All Ireland Under 21 Football Championship
Mayo 0-10 Tyrone 0-13
Tyrone were crowned All-Ireland U21 champions for the second year in succession, after a convincing 0-13 to 0-10 win over Mayo at Markievicz Park, Sligo, on Saturday.
Both sides struggled to deal with the wet conditions, as rain hampered their efforts to control the ball at times.
However, Tyrone’s attacking style proved to be the main difference as the Ulster champions moved into a substantial early lead and held onto it throughout.
Trevor Mortimer put the Mayo men in front in the seventh minute, but quickly Tyrone set about putting paid to the Connacht side’s efforts, and a purple patch threatened to end the game as a contest within the opening quarter.
Stephen O’Neill kicked two points in three minutes to give Tyrone a 0-2 to 0-1 lead in the 12th minute. Less than a minute later, Kevin Hughes scored the first point from play to extend their lead.
Enda McGinley was given a glorious opportunity to add a goal in the 14th minute but his effort, from a tight angle, just bobbled outside the post and wide.
Tyrone were controlling the game at this stage, with points from Ray Mellon and Eoin Mulligan (two frees) stretching their lead to five points before Conor Mortimer could add a second score to Mayo’s tally.
Mortimer and Brian Maloney added a point each before the half-time whistle, but so too had Tyrone and the gap stayed at four points at the break, 0-8 to 0-4.
The second half continued in much the same vein. Trevor Mortimer drew first blood with a point from a free before Mulligan returned the favour. However, three points between the 43rd and 48th minutes saw Tyrone edge into a six-point lead that Mayo never recovered from.
They sought a goal but had to make do with points from Brian Maloney, and Conor Mortimer.
Two more scores before the full-time whistle put a decent sheen on the scoreline, but Tyrone’s victory looked safe long before that.
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