GREENFIELD FOODS SENIOR FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL PREVIEW.

Scotstown v Clontibret: Castleblayney: Sunday October 2nd @ 4.00pm.

It is the red letter date in the domestic fixtures programme in every County, the final of the senior football championship, and this Sunday that most importantly of all dates will see all roads leading to Castleblayney as Scotstown and Clontibret meet to decide whether the blues can retain their senior football championship title that they won last year, or, can Clontibret regain the blue riband of Monaghan football that they last held 2 years ago in 2014. Victory  for Scotstown on Sunday would see them put titles back-to-back for the 1st time since 1992/1993, while Clontibret last achieved back-to-back titles in 2009/2010. Scotstown are appearing in their 4th senior football championship final in a row on Sunday and have won the title twice in that time in 2013 and 2015 but lost out in the decider of 2014 to Sunday's opponents Clontibret. Scotstown also lost out in the finals of 2011 and 2004, the latter seeing them bridging gap that stretched all the way back to 1993. Clontibret for their part are appearing in their 9th final since the new Millennium and their 4th final in 5 years having appeared in the decider in 2012, 2013 and 2014, the latter when they last won the senior football championship, that victory going to make up for the club taking 6 titles from their 8 appearances in the final between 2002 and 2014. They won the final in 2002 with victory over Magheracloone in a replay, they put titles back-to-back in 2006 and 2007 as well as in 2009 and 2010 and won their last championship in 2014. The fact that a number of their senior players like Vincent Corey, Dessie Mone, Fergal Mone, Martin Corey and Conor McManus will have played in most of those finals, gives them a degree of experience that can stand to them in the heat of battle on Sunday.

So will Donal Morgan join that elite group of Scotstown players who have captained the club to back-to-back titles or will Vincent Corey join the list of club greats in Clontibret who have captained the club to senior championship glory. That thought though will be furthest from both of these players minds on Sunday as both will concentrate on contributing to a team performance that can give them the edge, because Sunday's battle will be close and keenly fought and in the end will definitely come down to narrow margins, fine lines that can separate the sides on the day, a half chance or an opportunist score could ultimately make the difference. There is no doubt about it that both sides have key players who will have to produce top-class performances if their club is to succeed and names that immediately spring to mind would be the Hughes brothers, Darren and Kieran along with Francis Caufield, Rory Beggan, Donal Morgan and Shane Carey for Scotstown while for Clontibret the name that immediately springs to mind is that of Conor McManus who has top scored in successive championship campaigns in recent years, even in one or two when Clontibret did not reach the final, as well as Vincent Corey, Dessie Mone, Darach Mooney and Rodney Gorman. That is taken as a given, that players of that calibre will have an influence, but it will take more than a couple of players on either side to clinch the title and it may well be the lesser lights to some extent, who will make the difference because Sunday's game is going to be a game where both sides will come to their benches, particularly going into the final straight when fresh legs could make all the difference.

Tweet

Most Read Stories