"It was unreal stuff," he said after the game.

"We started great and were ten points to five up at half-time, but we thought we should have been further up at that stage.

"We knew that Cork were going to get a purple patch in the second half, and they got a goal which lifted them.

"I thought we showed great resolve though to go six points up, but they kept getting back into the game.

"Their third goal was heart-breaking stuff, but the lads showed great resolve."

Dineen was full of praise for 19-year old Murtagh, who delivered the winning score with his late pressure-kick.

"Diarmuid Murtagh what can I say. We are glad to get to an All-Ireland final.

"Pressure! Diarmuid was great today and to get that point, it could have went to extra-time, but I'm delighted it didn't."

Cork Under 21 Football Manager Sean Hayes was critical of the performance of referee Anthony Nolan.

Hayes felt that there should have been more injury time, with delays in the second half due to injuries.

"There were only two minutes of injury-time played, and I counted at least three fellas down with head injuries," he said.

"Even the linesman said to me it was unfair, but it's not his call. In a game like this fellas train hard and they work their hearts out. They don't deserve to be treated like that.

"Referees do what they have to do I suppose and I can't do anything about that. I just feel for an All-Ireland semi-final we were hardly done by.

"All you want whenever you play is fair-play and I don't think we got it, but we have to take it on the chin."

But Hayes felt a poor first-half display also cost his side badly.

"Our first-half performance was terrible and we make no bones about that," he said.

"At least we showed heart in the second half and got back to a draw, against a very good team to be fair.

"Roscommon are very good, but that's the way it goes."