Article #23172

It was the most extraordinary finale to an occasion when the tension seemed to override everything. The spectacle suffered. Was there even one to speak of? It came to feel purely like a slow stumble towards the end; towards something decisive.

Then there we were, the players from each team standing on the sideline behind Chris Kavanagh as he pored over the replay monitor on the advice of the video assistant referee, Darren England; his heart hammering, like that of everyone else.