ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 1.
Monaghan v Tyrone: Pairc Grattan, Inniskeen: Sunday March 7th @ 2.30pm.
With two rounds of the National Football League completed there are three counties who go into Sunday's third round of matches with no points so far, Monaghan, Tyrone and Kerry. This Sunday Monaghan and Tyrone meet in Inniskeen in a game that is looking like having all of the qualities of a defining match for both teams in that the winners will move up the table while the losers will remain firmly rooted in the basement. A draw though could see both still in their basement positions particularly if Kerry win. Neither side though will be looking at this game as the defining match although as an Ulster derby game it has all the qualities of producing a match more akin to championship fervour than National League action even at this early stage of the year. Local pride is always a driving force in these Ulster derby games and pride and passion will be the hallmarks with both sides in this one. Tyrone had something of a traumatic start of to the 2010 season in that they began without the services of Sean Cavanagh who had picked up a serious injury last year and they then lost the services of Stephen O'Neill in a Dr McKenna Cup game against Fermanagh and he looks like being out for another while yet. Those injuries have robbed Tyrone of the services of two former players of the year and that is probably reflected in their difficult start although some in the O'Neill county would point to a number of other reasons. They were also involved in some controversy over the changing of yellow card bookings to red cards following their somewhat attritional opener against Derry with the result that they were without the services of Justin McMahon, Conor Gormley and Martin Penrose for their second game against Mayo. Those absences allied to that of O'Neill and Cavanagh proved a bridge too far and Tyrone found themselves still pointless after a Mark Ronaldson inspired Mayo took the points. For their part Monaghan too can look back on their opening games against Cork and Galway with some degree of frustration to say the least. Their opening game against Cork was a match that Monaghan definitely could have won but ultimately they failed to push home their advantage when on top and a few unforced errors also cost them dearly. In their second game against Galway they weathered a poor first half performance to stage a magnificent resurgence in the second-half only to then be hit by the controversial and very harsh sending-off of Paul Finlay on a second yellow card and the suspicion lingers that his dismissal was at least in part engineered as he was in brilliant form on that occasion. There are some who would point out that it is still the relatively early stages of the league but after Sunday's game there will be only four matches remaining, three of which Monaghan have as away fixtures. Monaghan's final home game is against Derry in Scotstown and they have away fixtures against Dublin next Saturday, Mayo and Kerry all of whom will be looking for points, Dublin and Mayo at the top end to push for a place in the final, and Kerry at the other end looking for points to salvage Division I status for next season. Any way it is taken Sunday's game has all of the ingredients to make for a classic between two attack minded teams. Paul Finlay who picked up that second yellow card against Galway will be available for Monaghan and will again be crucial to their chances with his all-round ability and particularly his accuracy. Finlay could play in midfield along with either Dick Clerkin, Brendan McKenna of Francis Caulfield but either way it promises to be a battle royal in that area as to Tyrone will be looking to Kevin Hughes and Aidan Cassidy to give them the vital foothold. Monaghan too will be boosted by the return of Dessie Mone from injury. He played against Dublin in a recent challenge game and came through okay so he certainly will be pushing for a starting place and Monaghan will need to be very alert defensively given the quality of players that Tyrone still have to call on like Kyle Coney and Brian McGuigan even though they are still without their two best forwards in Stephen O'Neill and Sean Cavanagh. Tyrone will also be buoyed up by the fact that the three players whose cards were upgraded from yellow to red following the game against Derry, Justin McMahon, Conor Gormley and Martin Penrose, are all now eligible and that will certainly give Mickey Harte options as he sits down to pick a side that he hopes will record his first victory in the current campaign. He will however be without Joe McMahon who got a red card for his alleged involvement in an altercation near the end of the game against Mayo. He may also have to reckon without the services of the members of the U21 team like Kyle Coney and Niall McKenna as they are involved in the Ulster U21 championship preliminary round game the following Wednesday. With Dessie Mone pushing for a place Monaghan could be fielding a reshuffled defence but will probably continue with Darren Hughes at full-back. Stephen Gollogly who also looks to have recovered from his injury could bolster Monaghan's attacking potential although they do have a better scores for than Tyrone having registered a total of 4-28 as against 2-23 by Tyrone. Against that Monaghan has conceded 4-33 and Tyrone have conceded just 2-30. Monaghan too will have to contend with the game plans that Tyrone adopt and change during the course of matches going from perhaps an orthodox formation to one where they play three midfielders and a two-man full forward line or even applying four half backs to frustrate the opposition. Both go into Sunday's game in the full knowledge that the losers will be that little bit deeper in trouble and by virtue of that it promises to be probably the tie of the round.

