Scotstown seniors had the mercurial Sean McCague back at the helm in 2004 and an 11 year gap was bridged. Here's how the Blues made their way back to the SFC final. Words Kevin Carney. Nobody said it was going to be easy. But Scotstown did defy the odds and reach the blue riband decider for the first time since 1993. It wasn't an easy ride; was more workmanlike than polished but the improving north Monaghan men made it. Scotstown were in sleeves-rolled-up mode from the start of the championship season. And they posted notice of their intent to go the distance by finishing their first round clash with Aghabog in Emyvale as they began the match . .on the attack. However it was the spirited, tigerish football and resolve demonstrated in the core of the match which served the blues best and which did most to catapult them to what was a deserved 1-13 to 0-9 victory. That aforementioned spirit and resolve was evidenced starkly in the first half when the north Monaghan men twice came from behind to level the scores. Pauric McCrudden opened the scoring with a free in the third minute and that score was very nearly added to two minutes later with a goal when Nicholas Corrigan made good some gutsy spadework by Keith McGonnell to burst through only to see his shot flew over, instead of under, the bar. The next goal chance for Scotstown didn't materialise until some 23 minutes later when Colm McElwaine ghosted inside the Aghabog full-back line but his shot was saved by the Aghabog 'keeper. Trailing by 0-5 to 0-6 on the restart, Scotstown drew level with a converted '45 within two minutes but the game remained a see-saw affair thereafter with the would-be winners still playing catch-up with ten minutes to go after Aghabog edged into a one point lead yet again. It was then that Scotstown showed the greater will-to-win, denying their opponents another score while chiselling their way into the lead with a Pauric McCrudden free giving them the edge in the 51st minute. With five minutes remaining that advantage had stretched three fold before a Nicholas Corrigan goal six minutes from time effectively sealed the spoils for the would-be finalists. Mid-July and the small matter of a tiff with Castleblayney Faughs was next on the agenda. As is their wont, Monaghan's old firm gave it their all with a dramatic winner by Colm McElwaine two minutes into injury time serving to ease the Blues home by 0-11 to 1-7 in a high-tempo clash in Clontibret. And while the proceedings may have been fuelled more by perspiration than inspiration, it was nonetheless a titanic tussle. Scotstown's win was due reward for a real sleeves-rolled-up display in which each player burst a gut to trip up the champions' running-style game. There was a great division of labour about the Blues' players approach as each invariably supported the man in possession or doubled up to force their opponent to waste or loose possession. And without their main scoregetter, the injured Kieran Tavey, and an over-reliance on Dermot McArdle, the town team found their fiercest rivals just too hard a nut to crack. Scotstown did much of the running in the game and three points in succession - the last one from Nicholas Corrigan - helped give the side a one point lead at the end of the first quarter. Corrigan was on hand to double Scotstown's lead moments later and the Blues remained on the forefoot right through to the interval at which stage they led by 0-5 to 0-3. The third-quarter was another satisfying period for the Fermanagh-border side. Brian McGinnity got them off to a flyer with a great point in the opening minute and when Colm McElwaine popped over a fine point in the 41st minute, 'Blayney were suddenly looking at a five point deficit. Scotstown were as solid at the back for the first three-quarters of the match as they were efficient up front and it wasn't until the 46th minute that 'Blayney notched their first point of the second half. But a sea-change in Scotstown's fortunes seemed to be signalled when, in the 52nd minute, the town team nicked a fortuitous goal direct from a 35 metre free to leave just the minimum between the sides. But a pressure-relieving point by Nicholas Corrigan helped steady the Scotstown ship with less than six minutes left to play. Scotstown had more to do though and a replay seemed in the offing when their opponents sent over two frees. But cometh the hour, cometh the man and with great coolness, Colm McElwaine gathered the ball and fired over the winning point to delight of the blues' vocal support. Scotstown's eager-beaver work ethic was again to the fore when they booked a place in the last four, courtesy of a two point victory over Clontibret in another fiercely contested affair in Castleblayney in late July. Scotstown trailed just once in the match and that after just nine minutes. Either side of Clontibret's lead point, Scotstown showed themselves to be the best team on view with David McCague and Keith McGonnell the driving forces of the team from their midfield platform. Scotstown were lively up front too where the McGinnity, McElwaine and Corrigan triumvirate had Clontibret in trouble on numerous occasions. Further back, the blues' defenders were also on top of their game and restricted their immediate opponents to zero goal opportunities while conceding only a half-dozen points from play. Scotstown played some fine football in the first half in particular and duly led by five points. From there to the finish, it was a case of Scotstown holding onto to what they had. And while Clontibret did manage to reduce the difference between the sides to the minimum three