Tyrone were rattled
December 10, 2001
Monaghan's underage football pedigree needs embellishing. That suggestion warrants no debate. However, the signs are encouraging and despite ultimately going out of this year's Under 21 Ulster Championship at the hands of Tyrone, the county's best showed real potential in defeat. Kevin Carney reports.
While the Foot and Mouth scare threatened to kill all hopes of an Under 21 Ulster Championship even taking place last Spring, reprieves from government ministries hung in the air like Mick O'Connell at his best and eventually Monaghan and co. were given the opportunity to fight it out.
Sadly, as in 2000, high noon saw the Monaghan lads fall to their knees. Staying ahead of the posse from Tyrone was just one challenge too much for them. Sadly, Seamus McEnaney's gunslingers were outgunned by the O'Neill gang's greater firepower.
McEnaney and those who rode with him during the year hadn't a bad innings though. And considering the lack of practice that that they had because of the FMD, their showing in 2001 was relatively positive. There was no shame in losing out to red-hot favourites Tyrone in the semi-final.
The realisation that Inniskeen's Jordan Meegan and Fergal McSkeane would be missing from the county's quarter-final showdown with Antrim at Casement Park was not what anyone involved with Monaghan under 21s wanted to come to terms with.
The clash in Casement Park had been due to take place on March 10th but the advent of the Foot and Mouth disease put paid to that. Similarily, the repercussions of messrs. Meegan and McSkeane living within the restricted zone centering on the outbreak at Proleek, Cooley meant that the Monaghan management team were down two valuable men even before the county took its bow in the championship.
Also, injury worries (cruciate ligament) to Doohamlet star forward Shane McManus didn't offer solace either while the fact that the team was also resigned to missing Eoin Lennon because of a back injury added to the concern in the camp as the Belfast game drew near.
However, on the plus side, the team showed some good form in the Hastings Cup competition and also in a series of challenge games, most notably against Kildare the previous February.
For their part, Antrim only won one of their three games in the Hastings Cup. They beat Fermanagh but lost out to Sligo and Westmeath.
Antrim proved to be nobody's fool however at home on April 1st and it needed a brilliantly taken point in injury time by Magheracloone's Thomas Freeman to cap a very hard-fought 2-6 to 1-6 win for the visitors.
In truth, Monaghan shouldn't have had to rely on that late, late gem to give them the insurance that they needed to progress to the next round for at the interval they looked to have the game very much under control.
Monaghan did most of their best work in that frenetic, exciting first half, at the end of which they deservedly led by 1-4 to 0-3.
That man Freeman delivered the perfect repost to an opening Antrim free when he sent over a neat fisted point just minutes into the match. A fine solo effort from Anthony Keenan followed moments later as the visitors proceeded to exert a stranglehold on the exchanges for the next 20 minutes.
Further good work by Freeman extended Monaghan's lead to 0-3 to 0-1. The same player turned provider in the 12th minute when he fielded brilliantly before feeding Brian McGinnity whose low shot promptly gave his side a morale-boosting, classic goal.
Monaghan proceeded to go for the jugular and after a rather stale ten minute period, they eventually got back into top gear and the aforementioned McGinnity was unlucky not to bag a second goal when he burst through only to see his effort brilliantly saved by the advancing Antrim 'keeper.
Antrim demonstrated a lot of team spirit at this stage but poor finishing handicapped their efforts at gaining parity. In contrast, Ballybay's Hugh Malone galloped upfield to fire over a point with great efficiency to leave the south Ulster lads four points to the good at the break.
Monaghan began the second half as they finished the first and Dick Clerkin and Thoms Freeman combined for the latter to extend his side's lead.
However, Antrim rose to the challenge and they went in search of a goal that would turn the game upside down.
Instead, it was Monaghan who scored the next goal of the match. With 46 minutes played, substitute Fergal Mone was quickest to react after a scramble in the Antrim goalmouth. Mone's opportunism put his side into the driving seat, leading by 2-5 to 0-4 and with time running out for the Glensmen.
