Armagh 2-8 Mayo 1-9 A brace of late, late points from Stephen Kernan and substitute Shane O'Neill saw Armagh capture their first All-Ireland under 21 football title at the expense of a gallant Mayo at Kingspan Breffni Park. In a gripping finish, Mayo came from five points down to draw level with eight minutes of injury-time elapsed. Amazingly, the drama didn't end there as Kerry referee Aidan Mangan decided to play another three minutes which was enough time for Kernan and O'Neill to kick the decisive scores and complete a miserable week for Mayo. While Mayo will be distraught after losing their second All-Ireland final in six days, Armagh will rejoice in their first triumph at this level. They controlled the game for the most part but with the finishing line in sight, lost their shape and allowed Mayo to come back and level proceedings. However, Peter Rafferty's charges deserve great credit for the manner in which they responded to Mayo's late onslaught. On this evidence, the Orchard County will continue to be a major force at senior level for many years to come. The foundations for Armagh's success were laid in the first half when centre forward Kernan and full forward Ronan Austin both found the net. Kernan's goal from the penalty spot after just five minutes meant that Mayo were playing catch-up for the remainder of the game. A feature of the first half was the number of times Armagh defenders got in blocks on their direct opponents. Midfielder Malachy Mackin, who spent much of the game helping out his defence, was particularly effective in this regard. Mayo were favoured by the wind in the opening half but it was Armagh who got off to a great start when Kernan goaled from a penalty in the fifth minute after Brian Mallon had been dragged to the ground inside the area. Kernan gave Mayo 'keeper Fintan Ruddy no chance with his spot-kick, blasting the ball to roof of the net. Damien Munnelly opened Mayo's account from a free three minutes later before a sweetly struck free by Kernan restored the Ulster side's three-point advantage. Kernan registered his first point from play in the 14th minute after Michael McNamee's shot from wide on the right rebounded from the upright. Munnelly replied with his second free before a delightful pass from Kernan put Ronan Austin through for Armagh's third point after 21 minutes. Austin extended Armagh's lead to seven points two minutes later when he fielded a high ball sent in by impressive centre back Ciaran McKeever before crashing the ball to the bottom left hand corner of the Mayo net. It was a stunning goal, created by McKeever who had carried the ball out of defence before delivering into the Orchard County's big full forward. Mayo responded to that setback when Aidan Kilcoyne scored their first point from play in the 27th minute. The accurate Munnelly followed up with his third point to cut the gap to 0-4 to 2-3 at the interval. Kilcoyne reduced the deficit further on the restart before a super long-range effort from Michael McNamee restored Armagh's five-point lead. Munnelly sent over his fourth free before Andy Moran's excellent point left a goal between the sides after a sustained spell of Mayo pressure. But points from Peadar Toal and Brian Mallon provided Armagh with much-needed breathing space entering the final 10 minutes of normal time. A Kilcoyne free in the 57th minute brought the margin down to four points again but either side of it, there were long stoppages owing to injuries to Damien Munnelly and Malachy Mackin (both players were unable to continue). Armagh looked to be in no danger until the game suddenly came alive in the fourth minute of stoppage time when Mayo midfielder Barry Moran scored a goal to leave just the minimum between the teams. A quick free by Andy Moran was gathered by substitute Pat Casey whose half-blocked shot broke kindly to Moran who finished from close range. Another four minutes had elapsed when Michael Conroy - scorer of 1-1 against Kerry in last Sunday's senior final - was taken down and Kilcoyne duly levelled from the resultant free. At this stage, Mayo looked the most likely winners but Armagh showed great resolve to reply with the lead point from Kernan after McNamee had been fouled on the 21 metre line. There was still time for Mayo to force a replay, but Armagh were not to be denied and it was left to O'Neill - who had replaced Mackin minutes earlier - to fire over the insurance point. Scorers - Armagh: S Kernan 1-3, R Austin 1-1, M McNamee, B Mallon, P Toal and S O'Neill 0-1 each. Mayo: D Munnelly and A Kilcoyne 0-4 each, B Moran 1-0, A Moran 0-1. Armagh: G Wilson; G Smyth, F Moriarty, A Mallon; A Kernan, C McKeever, B McDonald; M Mackin, G Swift; G Loughran, S Kernan, P Toal; M McNamee, R Austin, B Mallon. Subs: P Duffy for McDonald, B Toner for Loughran, J Murtagh for Austin, M Moore for A Kernan, S O'Neill for Mackin. Mayo: F Ruddy; D Geraghty, P Navin, T Howley; M Carey, L O'Malley, S Drake; B Moran, B Barrett; A Kilcoyne, R McNamara, A Moran; A Costello, D Munnelly, M Conroy. Subs: P Casey for Costello, P Doherty for Carey, J Prenty for Munnelly, N Lydon, for Conroy, R Feeney. Referee: Aidan Mangan (Kerry). Tweet

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