minutes from time, Nicholas Corrigan popped up in injury time with the insurance point and, accordingly, the ticket through to the last four. It was hardly a case of Scotstown meting out a Latton lesson thereafter in the semi-final but Scotstown's 0-9 to 0-8 victory again underpinned the blues' reputation for hard graft, hunger and earnest endeavour. It was a torrid test for the blues though and a draw looked on the cards throughout, especially as just one point separated the teams at the interval with Scotstown trailing by the odd point in eleven after they edged into the lead for the first and only time in the game. Scotstown came out for the second half looking in much more business mode and points by Brian McGinnity and Mark Duffy eased them in front again within three minutes of the restart. Just the one point still separated the sides with ten minutes left to play after a particularly good effort by Declan McCarville helped keep his side's nose in front. From there to the finish, stalemate was the order of the day with the Scotstown rearguard earning their corn as their opponents threw everything forward to pull the fat out of the fire. And so to the county final, Scotstown's first since 1993. Pumped-up Magheracloone formed the opposition. It was safe to say the Farneymen had the backing of the vast majority of clubs in the county as they sought their first-ever title. Scotstown failed to add to their long-list of title triumphs by going down by 0-5 to 1-10 in Clones on September 19th. The blues trailed throughout and suffered a major blow to the solar plexis in the 17th minute when Scotstown 'keeper Philip Maguire was left unprotected as Magheracloone's Paudie Finnegan nipped in to score the all-important goal. That major proved to be a veritable watershed in what had been, up until that juncture, an evenly-contested affair with both sides sharing four points in the first quarter. Sadly for Sean McCague's charges, things went slowly downhill after the concession of the goal even though they rebounded with gusto moments after the goal to nick a point off the boot of Colm McElwain. And although their 0-4 to 1-6 half-time deficit was hardly insurmountable, Scotstown seldom looked like hitting the high notes thereafter which would have had their supporters singing from the roof of the stand. The writing was on the wall for the blues eight minutes into the second half when they slipped to seven points adrift. Goal chances were few and far between for both sides over the 60 minutes but Scotstown were afforded a couple. One such chance arose in the 40th minute but Brian McGinnity unfortunately fired narrowly wide. Later with just over six minutes left to play, Declan McCarville was similarly out of luck when he just failed to connect to a low driven ball. To their credit, Scotstown stuck to their task and at least broke their scoring duck in the second half when Damien F. McKenna notched a point eight minutes from the close of play. But that was that for the brave blues. Their goose was well and truly cooked but their championship odyssey in 2004 would surely provide the stimulus, confidence and valuable experience needed to propel them perhaps a step further in the coming year. Building from the bottom Beaten in the SFC final but unbowed. Scotstown's bid to re-capture the blue riband prize continues apace with, for instance, another Coyle Cup triumph serving as an important building block. Kevin Carney reports. Scotstown GFC boasts one of the most fertile underage set-ups in the county. Built on a foundation laid by the energies emanating from the parish primary schools of Urbleshanny, Tydavnet and Knockatallon and the club itself, the north Monaghan nursery certainly seems to have the winning formula. It's a twin track approach which is certainly reaping dividends. And, according to Gene McGinnity of the 2004 Coyle Cup winning fraternity, the fact that the youngsters from the parish of Tydavnet are so razor-keen to get involved in Gaelic football makes for a ready-made recipe. "We provide the coaching, make it interesting and the youngsters respond. "There's a great football tradition in the area and while a lot of the players come from traditional football families in the area, there's still a lot of kids who are establishing their own family football tradition and that's great to see." No surprise then why the blues have been able to field two teams, in two different divisions, right up from under 12 to under 15 grades each year. Unlike many clubs in Monaghan, it's a quantity and quality thing in Scotstown and when Coyle Cups come parading around the green, the words winning and formula certainly ring out loud. Obviously the Class of 2004 showed themselves over the past twelve months to have the skill to complement their innate gra for the big ball game. "One of the best things about having an Under 13 B team in 2004 is that some of the younger fellas on that team will have gained a lot of experience and improved a lot, skill-wise, which will keep them in good stead for next year. "Every year you'd be hoping that a lot of the players from the B team would be able to make the step up in class to the first team the following year with the minimum of fuss and with the maximum effect." In skipping to back-to-back Coyle Cup triumphs, Scotstown's starlets proved themselves to be the best of the bunch at Under 12 level over the last couple of years. But one wonders have they got the ability to consolidate their winning ways over the next few years? "I think so. The 2004 squad is probably as good as I've seen over the last twenty years or so. "They're