Faugh midfielder Ryan Treacy can't hide his disappointment with the way things panned out for the defending senior championship holders in 2002. However he strongly contends that with the advent of a new season, the Faughs will be pulling out all the stops to regain the county's top prize. So no 37th blue riband SFC title for the Faughs. So 'Blayney's influence on top rank football in Monaghan is on the cusp of imploding? Not on your nelly, according to senior player Ryan Treacy. Rumours of 'Blayney's demise are greatly exaggerated, he insists. So who, in their right mind, would write off the Faughs as another league season beckons? In 2002, the long-time kingpins didn't feature in the senior championship decider - the first such occurrence in eight years. Even on the law of averages, the Faughs' run had to come to an end sometime. However, our man Treacy brooks at the suggestion that a new dawn is about to break in Monaghan football circles; a dawn without the men from Castleblayney invariably ruling the roost. "It was very disappointing to lose out in the championship, especially given that we were hoping to clinch the five-in-a-row. We reckoned at the start of the year that we had every chance of achieving our goal but we weren't taking anything for granted. Whatever went wrong for us in 2002, it wasn't over-confidence on our part. "It's a cliche but we have to learn to lose together as well as win together. I've no doubt though that the lads will go into the championship in the coming year fully determined to make up for the disappointment of getting beaten by Clontibret last September," the big-hearted midfielder 'cum attacker insists. Reflecting on what might have been isn't usually the habit of a senior footballer from 'Blayney and, true to form, Ryan isn't exactly a degree holder in such parlance. However, he takes time out to admit that the defending champions truly didn't think that Clontibret posed the greatest threat to their five-in-a-row bid. A surprise was in store though. Before exiting at the hands of the Saffrons, the competition favourites were forced to negotiate some tricky ties in between. While not carrying the same baggage as some years back, clashes between the Faughs and Scotstown still conjures up something special. And when the two sides met in the first round of the championship in mid-May, the contest was at best rivetting stuff and at worst intriguing. The young pretenders set their stall out on making the ball do the work. Their route one style of football wasn't the prettiest but it made their opponents work hard for any kind of decent possession. Clontibret was the venue for what was the only senior championship game given the green light to go ahead amidst some desperately unseasonal weather. However, while it is said inclement conditions make for a splendid leveller, the craft and guile of the champions proved too much for their inexperienced opponents.The Faughs got off to a winning start but not without a fright. Midway through the first half, Nicholas Corrigan crashed a goal home for Scotstown. Ray and Dermot McArdle countered for Blayney with a point apiece and then the blues found themselves a man short. Son of former Garrison (Fermanagh) and Oram player Gerry Treacy, the former county minor and under 21 player takes up the story: "Myself and Damien F. McKenna got in a bit of a tangle but it didn't amount to anything serious and there were no hard feelings about it. I think their inexperience showed up at times but the sending off was unfortunate. These things happen in football." Ryan and co. gradually reeled in Scotstown's 1-3 to 0-3 interval lead. "I thought Scotstown were their own worst enemies at times in not making the best use of the ball when they worked hard to get it. But we weren't complaining after the match," the strapping 24-year old comments. Ryan contests that getting over the first round was all that was important for Blayney. The narrowness of their 0-7 to 1-3 win was irrelevant and counted for nothing by the time the second round came around in late July. All minds would be concentrating on Latton and not Scotstown. In the eyes of some observers concentration was the key word with a lapse in concentration by the 'Blayney defence in the dying minutes allowing Latton's Hugh Lennon to bag a goal to tie the game at 0-9 to 1-6. Ryan - a senior championship debutant with the Faughs back in 1997 - doesn't necessarily agree with the notion that because his side had engineered a 0-5 to 0-2 half-time lead that they ought to have put the pedal to the floor and cemented their passage through to the semi-final in much more efficient fashion. "Both games against Latton were dogged affairs - there wasn't really a lot between us either day. We had probably