For the second year in a row, Donegal hurlers have been knocked out of the Nickey Rackard Cup by Tyrone.
Saturday’s loss in Carrickmore by 1-23 to 1-19 means the Red Hand County will face Roscommon in next weekend’s final.
Donegal won this competition in 2020 but there was no promotion to the Christy Ring Cup that year because of the pandemic.
Last summer, Mickey McCann’s side suffered a surprise semi-final loss to Tyrone when back-to-back titles looked a realistic possibility.
The teams were level in Saturday’s contest at 1-18 each with eight minutes remaining – but it was Tyrone who found the scores in the closing minutes to grind out the win and, in the process, end Donegal’s hopes of reaching the final.
