division One status, seemed under no threat as they extended their lead to eight midway through the second half but the Red Hands badly lost their way as Cavan suddenly upped the pace.

As bodies noticeably tired, scores proved at a premium in extra time but the Red Hands, despite losing key forwards Darragh Canavan and Darren McCurry to injury which will be a worry for next week, did enough to set up next Sunday's meeting at Celtic Park with Derry's conquerors.

Jim McGuinness was at Breffni Park to watch the action and can't have been upset to see the attrition and energy expended by the Red Hands as they finally saw off the Division Two side.

Granted, compared to the Saturday's remarkable contest at Celtic Park, the action was ponderous over the opening 53 minutes in Cavan town as Tyrone controlled the proceedings - largely thanks to the efforts of Darragh Canavan, Kennedy, Michael McKernan and Hampsey, who dominated his match-up with Cavan dangerman Paddy Lynch in the opening half.

Cavan did lead twice early on with Cian Madden hitting the opening score before Oisin Brady's pass set him up to lash past Niall Morgan in the ninth minute.

But a McKernan point - his second after a typical foray upfield - started an unanswered run of 1-3 for the Red Hands which was finished off by debutant Gray's goal.

Cavan cut Tyrone's advantage to three by the 27th minute, after the first of corner-back Brian O'Connell's two points but two successive Darragh Canavan efforts from play and a Ciaran Daly score put the Red Hands six up at the break.

McKernan's third score immediately after the restart extended Tyrone's advantage and while Lynch finally escaped Hampsey's shackles to get off the mark, there was no hint of the drama that was to follow as unanswered points from Ruairi Canavan, goalkeeper Morgan and McCurry made it 1-16 to 1-8 by the 52nd minute.

However Hampsey had been black carded four minutes earlier following an off-the-ball exchange with Lynch and Cavan were able to exploit their extra man during his absence as Faulkner's 53rd-minute goal after he had set up by Conor Brady, gave Cavan a lifeline.

An Oisin Brady point was then followed by Carolan's 58th-minute goal as he hammered to the roof of the net by picking up possession following Morgan's attempt to punch clear a floated fisted ball from Lynch.

Amazingly, there was now only a point in it as Tyrone led 1-16 to 3-9 and after Faulkner missed a chance to level, the excellent Oisin Brady's third point did get the Breffni men on terms in the 63rd minute.

Tyrone moved two ahead twice during the remainder of normal time but Cavan refused to relent as a Lynch free and O'Connell's fisted effort, when potentially a goal looked on, ensured extra time.

As both sides were forced to make wholesale changes amid the attrition, extra time produced only five scores as Canavan's seventh point and a Niall Devlin score put them two up before a Tiarnan Madden effort left the minimum between the sides after the opening 10-minute period.

Following the withdrawals of McCurry and Canavan, substitute Tiernan Quinn took the free-taking duties to kick what ultimately proved Tyrone's winning point after Cavan keeper Gary O'Rourke had been blown up for over-carrying.

Paddy Lynch's free was the final score of the game but they were unable to work the ball into a scoring position in the closing seconds despite having possession as David Coldrick blew the final whistle.

Cavan: G O'Rourke; C Reilly, K Brady (0-1), B O'Connell (0-2); P Faulkner (1-0), N Carolan (1-0), Conor Brady; L Fortune (0-1), Oisin Kiernan (Denn), Ciaran Brady, G Smith (0-1), Oisin Kiernan (Castlerahan); C Madden (1-1), P Lynch (0-5, 3f), O Brady (0-3)

Subs: J Smith for O Kiernan (Denn) 33 mins, T Madden (0-2) for O Kiernan (Castlerahan) HT, J McLoughlin for Fortune HT, C O'Reilly for Madden 49, R Donohoe for K Brady 66, C Rehill for Carolan 78, R Donohoe for Faulkner 79, TN Hofmann for Ciaran Brady 83.

Tyrone: N Morgan (0-1, f); C Devlin, P Hampsey, M McKernan (0-3); S O'Donnell, M Donnelly (0-1), N Devlin (0-1); B Kennedy (0-1), A Donaghy; C Daly (0-1), K McGeary, L Gray (1-0); D McCurry (0-4, 2f), D Canavan (0-,7 3f), R Canavan (0-2)

Subs: B Cullen (0-1) for McGeary 54, C McShane for R Canavan 57, J Oguz for Donaghy 60, M O'Neill for Gray 65, L McGarrity for Kennedy ET, T Quinn (0-1) for McCurry 77, C Cush for D Canavan 83, N McCarron for C Devlin 86.

Referee: David Coldrick (Meath)