a lot more chances than they had in front of goal in the first game but it was them who grabbed the best chance of the match and got the goal at the end that they possibly deserved. I think a draw was a fair result. I don't think any team deserved to lose at the first time of asking." Castleblayney's 1-14 to 1-10 win over the white and blues in the replay immediately saw them being installed as firm favourites to retain their title. "I think the lads were totally determined to make up for the defeat to Latton in 2001. The team had a point to prove and went about the job in the right way from the start." But the missed penalty must have caused a certain degree of 'here we go again' type feeling? "There are an awful lot of penalties missed in Gaelic and Kieran (Tavey) wasn't the first one not to find the net from a penalty and nor will he be the last. It would have been understandable had Ciaran allowed his head to go down but he showed great character to rebound from his bad luck to go on and contribute a lot to our win." Indeed, it can truly be said that the entire 'Blayney team showed a lot of character in refusing to panic, in buckling down and refusing to panic after finding themselves 0-3 to 1-4 adrift at the interval. And so to the Faughs' waterloo of 2002. As Ryan - a member of the Monaghan senior panel under Jack McCarville a couple of years ago - himself admits, the defending champions and arguably the whole county itself didn't actually reckon on Clontibret having the tactical or football nous to pull off a shock. "We were all wrong. On the day, Clontibret were the better team, no question about that. They showed a lot more hunger than us too. They've a young team with a fair few minors coming through as well and they wanted to win more than us, it's as simple as that."And the turning point in the game? "I suppose you could look at the sending off of Jason (Hughes) near the end as something which had a certain bearing on the outcome but I think the most important part of the game was when Peter Duffy got our goal in the last five minutes only for them to hit back just a couple of minutes later with a penalty. "If we had managed to build on the goal by scoring a couple of points, we might have had the kind of momentum built up to carry us over the finishing line but it wasn't to be. Unfortunately we played well below par for too long in the match and we had no complaints. Clontibret deserved to win through and proved just how level the playing pitch has got in Monaghan now." So there's no big gap any more between the Faughs of this world and the rest of the teams in Monaghan? "I don't think the gap was ever as big as some people felt but definitely now with so much quality coaching going on at the various clubs, any one of five or six teams would probably fancy their chances of winning the championship next year. I think we'll still be very much in contention next year. We'll all be hoping that the likes of Declan (Loughman) and Edwin (Murphy) stick around too because they would be very hard to replace on the team." A student of cultural and film studies at Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ryan concludes that 2002 was a year he'd rather forget about. He believes that his form was too erratic for his liking and the team itself didn't demonstrate their trademark enthusiasm and bite at any stage of the championship. Ryan says he would love to get another crack at the Ulster club championship. He still retains the hope that he might some day be afforded the chance of playing with the county seniors again too. "2002 wasn't a great year for me personally or for the Blayney senior team but you can't point the blame at anyone else." Honest man. McGuigan duo celebrate famous success The McGuigans - among many others - were delighted to see Castleblayney's hurlers complete the four-in-a-row in 2002. It was celebrations on the double for Castleblayney veteran Noel McGuigan as he had seen his side complete the double and a first-ever four in a row of senior hurling championship titles, giving him his 10th senior championship medal. More importantly though he also had the honour and distinction of playing in those two finals along with his son Brian who lined out at corner forward and scored valuable points in both to help Castleblayney's cause. In fact, it was Brian's point in the league final that proved the winner. Noel McGuigan is now a true father figure of hurling in C'blayney and his untiring efforts over the years deserve the highest accolades. Its now twenty five years since he lined out in the 1977 county hurling final against Carrickmacross (playing at wing half back) and he has been deeply involved not only as player but a coach as well. Indeed, but for this efforts