The competitiveness of the Ulster SFC has been main reason why the province has bucked the trend of falling attendances elsewhere according to Ulster Council secretary Danny Murphy. While attendances have fallen in the other three provinces, with rising fuel costs and the economic downturn being partly blamed, the crowds in Ulster have been holding firm and, if anything, have increased on previous years. There were 17,481 in Healy Park for last Sunday's drawn clash between Tyrone and Down, while 17,237 watched Derry's victory over Donegal the previous weekend. The Fermanagh v Monaghan at Brewster Park attracted a crowd of 14,500, while Antrim v Cavan in Casement was watched by just over 7,000. And the Ulster Council are expecting two more big gates this weekend when Down and Tyrone replay their quarter-final tie in Newry and Cavan play host to Armagh in Kingspan/Breffni Park. "The attendances have met our expectations all the way down the line," Murphy said. "Cavan and Antrim was the only game where the attendance wasn't that big but the crowd was better than expected. "The fact that we have such amazingly competitive games helps. If people think their team has a 50/50 chance of winning then they are more likely to go. "Art McRory (former Tyrone manager) said to me recently that on a good day there was no more than five points between the best and the worst team in Ulster. I would agree with that." Tweet

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