Cavan defeated Fermanagh at Croke Park 0-17 to 1-7 to win the Allianz NFL Division 3 championship thanks to a superb second half performance.
At halftime, Mickey Graham’s Breffni team was down by one point, but they followed the same pattern as Division 4 final champion Sligo and exploded in the third period. They won after scoring six of the seven points to grab the lead, maintaining it with a cool-headed performance afterward and adding another five points to complete the triumph. Despite their inability to score, they put out a lot of effort, with Fermanagh goalkeeper Sean McNally making many outstanding saves in the second half. Raymond Galligan, the goalie for Cavan, finished with four points overall, all coming from put balls. Dara McVeety, Gerard Smith, Paddy Lynch, and Ryan O’Neill were all in the starting eleven for Cavan after Mickey Graham decided to include them after they were benched against Fermanagh the previous weekend. Lynch scored three more points in the first half, while O’Neill also added to his tally with a fisted finish at the Hill 16 End following a probing move along the left endline.
Darragh McGurn’s goal in the 28th minute gave Fermanagh an unexpected spark after they had edged a low-scoring first half 1-3 to 0-5. Although also scoring their first two goals, Raymond Galligan, the goalie for Cavan, finished with four points overall, all coming from put balls. Dara McVeety, Gerard Smith, Paddy Lynch, and Ryan O’Neill were all in the starting eleven for Cavan after Mickey Graham decided to include them after they were benched against Fermanagh the previous weekend. Lynch scored three more points in the first half, while O’Neill also added to his tally with a fisted finish at the Hill 16 End following a probing move along the left endline.
Darragh McGurn’s goal in the 28th minute gave Fermanagh an unexpected spark after they had edged a low-scoring first half 1-3 to 0-5. also scoring their first two goals, At the hour mark, Fermanagh managed to bring the score down to one point, but Cavan finished strong, scoring goals from Gearoid McKiernan, Conor Smith, Galligan, Oisin Brady, and Conor Madden to win by a slim margin. With back-to-back league titles after winning Division 4 last year, Cavan is now well-positioned to target the Ulster SFC with a match against Armagh or Antrim on April 22 in the near future. On April 15, Fermanagh will compete against Derry, the current holders of the provincial championship.
