Tyrone defeated Kerry 0-12 to 0-6 to claim the All-Ireland Masters Football Championship title at the St Brigid's ground in Roscommon on Saturday.
Tyrone legends Stephen O'Neill and Conor Gormley were among those to line out for the Red Hand as they won their third consecutive title while Aidan O'Mahony pulled on the jersey for the Kingdom.
Just as many of their games were in the noughties, the game got "heated" late in the first half when O'Neill and O'Mahony clashed. Tyrone were leading by a point at the time.
The Rathmore man chased down O'Neill as he took possession on his own half-back line and hit the three-time All-Ireland winner with a shoulder. The pair ended up going head to head and referee Michael McGirl subsequently booked both players. Four other yellow cards were also shown in the game.
Kerry vs Tyrone - 2023 All-Ireland masters final
"There's a lot of talk about the masters and the importance of it," O'Mahony said after the game.
"You see it there today, Kerry and Tyrone. It was nip and tuck in the first half and it got a bit heated. Myself and Stephen renewed acquaintances.
"It's great to see lads still playing like Marty McGrath. I went to Aussie rules with him, played against him.
"The group of lads I'm with, and I really must say this about them because I've been missing for a good few weeks, they've put in a lot of work all year. You see what it meant to them and it's a great competition.
"I think it's going to get bigger and bigger. The only problem is we're going to get older so we'll be stepping out of it and they'll be looking for [players] around the 40 mark.
25 September 2005; Stephen O'Neill, Tyrone, in action against Aidan O'Mahony, Kerry. Bank of Ireland All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final, Kerry vs Tyrone, Croke Park, Dublin. Picture credit; Brendan Moran / SPORTSFILE
"You have to respect the guys who might not have had the opportunity to play inter-county. When you put on the jersey and cross the white line, it means so much to us and them as well. You're still representing your county and that's what it was today. [Stephen O'Neill] was representing Tyrone, I was representing Kerry.
"You talk about the crowd, there was five minutes of it getting heated [at the end of the first half]. That's part and parcel of it. I saw Conor Gormley there again today flying, Marty McGrath."
O'Mahony added that Saturday's game will "probably will be one of my last days". O'Neill said Tyrone were "delighted" with the win.
"We knew coming down here today that it was going to be a very tough game," he said.
"Kerry have had a good year too. Any Kerry team you play, you know you're going to get your fill of it. They gave it to us today in bucketloads.
"We have a lot of good players there that are still playing reserve football, some of them even playing senior football. Most of them are in good shape and enjoy their football. The masters is nice, it's a bit more relaxed than club football."
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