Ulster U20 football wrap: Donegal prevail in penalty shootout

Donegal 0-15 Fermanagh 0-15 (AET. Donegal win 5-4 on penalties)

Donegal booked their place in the semi-finals of the Eirgrid Ulster Under-20 football semi-finals with a 5-4 penalty shootout victory over Antrim in Ballybofey.

In both normal time and extra-time, the hosts required injury-time scores to deny the Saffrons, and in the subsequent spot kicks, only Aaron Cullen denied Antrim's Eoin Gough, allowing Daniel Marley the opportunity to send Donegal through to the last four after an absorbing contest where they will now face Derry.

Donegal’s David Boyle opened his account in the first minute of the game and was prominent on the scoreboard both from play and through frees in what was a very even opening 30 minutes.

A Blake McGarvey point put Donegal two clear, but Antrim claimed the final two scores of the half, through Ryan McQuillan (free) and Niall Fallon meant it was four points apiece at the break.

The tit-for-tat nature of scoring continued after the resumption where a two-point lead, something the Saffrons enjoyed on a couple of occasions, was the biggest lead at any stage.

Another Boyle free, his fourth of the contest, reduced the deficit to the bare minimum as the clock entered the red, with Christy Mulligan holding his nerve to send the game to extra-time.

Surprisingly given the pattern of scoring, half a dozen points were scored in the 10 minutes that followed in the first half of extra-time, four of them going the way of Antrim.

Yet again Donegal dug deep, with Shaun Ward’s free in the third minute of time added to send the game to penalties, where the home side converted all five kicks to advance.

Fermanagh 0-08 Derry 3-12

Derry enjoyed the most comfortable passage to the last four in Ulster by cruising past Ferm