Gaelic Games

Image source, Getty Images

The 2025 Ulster Senior Football final between holders Donegal and last year's beaten finalists Armagh will be played on Saturday, 10 May at Clones.

The game will have a 17:25 BST throw-in and will be the second of a double-header with the Ulster Ladies Football final between the same counties.

The throw-in time for the Ladies final has not yet been confirmed.

Croke Park had been touted as a potential venue but Ulster GAA confirmed fixture details shortly after Donegal's semi-final win over Down on Sunday.

Donegal beat Armagh in a penalty shootout in last year's final.

Image source, Inpho

Down boss Conor Laverty admitted to being left "bitterly disappointed" by his side's six-point Ulster SFC semi-final loss to Donegal.

Donegal led by eight points at half-time but Down failed to make life more uncomfortable for Jim McGuinness' side after missing goal chances in the second period.

Shay Miller was denied by Shaun Patton before Eugene Branagan lashed a shot wide when he was bearing down on goal.

"We're bitterly disappointed with how the game finished," Laverty told BBC Sport NI.

"There was a period in the second half where we felt we got to grips with the game and we had opportunities to close the gap.

"They kept us at arm's length. They had goal chances but if our chances go in it gives us serious momentum going into the home straight."

Having won last year's Tailteann Cup, Down have an All-Ireland campaign to look forward to.

And while Laverty admits his panel have not had enough exposure at the highest level, he feels his players are trending in the right direction.

"This is a young squad and they maybe haven't had the exposure of playing at that level," added the Kilcoo club-man.

"Division Two helped us this year, playing against Armagh in the semi-final last year and Donegal today.

"We're closing the gap, I still feel there are three or four teams in Ulster that are ahead of everybody but as a group we're closing that gap."

Image source, Getty Images

Donegal captain Patrick McBrearty insists his side must make "big improvements" if they are to overcome Armagh in the Ulster SFC final after beating Down in Sunday's semi-final in Clones.

The holders saw off Down 1-19 to 0-16 but the Mournemen passed up three goal chances that would have made life difficult for Jim McGuinness' side.

And McBrearty says Donegal must find another level in order to secure a repeat of last year's provincial decider success over the Orchard County.

"Job done. We knew coming into today, it was a very capable Down team," man of the match McBrearty told BBC Sport NI after scoring 1-4 against Down.

"We were probably a bit tetchy for the first 15 minutes but I thought we found our groove then and settled into the game and got the goal obviously.

"But big, big lessons to learn from today and big improvements if we're going to beat Armagh in the Ulster final."

He added: "I think we played them [Armagh] three times last year and there was only a point in it over so many hundred minutes.

"We know Armagh and they know us and it's going to come down to inches. It's how we prepare now until Sunday week but it's great to be involved in those types of days."

Armagh booked their place in a third straight Ulster final on Saturday with a 0-23 to 0-22 win over Tyrone and McBrearty admits Kieran McGeeney's side looked "very impressive".

"It went down to the wire and they showed great character," he said.

"Most other teams would have folded but Armagh have been in big games in recent years and have that big-game experience and they showed it last night."

Image source, Inpho

Paddy Burns joked that the Armagh players "owe our fans an apology" after putting them through some torment before snatching a dramatic 0-23 to 0-22 victory over Tyrone in the opening Ulster Football semi-final at Clones.

The All-Ireland champions looked in a degree of control as they led 0-18 to 0-12 after 47 minutes.

However, as has become the norm under the new rules, two-pointers helped Tyrone fight back to lead by two with eight minutes remaining before Armagh hit the final three scores, with Rory Grugan's last-kick free clinching victory.

"We don't like to make it easy and I'd say there were plenty of hearts in mouths," said Burns of the Armagh fans, who again travelled to Clones in huge numbers.

While Armagh methodically worked to secure their match-winning free after the hooter had sounded, the defender in Burns was pleading with his team-mates to "kick the ball dead".

"That's all I was thinking. If it goes to extra-time so be it," said the corner-back, who plays his club football with Down outfit Burren.

But his team-mates had other ideas and after they poached yet another of Niall Morgan's kickouts, a foul on Conor Turbitt secured the 21-metre free which Grugan was never going to miss.

Burns himself was given the onerous task of marking Tyrone's big forward threat Darragh Canavan and performed the job admirably by restricting the Errigal Ciaran star to only two points from play.

"With a boy like Darragh, you just have to do your best to get close and sometimes hope for the best. He got a few shots away that he didn't convert too."

While Burns' smile said it all, Tyrone manager Malachy O'Rourke rued his team's inability to close out the game after seemingly timing their run perfectly to move into the lead with less than 10 minutes remaining.

"We got ourselves in a good position and we're just disappointed we didn't see it out," said O'Rourke, who praised his side's "character" in fighting back from six down to lead.

The Tyrone boss lauded the contribution of young substitute Eoin McElholm who kicked two points after his 47th-minute introduction.

"He was a sort of a spark that lit up the forward line to a degree when he came in. He caused Armagh a lot of trouble and got a couple of great scores and just was a threat straightaway."

