Joe Brolly was left shaking his head at what he witnessed in the Tyrone versus Monaghan quarter-final yesterday.

The 1993 Derry All-Ireland winner doesn't hold back in today's Sunday Independent: "The Tyrone-Monaghan game, if one could call it that, was won courtesy of a series of soft frees, mostly resulting from diving. The Invisible Man resumed his vendetta on the Cavanagh brothers, though only in the scoring area. It is remarkable how well balanced they are when they are out the field. There, breaking tackles is easy. Inside the opponent's half however, the Croke Park grass becomes an ice rink.

"The match was everything that is bad about modern Gaelic football. Darren Hughes tousled Tiernan McCann's hair in the last quarter. McCann threw himself to the ground holding his face.

"In the 39th minute Connor McAlliskey went down clutching his face, rolling on the ground. The crowd actually laughed. When the referee showed no interest, he sprang to his feet, joined the attack, received possession and kicked for a point, narrowly missing.

"In the 53rd minute, Seán Cavanagh went to ground after minor contact and lay there for a full two minutes, apparently stricken. Eventually, he got slowly to his feet, checked his head again and within ten seconds was sprinting for a ball which he won.

"In the 70th minute, brother Colm went down in identical fashion. He lay on the ground for two minutes (punctual boys the Cavanaghs). He then gingerly got to his feet holding his head. Then, miraculously, took off to receive a short pass. In fairness, they recover quickly.

"Conor Meyler, the Croke Park debutant, provided the most hilarious moment of the day, throwing himself into a Monaghan player, then crumpling in a heap on the ground. In fairness to Marty, he got that one right. It should also be pointed out that he was in an almost impossible position, since the diving, stalling and mean-spiritedness was overwhelming and systematic. It was a depressing, soul-destroying 80 minutes (almost 10 minutes injury time for all the non-injuries) and a defeat for the human spirit.

"Some of the really good Tyrone lads like Mattie Donnelly, Justin McMahon and Peter Harte must cringe at what is happening around them.

"As for the football, it was dull and formulaic. A flock of pigeons settled in the Monaghan scoring zone, pecking for worms, as it was the safest place on the field. As the game wore on, they moved to the Tyrone scoring zone and feasted there. Not a human to bother them. Both teams shuffled up and down. Tyrone had more scoring threats and slightly better footballers.

"But, in the end, Marty Duffy was the difference. The soft frees either side of half-time were critical and had the crowd shaking their heads."

The nature of Mayo's win over Donegal in the second game gave Brolly some hope for the future of gaelic football...

"I like Mayo. I like them a lot. Thank God for them yesterday, because there was nothing else. As the race to the bottom continues, the conversation in Croke Park was all about whether we'll have a game at all in a decade's time."

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