MONAGHAN MANAGER Seamus McEnaney would not agree that it is a make or break game for Monaghan. When it was put to the Monaghan manager that this was a make or break game as Monaghan and Tyrone along with Kerry were bottom of division 1 with no points from their two outings so far his first reaction was "that is great company to be in. I would not agree that it's a make or break game because going into Sunday's game there are still 10 points to be won in Division I and I believe that if we get six points we will stay in Division I. Division one is the place we need to be playing, this is one of seven big games that we have because we are playing the top teams in the country and Tyrone are the cream of the crop in that they are the best team in Ulster for the best part of the last 10 years and one of the best teams in Ireland for the past 5or 6 years. We have to be realistic though because Tyrone will be coming with a full panel bar Stephen O'Neill and Joe McMahon although Sean Cavanagh is unlikely to play any part and there is a question mark over the under 21 players with their Ulster championship match looming". Commenting on Monaghan's chances Seamus McEnaney was realistic regarding the national league so far. "You have to realise that we have played seven or eight debutantes in our two matches so far are and that's something we haven't done in the five years in totality that I've been involved. That is a huge number of players to be involved like that but it gives them valuable game time but being without the players we are without definitely impacts on us but on the positive side Dessie Mone and Stephen Gollogly are back from injury and will be in contention for places". Seamus McEnaney was also looking forward to the atmosphere that would be created in Inniskeen. "I have no doubt there will be a great atmosphere, this is a local Ulster Derby and we will be playing before a packed house Inniskeen which is a fabulous facility. Its just a pity that there are not six or seven thousand at this game but that's how things have panned out and it was out of our hands but there will be a great atmosphere and I hope that the players will respond and get us off the mark".

TYRONE MANAGER Mickey Harte would not see it as a make or break situation either.
"In some ways I could see that people would look at it that way", Mickey Harte told the Northern Standard "but every game in division 1 this year can be a make or break because all of the teams in Division I are playing the best teams in the country. Every team is in Division I on merit and that's why those teams are in there, they deserve to eb there. There are no easy games in Division I and there's no easy way out. Looking at the league table and yes we are at the bottom, in the basement, but the only way to go from there it up and that battle starts again on Sunday".
Tyrone have had something of a difficult and at times controversial start to the league and they still have to reckon without the services of Stephen O'Neill who picked up an injury in the McKenna Cup, although the news on Sean Cavanagh is a little bit more encouraging. "Stephen is out and he is a great loss, we all know that but we have to compensate and do our best. Sean Cavanagh is over his injury and I suppose is available. He has played a couple of games in the Ulster Club league but he would not be in a position to start. He is on the squad and hopefully will be available to us later in the league. We will also be without Joe McMahon who was sent off in the game against Mayo but the three men who were upgraded to red cards after the Derry game are eligible again".
Like Seamus McEnaney Mickey Harte knows that this game will generate a great atmosphere. "Of course there will be a great atmosphere in this one, there generally is between Tyrone and Monaghan and it will have an atmosphere that we don't always get in the league. I think it will be played more with championship fervour rather than what we normally associate with league matches".
In recent times Tyrone would have enjoyed a good record against Monaghan so did Mickey Harte feel that that would give his side a psychological advantage. "I really don't know about that, I probably wouldn't agree because results of previous meetings are actually history and this is a whole new script. It doesn't matter what happened in the past, it's the now is what's important and that's what we'll be working on because the only game that matters to Tyrone at this moment is their game this Sunday against Monaghan".

