It was the first meeting of the two Ulster kingpins this season and it will certainly not be the last after both Tyrone and Armagh ladies served up a real threat at Crossmaglen last Sunday. It may have only been March but both teams have served warning to he other senior championship pretenders in Ulster that they will be hard to stop.

This final game in the Suzuki national league campaign was played with all the intensity of championship action but after a very good sixty odd minutes the sides could not be separated and must go head to head again this weekend with a place in the semi-finals up for grabs.

A draw then and with score difference not in the mix its back to Tyrone for that winner take all affair.

Sundays  draw at Crossmaglen in near perfect conditions was possibly a fair result but both Tyrone and the home side had enough chances to seal the victory, it turned out to be about the accuracy and coolness of the free takers and who would blink first , in the end both Matthews and Begley were inseparable again.

Tyrone got of to a real flyer and they led by four points after eleven minutes. Gemma Begley hit two points and Cathy Donnelly saw her goal ward bound shot skim the crossbar for another point. McAliskey latched on a fourth point as Armagh looked unsettled. Their cause not helped with a serious injury to Alma O’Donnell prompting a reshuffle.

The home side finally got on the score sheet on 17 minutes when Meave Morriarty pointed from distance and after O’Hagan forced a McVeigh save, Armagh were right back in the tie when Morriarty put Aoife Lennon ( on for the injured O’Donnell)  through on goal and she slid the ball home from close range.

Tyrone, at times pulled all over the place by the busy Armagh forwards held firm and at the other end Cathy Donnelly and Begley points left them 0-6 to 1-1 up again, an injury to Eilish Gormley though was a set back , Jolene Donnelly introduced with 24 minutes on the clock.

McVeigh was forced into action as Matthews and O Hagan combined to get past the Tyrone defence but in the closing minutes of the half it was Armagh who looked sharp and were rewarded.

Matthews pointed a free and McAlinden stole in for a goal chance that she grabbed with both ands. McVeigh had committed herself and the talented forward made no mistake to give her side a 2-2 to 0-6 lead.

The deficit was cut to a point though as Gemma Begley tapped over a free.

Tyrone were not firing on all cylinders up front in the second quarter but just into the third it was evident that the half time break had worked wonders.

Begley lashed over a wonderful long range point and followed up that with a well taken goal.

Sarah Donnelly collected at midfield ran through and off loaded to the Carrickmore forward who left Denise Hagan with no chance. That goal left it 1-8 to 2-2 in favour of Tyrone and thus it remained until the 20^th minute. In between times though both teams created chances but Woods and Kelly were super again and Grainne Kelly was having a steady game on he half back line for Tyrone. McCloskey and Donnelly were good at midfield while Begley and the Donnelly’s were a threat up front.

Matthews pointed though for Armagh , Begley replied before O’Hanlon left two points between the sides going into the last five minutes and with Armagh finishing strong again.

Begley missed a couple of scoring chances too while at the other end a couple of dubious frees could have secured a comeback for Armagh however they looked set to rue three missed Aileen Matthews frees as the clock ticked down.

A tense climax and the tension was unbearable as Matthews made up for the misses by latching on three points which looked like securing an unlikely win, yet two last attacks by Tyrone could have produced more than the equalising score form Begley.

The all star forward went close from the right before setting up the play-off this week when she calmly dropped over her seventh point of the day right at the death.

A share of the bragging rights but they have to do it all again on Saturday and with a place in the last four up for grabs  expect another thriller.

Both teams will take plenty from the drawn fixture as well as two serious injuries, O’Donnell and Gormley both expected to miss this play-off. It will mean enforced changes for both then, but there could be other changes too. Tyrone relied heavily on Begley up front while the Armagh forward division were held well by a settled Tyrone defence who are working well.

MATCH STATS

TYRONE TEAM

Sinead McVeigh, Sinead McLaughlin, Maura Kelly, Marie Gallagher, Aishling Hagan,  Neamh Woods, Grainne Kelly Arlene McCloskey, Sarah Donnelly, Cathy Donnelly 0-2, Eilsih Gomley, Claire McAliskey 0-1, Sarah Louise McLaughlin, Gemma Begley 1-7, Anne Dooher.

SUBS: Jolene Donnelly For Gormley, Niamh Mckernan For McLaughlin

Orla O’Neill For McAliskey.