and a few other willing workers, the game would not be as strong in the club as it is at present. Noel McGuigan has coached successive groups of young players in the club on an annual basis, instilling into them a deep love of the game and a range of skills that have seen so many of them go on to represent their club and county at senior level. Lining out alongside Noel in that final were such notables as Terry Connolly (father of current county player, David) Frank McQuaide, Frank Marron, Gerry Murphy (the current full time hurling coach in Monaghan), Gerry Whyte, the great Nudie Hughes and Kevin McNeill who was to gain inter county recognition as goalkeeper on the football team. Moving on down the years it was inevitable, that Noel's sons would take up the caman. "I believe in starting them early, they must feel that the stick is almost an extension of their arm and the swing become more natural and the skills develop. I was delighted to see Brian coming on through the ranks, he was on a C'Blayney team that represented Monaghan at Feile and playing against boys from other counties helps them to develop. In C'Blayney we have an underage system and the boys do a lot of work at skills development and there are competitions at the various ages but I was delighted to see Brian making it onto the senior team this year. We have to keep young players coming through and giving them competition is the only way. There will be more fixtures in the future, I think the new Ulster club league is a great idea but it needs to be broadened to include all counties. It will never be a success if other competitions are allowed to run parallel with it. We took part this year and the extra games were a great help and definitely benefited us for the championship and league double". The championship was a close enough call for 'Blayney and they had to produce two good hard games to win it. They were drawn against Clontibret in the semi-final, got over that one and then it was Monaghan Harps in the final. The semi-final against Clontibret was a game that never rose to any great heights with Castleblayney always in control but having to exercise caution. It was celebration on the double for Noel McGuigan and his son Brian. C'Blayney were back in the senior hurling championship final and they had both played a big part in that victory. "I think it was my 26th championship campaign and Brian made his championship debut and it went well for him, he hit two points to help us along." Overall it was 'Blayney's day and they were in line to complete a four-in-a-row of senior hurling championship titles. As a contest, it was a disappointing and at times niggly game in Gavan Duffy Park, Monaghan with the slippery conditions not helping. C'Blayney were only behind once during the game when they conceded a goal after eleven minutes but they were soon back on top. The defence was well organised, David Connolly anchoring effectively at centre back while out around the middle they picked up a lot of possession that kept the supply going to Barry Reilly, Mark Kelly and company who kept Clontibret on the back foot for long periods while the free taking of Michael McHugh was also a vital factor. 'Blayney opened in whirlwind fashion and were three points up after just four minutes and went on to lead at half-time by 1-8 to 1-3 and might well have been further in front but for a couple of near misses and some good work by Clontibret keeper J. J. Sullivan. In the second half Castleblayney continued to dictate the pace. Mark Kelly extended their lead within a minute of the restart and they continued to capitalised that much better on the chances that came their way, although keeper Sean McKearney was also busy late in the game. The final likewise was a contest that never inspired with 'Blayney always holding an edge although late in the game the Harps put in a great effort and in one period in the final quarter they did lay siege to the Castleblayney goal. "Sean McKearney was in goals for us again and they simply could find no way past him as he pulled off a series of point blank saves when a goal at that time could have opened it up a lot more". Overall C'Blayney had too much power for the county town side and they had excellent performances from Jim McHugh at full back, man of the match David Connolly at centre while Paul Murphy, Peter Clerkin, Rory Woods and Michael McHugh gave them that extra ingredient up front. "The boys put on the pressure but Gerry Curley and Tom Ryan made life difficult and we had to be at our best to make it count at times. We were only behind once during the entire game but once Peter Clerkin restored us to parity when he was on hand to intercept a poor clearance in the 14th minute we were on our way and regained the