PREVIOUS MEETINGS. IN THE NFL.
While it would appear that Monaghan and Tyrone meet regularly they have in fact only met on eight occasions prior to Sunday's game since 1981. Sunday's match will be their 9th meeting and of the previous eight Monaghan won four, Tyrone have won two and two of the matches have been drawn.
THE RESULTS.
1981 Tyrone 2-10 Monaghan 2-7 (Oct '81)
1985 Tyrone 0-9 Monaghan 1-6 (3/85 Croke Park NFL semi final)
Replay Monaghan 1-8, Tyrone 0-8 (Armagh)
1986 Monaghan 0-12 Tyrone 1-5 (Nov '85)
1990 Tyrone 0-13, Monaghan 1-10 ( Feb '90)
1994 Monaghan 0-11 Tyrone 0-8 (Feb '94)
1998 Tyrone 0-11 per Monaghan 2-6 (Mar '98)
2006 Tyrone 1-15 Monaghan 1-13 (Omagh 19/3/06).

THE LAST TIME THEY MET IN LEAGUE ACTION.
ALLIANZ FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIV. 1A.
Tyrone 1-15, Monaghan 1-13.
It was heartbreak for Monaghan for the second Sunday in a row as Tyrone put in a storming finish to come from being seven points behind 12 minutes into the second-half to end the game with two points to spare at the end of a thrill a minute spectacular in Healy Park, Omagh on Sunday Marh 19th 2006. Twelve minutes into the second half a real shock looked on the cards as Monaghan came from being a point in arrears at half-time to go seven points in front thanks to a scintillating start to the second-half that saw them hit a goal and five points without reply in a blistering eleven minutes spell. Tommy Freeman netted the goal in the 12th minute after an inch perfect pass from Vincent Corey put him in behind the Tyrone cover. This was the third meeting between these sides in less than 12 months and the second in just a few weeks but it was in total contrast to the previous two which Tyrone won easily. On Sunday last it took a performance of championship proportions by the All Ireland champions to turn this game around but leaving Healy Park with the plaudits still ringing in their ears about their performance was little consolation to Monaghan as there were no league points on the board. Tyrone started without the services of captain Ryan McMenamin and midfielder Sean Cavanagh but they were forced to call on Cavanagh in the second-half as Mickey Harte's team needed a major injection to pull this match out of the fire. Stephen O'Neill acted as stand-in captain in place of Ryan McMenamin and he led by example of all through, putting on a points scoring exhibition that saw him finish with a personal tally of eight points, five of which came from frees. Tyrone went in one in front of the break, 0-7 to 0-6 but Monaghan took over almost completely in the early stages of the second period to hit a goal and five points without reply in the opening 12 minutes, Tomas Freeman with the goal. It was a score that should have seen Monaghan lift their game even higher and drive on for victory but in effect it was a score that ignited a fire under Tyrone and they responded with a blistering 15 minutes spell that saw them hit a goal and six points without reply between the 13th and 28th minutes to turn the game completely on its head. And they held out for victory.
Teams and Scorers: Tyrone: John Devine, Dermot Carlin, Conor Gormley, Michael McGee, Davy Harte, Ciaran Gourley, Philip Jordan, Colin Holmes, Brian Meenan, Kevin Hughes, Brian McGuigan 0-1, Gerard Cavlan, Martin Penrose 1-2, Stephen O'Neill 0-8, Owen Mulligan 0-3. Subs: Joe McMahon 0-1 for D Harte, Sean Cavanagh for B Meenan, Eoghan Bradley for M McGee.
Monaghan: Shane Duffy, Colm Flanagan, James Coyle, Donal Morgan, Dermot McArdle, Kieran McManus, Keith Sheerin, Vincent Corey, Dick Clerkin 0-1, Paul Finlay 0-6, Damien Freeman, Stephen Gollogly, Tomas Freeman 1-1, Hugh McElroy 0-1, Rory Woods 0-1. Subs: Paul McGuigan 0-3 for D Freeman, Brendan McKenna for D Clerkin, Eoin Duffy for K McManus. Referee: Michael Monaghan (Kildare). Tweet

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