1997 Ulster Senior Football Championship final

1997 Ulster Senior Football Championship final

Event	1997 Ulster Senior Championship
Cavan Derry 1-14 0-16
Date	20 July 1997
Venue	St Tiernach's Park, Clones
Man of the Match	Dermot McCabe
Referee	Pat McEnaney (Monaghan)
Attendance	34,349
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The 1997 Ulster Senior Football Championship final was played at St Tiernach's Park in Clones on 20 July 1997. It was contested by Cavan and Derry.

Cavan were looking for their first title since 1969, while Derry hadn't won since 1993.

Cavan entered the game as underdogs, but bridged a 28-year gap to win a record 39th Ulster title. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} Substitute Jason O'Reilly got the decisive goal, ^[5] while Ronan Carolan was top scorer with 6 points. Dermot McCabe was selected as man of the match while Stephen King had the honour of lifting the Anglo-Celt Cup as captain. ^{[6] [7]}

Match details

20 July 1997

Cavan	1-14 – 0-16	Derry
R. Carolan 0-6 J. O'Reilly 1-0 P. Reilly 0-3 L. Reilly 0-2 D. McCabe 0-1 R. Cunningham 0-1 F. Cahill 0-1		A. Tohill 0-4 J. Brolly 0-3 G. McGill 0-2 G. Coleman 0-2 J. Cassidy 0-1 F. McCusker 0-1 D. Dougan 0-1 J. McBride 0-1 K. McKeever 0-1

St Tiernach's Park, Clones

Referee: Pat McEnaney (Monaghan)

Cavan

Derry

1 Paul O'Dowd 2 Philip Kermath 3 Ciarán Brady 4 Terry Farrelly 5 Gerry Sheridan 6 Bernard Morris 7 Patrick Sheils 8 Stephen King (c) 9 Dermot McCabe 10 Peter Reilly 11 Ronan Carolan 12 Raymond Cunningham 13 Larry Reilly 14 Fintan Cahill 15 Damien O'Reilly Substitutes: 17 Mickey Graham for L. Reilly 18 Philip Smith for King 20 Jason O'Reilly for Cahill Manager: Martin McHugh

1 Damien McCusker 2 Kieran McKeever (c) 3 David O'Neill 4 Gary Coleman 5 Seán Marty Lockhart 6 Henry Downey 7 Johnny McBride 8 Anthony Tohill 9 Dermot Heaney 10 Gary McGill 11 Dermot Dougan 12 Fergal McCusker 13 Joe Brolly 14 Seamus Downey 15 Joe Cassidy Substitutes: 17 Karl Diamond for Dougan 19 Gary Doyle for McGill Manager: Brian Mullins

Man of the Match: Dermot McCabe

References

1. "Cavan end wilderness years". Irish Times. 21 July 1997. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
2. "Back in the day: The Irish News July 20 1997: Cavan footballers end 28-year wait for Ulster title". Irish News. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
3. "'I never witnessed scenes like it in my life' - The Donegal legend who led Cavan to Ulster glory". Independent. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
4. "'I turned around and I think I was hit by a herd of buffalo, I never seen a pitch fill up as quick'". The42. 22 June 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
5. "Soccer celebrations, carrying sandbags over hills, and ending a 28-year wait for Ulster glory". The42. 23 June 2019. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
6. "Flashback: 1997 Ulster SFC Final - Cavan v Derry". GAA.ie. 10 April 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2019.
7. "'It was everything I thought it would be'". Anglo Celt. 8 April 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2019.