Image source, Inpho

Armagh have made four changes from their opening win over Antrim for Saturday's big Ulster SFC contest with Tyrone as Aidan Forker, Paddy Burns, Conor Turbitt and Oisin Conaty return to the starting team.

The quartet's inclusion means that eight of last July's All-Ireland Final starters against Galway are named in the Armagh 15 for the Clones contest (16:45 BST).

Injury concern Darragh Canavan has been named in the Tyrone team with Mattie Donnelly also drafted into the starting line-up as Ruairi Canavan drops to the bench and Cathal McShane is not named in the 26.

Donnelly's inclusion at centre half-forward results in Peter Harte switching to full-forward.

Corner-back Burns, who was a late cry-off from Armagh's Antrim game because of illness, takes over from Gareth Murphy, who made his championship debut at Corrigan Park.

Skipper and 2024 All-Star Forker, who usually plays at left half-back, is selected at right half-forward in place of Darragh McMullen.

The other two changes come in attack as 2024 All-Stars Conor Turbitt and Oisin Conaty take over from Tiernan Kelly and Stephen Campbell.

Murphy, McMullen, Kelly and Campbell are all named in the replacements.

The All-Ireland Final starters named by Kieran McGeeney are Burns, Forker, Turbitt, Conaty, Barry McCambridge, Connaire Macken, Rory Grugan and Andrew Murnin.

Midfielders Ben Crealey and Niall Grimley, who started against Galway last summer, are included in the substitutes after not featuring in the Antrim game.

Oisin O'Neill remains on the bench despite his impressive contribution as a substitute at Corrigan Park but his brother Rian remains an absentee after opting out of the squad prior to the beginning of the Allianz Football League.

Armagh: E Rafferty; P Burns, B McCambridge, T McCormack; R McQuillan, G McCabe, J Og Burns; C O'Neill, Connaire Mackin; A Forker (capt), O Conaty, P McGrane; R Grugan, A Murnin, C Turbitt.

Subs: B Hughes, S McPartlan, O O'Neill, J Hall, T Kelly, C McConville, D McMullen, N Grimley, B Crealey, G Murphy, S Campbell.

Tyrone: N Morgan; A Clarke, P Teague, N Devlin; M McKernan, R Brennan, K McGeary; B Kennedy, C Kilpatrick; A Donaghy, M Donnelly, C Daly; D McCurry, P Harte, D Canavan.

Subs: O O'Kane, C Quinn, P Hampsey, F Burns, B McDonnell, S O'Hare, J Oguz, M Bradley, S O'Donnell, R Canavan, E McElholm.

Image source, Inpho

Former Tyrone defender Conor Gormley says the 2005 All-Ireland semi-final victory over Armagh was the "most intense game" he ever played in.

Peter Canavan converted a last-gasp free to give the Red Hands a dramatic 1-13 to 1-12 win against their great rivals at Croke Park.

Tyrone went on to win the Sam Maguire that year and Gormley believes the semi-final was the most ferocious encounter during the peak years of their rivalry when they met six times in the championship between 2002 and 2005.

"To me, that All-Ireland semi-final in 2005 was the most intense game I ever played in," three-time All-Ireland winner Gormley told the GAA Social podcast.

"It is hard to describe. Nearly every step you took was so important and then when you got the ball, every pass mattered that day - everything mattered.

"The way the game ended, when Peter got the free, it was such a relief to get that game over and be on the right side of the result."

Gormley, who started all three of Tyrone's All-Ireland final wins under Mickey Harte, says he would love to play in the 2005 game again now, 20 years on.

"It was a crazy game. The crowd was massive, and the rivalry really came to a head that day, it was a mighty game to be involved in."

Image source, Inpho

Former Tyrone defender Conor Gormley believes his county's chances of beating Armagh in the Ulster Championship semi-final depend on the fitness of forward Darragh Canavan.

Canavan sat out the Red Hands' last-eight win against Cavan with a hamstring issue and faces a race against time to be fit for Saturday's game in Clones.

Three-time All-Ireland winner Gormley is hopeful Canavan can feature given how important he is to Malachy O'Rourke's young side.

"Darragh is going to be massive, if he is fit it's a whole new extra dimension to Tyrone," he told the GAA Social podcast.

"Do Armagh put a man marker on him? It gives them a bit more to think about."

Gormley believes that Tyrone can triumph against the All-Ireland champions if they can replicate how Antrim managed to unsettle the Orchard County in the quarter-final.

"I think they can beat Armagh, but it will take a massive shift," he added.

"After watching what Antrim did to Armagh, if Tyrone pick a bit off that they could cause them serious problems."

The 44-year-old, who also won three All-Stars during his decorated inter-county career believes there is "still more to come" from many players in O'Rourke's side.

"They're taking their time to find their feet, some of these players are finding the transition from under-21 and club football to play at that level," he explained.

"They're doing very well but there is still more in them, the likes of Ruairi Canavan, he has a bit to go yet he can be a serious player once he does that.

"A few players need to get up to the physical size and speed of the game and we'll know more about them after Saturday with Armagh being at that level."