Ulster attendances hold firm

Part of the attendance at the Tyrone versus Down match at Casement Park Belfast

Ulster Council secretary Danny Murphy has expressed delight with attendances at this year's Ulster SFC games.

In contrast to the other provinces, Ulster crowds were only marginally down on recent years with last Sunday's provincial decider between Tyrone and Monaghan attracting a capacity 34,600 crowd to Clones.

Describing the attendance figures as "most encouraging", Murphy was also happy with the turnouts for the six games which were played at neutral venues.

"Attendances have reflected the intrinsic appeal of the Ulster championship and the unpredictable nature of some of the games undoubtedly added an extra dimension to the competition," he said.

"I think that maybe home advantage is now something of a contradiction in terms, certainly from an Ulster perspective."