Shades of 1996 in Clones as Donegal lost a man before the game had even begun to settle and reverted to an aggressive, flowing short game which ultimately saw them through.
Cavan had the mantel of provincial champions but not the requisite armoury. For a second week running, Clones bore witness to the 14-man phenomenon, as Cavan - like Down last week - simply couldn't find a useful occupation for their spare man, Raphael Rogers.
Donegal's Martin Coll was, it seemed, harshly sent to the line after a high tackle on Larry Reilly (from the free the Cavan man himself converted), forcing Noel Hegarty to drop back and drawing John Gildea towards midfield, where he enjoyed an inspirational game.
Up three points at half-time, Donegal repeatedly raided the Cavan flanks in the second half, with Diver and Noel McGinley trading passes with their half-forward line before seeking out the obvious target in Tony Boyle. The Dungloe forward scarcely saw the ball for the first 20 minutes but when he was eventually supplied, the portents were ominous for Cavan.
Boyle won ball all too easily and hit three points during a first half which Cavan had dominated at the start. Cavan's Ronan Carolan had another peerless afternoon from dead ball situations, firing over two early frees before Coll was sent off. That dismissal set the tone of for what was a fiery and at times indisciplined affair - a trait which belongs to neither county's tradition.
Dermot McCabe asserted himself early at midfield and delivered a telling message with 18 minutes gone by thundering his way onto a loose ball arcing the ball over the bar to put Cavan 0-4 to 0-1 ahead. Donegal, uncertain until this point, seemed to focus themselves after Coll's departure and their game ascended steadily in clammy, wet conditions.
Their dominance was slow-burning but convincing. They wove some wonderfully intricate attacking sequences from the 20th minute onwards and finished with nine scorers, two of whom were half backs.
"Even though there were hits going in, it was mostly off the ball. The play itself seemed very open," opined Donegal's Damien Diver, whose flawless transition between slick offence and stubborn defence epitomised the best traits of the Donegal team.
Cavan, in contrast, were too reliant on McCabe for a spark and depended too much on Carolan for scores. Occasionally they flickered with potential - Rogers posted a beautiful run and point midway through the second half but the electric forward speed of the Reillys and Graham, which pushed them onwards last year, never made an impact yesterday.
Donegal's full-back line were resolute as time ebbed, repeatedly severing promising Cavan buildups. Barry McGowan exerted untold influence from deep in the corner, orchestrating many patient build-ups when a long clearance seemed the more likely option. With Gildea, McGuinness, Duffy and the savagely industrious Adrian Sweeney cleaning up at midfield, Donegal were privy to an abundance of possession.
At 0-10 to 0-8 up, they took a stranglehold of the match, with Manus Boyle whipping over a marvellous point after 55 minutes to leave them five points to the good. Cavan, however, showed heart in surging back. McCabe and Patrick Sheils forced their way back in the middle and Carolan froze Donegal's march with wondrous point-taking in a two-minute blitz. Ray Cunningham then chipped them back to the pinnacle, leaving the scores at 0-13 to 0-12 with seven minutes remaining.
"They knocked over a few in succession and I thought `here we go'. But we showed great spirit," said Donegal's John Duffy.
It was a match they refused to lose. Mark Crossan rescued a ball from the goal line and McGowan, Gildea and Diver fluidly worked the ball along the standside touchline before freeing Tony Boyle, who was fouled. He converted and then Donegal broke again, chipping a through ball for Brian Roper to run and curl an exquisite deciding point.
"A tough game," concluded Cavan manager Liam Austin. "It was a steep learning curve for me but we have a bright future." Donegal? Back in an Ulster final with a mix of new blood and sage heads and no-one fancying them to go much further. Sort of like 1992.