very skilful, determined and they've a good work ethic. "I'd be disappointed if six or seven of them don't go on and make a big contribution to the senior team down the line. "Getting the fellas to enjoy their football at underage level and nurturing and developing their talent is what it's all about. "We're not all about winning just for the sake of it. We'd like these fellas to represent the club well as players, supporters and to be good community people when they get older," Gene explains. Certainly the passion, pride and panache demonstrated by the 2004 Coyle Cup winners tends to suggest that Scotstown's under 12 think-tank did a pretty good job with their charges during the past season especially. So it seems like it's a case of onward and upward for the young blues. For his part, Gene fervently hopes that Scotstown's all-conquering youngsters will 'keep the faith' and retain their loyalty to the club and their interest in the Gaelic game right through to their teenage years and beyond. For like all clubs around the country, bar none, natural wastage in football circles is an integral if unpalatable aside to the promotion of the game. "We've had our problems, like everyone else, in keeping fellas interested in playing when it comes to their teenage years. "Losing players at minor and under 21 levels is a constant danger but there's not a lot you can do if someone loses their appetite for the game or decides that they want to concentrate on another sport. "But we have to do our best to keep every player at every level keen and interested. I think that's where communication comes in to play. "At minor level you're dealing with almost a different person to that which you had only a few years before that - a fella with a different personality, a different outlook and perspective. "And you just can't put major demands on anyone's spare time, nilly-willy. "In nearly every grade, there's a few fellas who are hovering on the fringes of things and it's those fellas I think need to be encouraged even more than the most talented within the particular squad of players." And therein lies one of the principal reasons why the bold Gene is so much in favour of fielding two teams at every level. In this way, he believes, even the less talented, most in need of motivation, can be nursed along on a more personal, less forceful way. "There's not a lot of point in having a big panel of players if only half of them get a game," Gene argues. "I think affiliating two teams at every level is the way forward for us at least. "Hopefully we'll get the go-ahead and that there'll be no obstacle to us fielding two teams at under 16 level in 2005. "We'll be disappointed if we don't get the okay on that. We had two under 15 teams in 2004 so it would be just a natural progression as far as we're concerned." Meanwhile for the present, Gene and the rest of the 2004 Coyle Cup management team of Michael Owen McMahon, and Macartan McKenna can continue to reflect with justifiable pride on another tremendous season for those under their aegis. Despite the fact that, as defending champions, Scotstown went into the 2004 blue riband under 12 competition as one of the favourites to go the distance, Gene once again re-iterates his belief that the team-management's principal objective at the outset was "to make sure that the players enjoyed their football during the year." "We thought we had a fair chance of winning the competition again because we had five or six survivors from the 2003 winning team which means a lot in terms of experience but, to be honest, we'd have disappointed if we hadn't at least reached the semi-final." As luck, or skill more to the point, would have it, Scotstown went two steps further and after a long and arduous Coyle Cup competition, finished on top of the heap of 13 wannabes. Of course, nobody said it was going to be easy over the course of the extended course. In fact, defeats during the campaign to Donaghmoyne, would-be co-finalists Clontibret (by four points) and Truagh suggested that the script wasn't going to hold good at all. "On both days, we didn't just play up to scratch," Gene opines. But the Scotstown party proved doubty battlers and a better balanced side than most of their rivals for the glittering prize. "There's always very little in it between the top teams at underage level and that's the way it was in the Coyle Cup," Gene adds. But a 4-14 to 2-12 victory over neighbours Truagh Gaels in the semi-final did serve to suggest that An Bhoth's finest were a cut above the rest in 2004. However a tricky test in the final against erstwhile conquerors Clontibret lay around the corner. Could Scotstown's young guns gain revenge and so lift the Cup? You betcha! A resounding 5-11 to 1-8 victory proved beyond a shadow of a doubt who the county kingpins were at under 12 level in 2004. "It was great to win it again. But just as nice too to see the young fellas enjoying their year's football," Gene affirms. The Scotstown squad that did the business against Clontibret in the Coyle Cup final at Threemilehouse last August was as follows: Adam Wheatley; David Caulfield, Donal Carragher, Barry Sherry; Luke McDermott, Stephen Sherry, Fintan Sherry; Darren McKenna, Ciaran Treanor; Shane Rice, Mark Treanor, Shane Carey; Rory Beggan, Aaron McCarey, Ross McKenna. Subs used; Mickey Hamill, Conor Houlihan, Adrian McCarey, Donal Beggan. Remaining subs on duty; Niall Corrigan, Myles Treanor, Niall Paul McKenna, Conor Blacklock. Management team: Gene McGinnity; Michael Owen McMahon; Macarten McKenna. Tweet

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