Finlay looking forward
December 31, 2009After the highs, came the lows. A couple of big days out at Croke Park, against the might of the Kingdom, suggested that Monaghan were a coming team. They would be the next side to emerge from Ulster and stamp their authority on the All-Ireland scene, said the soothsayers, in the much the same way as Tyrone and Armagh in the recent past.
Kerry emerged on top by one point and three respectively, on both occasions after Monaghan had held winning positions within the shadow of the winning post.
Paul Finlay, a key member of the Monaghan side for both games, looks back on those days with more than a hint of regret. "I suppose you could say we were a bit unfortunate to come up against Kerry twice," he says. "But the way we looked at it, we had our opportunities to beat them on both occasions and we didn't take them."
Those defeats, coming in the white heat of championship and high summer, prophesied that this Monaghan team was still a work in progress. But progress was undeniable. Promotion to Division 1 of the National Football League followed in the spring of 2009, so with lessons learned from a couple of days in the classroom with Kerry, and confidence massaged by League promotion, it was with high hopes that Seamus McEnaney's team took its first steps into last summer's Ulster SFC.
The trend for the previous three years had been moving in one direction and there were high hopes that, 21 years after their last provincial title, Clones would once again witness a home win on Ulster final day.
Derry at Celtic Park is among the more daunting of tasks in an Ulster first round, though, and the task proved beyond them. More disappointing still was defeat to the same opposition a month later in Clones, in the second round of qualifiers. Derry scored 3-16, with Monaghan's tally of 0-20 the highest losing total of the year. "Going to Celtic Park is never easy and we knew we'd be in for a tough game in the first round," recalls Finlay. "After that, the draw threw up a few tough games for us. We played Armagh in the first round of the qualifiers and managed to get past them, but Derry beat us again then. We had no excuses. We needed to keep things tight at the back but we couldn't do it."
Next year, then, will prove whether last summer was the beginnings of a slide back towards oblivion or just a bump on the road to bigger and better things. Finlay certainly hopes it's the latter. "You always have to bounce back and that's what we'll be trying to do. We were knocked out early this year so I suppose we'll be well rested. Playing in Division 1 will be a boost to us, and Paul Grimley is a good addition to the backroom team. We've come close over the last couple of years without winning anything, losing the Ulster final and Division 2 this year, so we hope to put that right. The hunger is definitely there and we're looking forward to it."
While Monaghan's year ended early, it would be erroneous to suggest that Finlay has been kicking his heels since midsummer. Far from it, as he was part of the Ulster side which lifted the Railway Cup in London in November. It was his third time as part of the provincial set-up, culminating in a second winners' medal. The competition has been much-maligned in the recent past, but Finlay feels there is still an appetite for the inter-provincials among the players - if the GAA authorities can restore it to a position of prominence.
"It's still a massive thing with the players, and Martin Donnelly, the sponsor, has put a lot of time and money into it so it'd be great for him if more could be made of it," he says. "It seems to be more important to us than the officials anyway, they're struggling to find a place for it on the calendar and maybe the best thing would be to bring it back to St Patrick's Day and play it alongside the Club Championship finals. I am very proud to have two Railway Cup winners' medals and every day I pull on the Ulster jersey is an honour for me."
At club level, 2009 saw more near misses for Finlay, with Ballybay Pearses eclipsed by Scotstown in the Owen Ward Cup final. It was Ballybay's first year back in the Senior grade after an Intermediate double in 2008, and Finlay was relatively satisfied with consolidation - although he feels that with an injection of belief the team could challenge for outright honours.
"At the start of the year it was probably a case of staying up in the League would have been a good enough year," he says. "The main aim was to stay there and establish ourselves in Senior but things started fairly well so we were able to push on and keep the effort going. The League is a big thing for us. We were top of the table on a number of occasions and when we were still close to the top halfway through the year, we forgot about relegation and started looking towards the semi-finals."
Ultimately Ballybay would reach the Owen Ward Cup final but came up just short in November's decider. "We were beaten by six points and Scotstown were the better team on the day," concedes Finlay. "Getting to the final was a good achievement and overall it was a decent year."
On the flip side, the Championship finished disappointingly early, with defeat to Inniskeen after a first round replay before eventual winners Clontibret proved just too strong in the back-door game. "Maybe we lacked that bit of belief," he says. "Clontibret beat us by four points but we had our chances and let the game slip. Overall, looking at the League and the Championship this year, we know we're not that far away. It won't happen overnight but we just have to keep working at it and hopefully it'll come." Tweet