With seven minutes remaining though, the home side seemed to get a lifeline when they were awarded a penalty after a foul on Martin Murray. Fortunately for the Saffrons, the experienced Paddy Logan - who had earlier been drafted out to midfield from the forwards - banged the penalty home at the second attempt after the referee had ruled that his first spot-kick had been taken just as a Monaghan defender had stepped into the square.
Logan's belated penalty conversion cut Monaghan's lead to four points with seven minutes remaining. That lead was cut in half within five minutes as the visitors found themselves coming under consistent pressure.
Monaghan showed a steely resolve though in the face of adversity and it was Thomas Freeman who led the way with a brilliant solo from 50 yards out finishing with a lovely point. It was just the insurance that the team needed to advance to meet Ulster and All-Ireland title-holders Tyrone at the Ballybay venue.
Conquerors of Down (1-12 to 1-11) in the previous round, Tyrone went into the game as strong favourites and began the game at a cracking pace, taking the lead after just two minutes with a point. When Ryan Mellon fisted in a goal four minutes later and that was followed by another Tyrone point, Monaghan could have been forgiven for crumbling under the shock of it all as they trailed by 0-1 to 1-2.
The home side stuck to its task in admirable fashion though and a point from Fergal Mone was excellently added to by the same player on 14 minutes when he goaled from a penalty after Hugh Malone was fouled.
Things started to really look up for Monaghan when Tyrone had a player dismissed for striking in the 16th minute. However, the O'Neill County responded with great heart and two successive points from the dangerous Stephen O'Neill left Monaghan trailing by 1-2 to 1-4 with 20 minutes played.
The teams exchanged a point apiece from there to the interval with Monaghan's Anthony Rooney on target. At the break, Tyrone led by a single point, 1-5 to 1-4.
Monaghan demonstrated real intent after the interval and with substitute Paul Finlay from Ballybay adding much needed pace and awareness to the attack, the home side took the game to their highly vaunted opponents.
A Raymond Ronaghan point got Monaghan off to a flying start and then a great assist by Finlay set up Thomas Freeman for the equalising point after 35 minutes.
With the tempo of the game at an all-time high, the exchanges were fast and furious with both teams enjoying excellent spells without perhaps always embellishing their work on the scoreboard.
Generally though, it was left to Monaghan to force the pace. Tyrone relied, for the most part, on the counter attack and in one such move, Brian McGuigan pointed from a Martin Hughes point to leave Monaghan trailing by 1-6 to 1-8 after 44 minutes.
At the other end, Monaghan tended to flatter to deceive somewhat in front of goal but Paul Finlay did find the target in the 48th minute to raise hopes of a breakthrough. The sides were indeed level at 1-9 apiece when Thomas Freeman and Declan McCarville pointed in quick succession.
A grandstand finish was in the offing now and a point from Tyrone's O'Neill and one from Hugh Malone (free) in the 66th minute only served to increase the temperature and the tension.
However, ace marksman O'Neill landed another brace of points after Monaghan's defenders were forced into fouling and, suddenly, some daylight crept between the two sides.
Monaghan were now three points adrift and needed a goal quickly. They pressed forward but were rebuffed. Tyrone countered menacingly on the restart until eventually Peter Donnelly created the opening for his team-mate Enda McGinley to bury Monaghan's hopes with a late, late goal.
Seamus McEnaney can be proud of the effort his side made to upset the form book. With the benefit of an 'extra' man, perhaps Monaghan will look back on the contest with Tyrone as an opportunity lost but given the spirit and no little skill produced by the side, the future for these lads looks pretty bright nonetheless. Final score; Monaghan 1-10 Tyrone 2-13.
The Monaghan team which battled bravely but ultimately in vain to topple Tyrone lined out as follows;
Shane Duffy; Fergal Smyth, Gary McQuaid, Ciaran McManus; Declan McCarville (0-1), Anthony Rooney (0-1), Dick Clerkin; Raymond Ronaghan (0-1), Shea McAleer; Shane McManus (0-1), Rory Woods, Brian McGinnity; Thomas Freeman (0-2), Hugh Malone (0-1), Fergal Mone (1-1).
Subs; Paul Finlay (0-2) and Paudie Swinburne.
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