lead two minutes later when Rory Woods struck a great point on the run in the 16th minute. Further Castleblayney pressure saw us awarded a free out on the left wing and when Paddy McArdle's speculative shot deceived defenders and goalkeeper alike, the goal put us four points up at that stage and in the driving seat. We went on to lead by five points at the break, and within three minutes of the restart we had extended our lead to seven points with scores from a Michael McHugh free and Barry Reilly." The pace was hotting up now and as the temperature rose The Harps cancelled out those two scores with points apiece from Robbie Healy, free, and Tom Ryan and the lead was down to five points after about eight minutes. An exchange of scores between Mickey McHugh, free, and John Mc Anespie left the winners still five points in front after about ten minutes but they then got a second goal and that was a big help. It was a great piece of opportunism by Michael McHugh when he was on hand to crash to the net after a shot by Paul Murphy had been blocked on the line. Mickey probably remembered me and others telling him years ago at juvenile level "always follow up as there may be a chance of a loose ball, he did and it worked out great". That score stung the Harps and they now drove forward in numbers to exert a period of pressure but Sean McKeraney was in brilliant form and took off a number of good saves, two in particular for John McAnespie and James Gallagher as the game entered the final ten minutes. Monaghan Harps did get the ball in the net but Robbie Healy's score was ruled out for a square infringement. Monaghan Harps had a great opportunity of getting back into the game when they were awarded a penalty in the 24th minute but Pat Walsh's shot rose sharply for a point. That miss took the wind out of their sails and even though there was still six minutes of normal time remaining, Castleblayney effectively had the title wrapped up. Mickey McHugh converted a 29th minute free and John McAnespie had an injury time point for the Harps but by then it was all over as a contest although it was a bit disappointing that the four-timers finished the game with 14 players following the dismissal of Mark Kelly some five minutes before the end of normal time. In the league final on October 20th C'Blayney completed the double, Brian McGuigan's point four minutes from the end of normal time the score that clinched it at the end of a keenly-contested game in Clontibret. Conditions were difficult, which didn't help in a close contest all through with little between the sides at any one stage. C'Blayney captain, Jim McHugh rated it as the toughest game they had played all season: "In the end I think it was our greater experience that saw us through. We found ourselves four points down after about six or seven minutes and we had to fight hard to get back into it as Carrickmacross were well fired up but three points on the trot reduced the deficit to the minimum after about fifteen minutes. It didn't get any easier when Carrickmacross went three in front again on 22 minutes and we could only pull back a point before half-time to leave two in it at that stage, Carrickmacross 1-4, Castleblayney 0-5. "Carrickmacross exerted early pressure at the start of the second half but couldn't score and we took the lead for the first time when Paddy McArdle hit a great goal in the fifth minute. Two minutes later Carrickmacross were on level terms with a point from a free and while we took the lead again in the 15th minute with a Michael McHugh free we conceded a second goal in the 20th minute to make for a difficult finish. The boys responded well to that setback with two points inside a minute by Michael McHugh and substitute Ciaran Connolly and we were now level. We came under more pressure but defended well and Brian's (McGuigan) 26th minute point ultimately prove the winner. It was a good score, he won the ball out of the left and cut inside to make a better angle and to hit the winner in a final is a big thing for him." TEAM AND SCORERS V MONAGHAN HARPS: SHC FINAL: Sean McKearney, Tom Byrne 0-1, Jim McHugh, Noel McGuigan, David Bolger, David Connolly, Paul Murphy, Rory Woods 0-1, Martin Hanratty, Barry Reilly 0-1, Patrick McArdle 1-0, Peter Clerkin 0-2, Mark Kelly, Michael McHugh 1-4, Brian McGuigan 0-1. Subs: Hugh Cullen for P. McArdle. TEAM AND SCORERS V CARRICKMACROSS: SHL FINAL: Paddy Forde, Tom Byrne, Noel McGuigan, Paddy McArdle 1-0, Paul Murphy, Jim McHugh, David Connolly, Rory Woods 0-1, Martin Hanratty, Barry Reilly 0-1, Hugh Cullen, Peter Clerkin, Michael McHugh 0-4, Philip Mone, Brian McGuigan 0-1. Subs: Ciaran Connolly for P. Mone, Sean McKearney for H. Cullen. Tweet

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