The word around Truagh at the start of 2006 was that the club's under 14 footballers would put behind them a series of past agonies to finally land the Mason Cup. To the delight of the red and black brigade, they did just that. As if reading his response off a cue card, Martin Treanor does it the unorthodox way and delivers the punch line at the start rather the end of the interview. "Fear of losing" is the retort from the Truagh stalwart when asked what drove the club's under 14 troupe onto Mason Cup glory in 2006. As one member of the three man management team with the mercurial touch, our man Treanor is happy to reflect on a momumental underage triumph which promises so much for the hugely ambitious north county club. Of course, it wasn't a major surprise that the young red and black starlets scooped the prestigious underage trophy. The writing was writ large on all sorts of walls around Scotstown, Rooskey, Clontibret et al after all. Two years ago the 2006 Mason Cup champions reached the under 12 semi-final and in 2005 the same squad just lost out in the under 13 decider. A councillor in north Monaghan could scarcely have knocked on as many doors over the last couple of years. The pedigree was there, the attitude was there and all that was required was a tad more self-belief and a little bit extra rub of the green. To Martin, team-manager Liam McKenna and fellow selector Keith Sheerin, it seemed that Truagh's time had come. Scotstown were fingered early on as the team the rest had to beat to claim the title. "We felt Scotstown would be our toughest opponents and they must have felt confident about taking another title," Martin avers. "They beat us in last year's under 13 final and beat us earlier in the league so we knew we were up against it in trying to turn them over for a change." And lo and behold that's exactly what happened in '06 with the spoils in the deadly derby duel going the way of Truagh in a really cracking semi-final clash. Martin acknowledges that a burning ambition stirred both teams and that the game could have went either way. So what made the difference in the end? "Luck", Martin says in a curt, matter-of-fact way. "We were nine points to eight ahead at the beginning of injury time and things looked all but over at that stage. "But then they got a goal that seemed like it was going to settle it. "Fair play to our lads though, they refused to throw in the towel and unbelieveably they went up the pitch and got two goals deep into injury time. "It showed the kind of character there is in the squad. Scotstown were the best team we played all year and we felt that we were the two best teams in the county and that which ever team won our semi-final would go on and win the title." Interestingly, Martin concurs with the suggestion that Truagh teams may not have always been perceived as having great resolve or courage to fight their way back from the death or succeed in the face of stark adversity. Some mentors from other clubs would hint that Truagh teams down the grades were lost for a 'winning mentality.' "I'm sure a lot of things were said when we fell short of hitting the target but hopefully we've turned the corner with this team. "They're not the tallest or the strongest but they've a great will to win and are very determined to give their best every time they go out onto the field. "I think in the past our lads might have lacked some self-belief." Perhaps there is something in the suggestion then that football is won in the head more often than not. "I think the lads proved themselves to be the best football team in the county but maybe in the past too many Truagh teams were happy just to get to finals, saying that it's great to get here. "Teams from the club are no longer just happy to get to finals, they're determined to win them now. "They say sport is about competing but winning is far more fun and it definitely helps keep young fellas keen and interested in competing. "For this group of fellas to win their first set of medals is just great for them." Martin is keen to press home the point that he was only one cog in the management wheel in 2006 and that it was a real team effort both on and off the field of play as far as the Mason Cup campaign was concerned. Of course, once Truagh dumped their near-neighbours Scotstown out at the semi-final stage, the pressure was on all belonging to the team to finish the job off with victory in the county decider. Predictably, Martin singles out the win over Scotstown as the highlight of the campaign from his perspective at least. "The fact that we were ahead of them for most of the game said a lot about the lads' consistency." Clontibret stood in the way of Truagh and under 14 glory. "Clontibret put up a hell of a fight in the final," Martin remembers. "They were unlucky to miss two penalties although the issue was more or less done and dusted when they got their second penalty. "Their first penalty came just before half-time and if it had gone in instead of rattling the crossbar, Clontibret would have been just a point behind." Reflecting on what was quite a long season, Martin says that having a strong panel of 21 very keen, talented youngsters at hand meant that the management team had some headaches at times selecting their starting XV. "Having different fellas in contention for different positions wasn't a bad complaint - it gave us problems that we were happy to have," Martin admits. "But whatever decision we made, the lads accepted it. "Attitude was never a problem and discipline in the camp was first class all year. "They had a lot of respect for each other - there was never a cross word said. And the fact that they were mentally and physically tuned into what they had to do made our job as a management team a lot easier." So what was the management team's modus operandi? "We were positive at all times. The days of roaring and shouting at youngsters are long gone and that's no harm either. "All you can do is encourage them and when you do that, you find that they listen to you and do what you've asked of them. "I think it helped too that Keith (Sheerin) had the knowledge and the know-how to introduce a lot of variety into training with new drills and different exercises which made for interesting training sessions. "We did a lot of ball work at training and Keith and Liam had some great ideas when it came to doing some tactical work at times in training." It's obvious that Martin has great time for Truagh's all-conquering under 14 players and he's hopeful they will stick together and progress up through the ranks as a unit and eventually do the club proud at senior level. "These fellas have a lot going for themselves. They'll chase everything down and they've a never-say-die attitude. "They're great in the tackle and, overall, it's a very well balanced group of players." Having worked with the same group since they were competing at under 12 level in 2003, Martin knows the players' form and they know him. He has been impressed by the way the players have worked hard over the years and improved various aspects of their game. In those respects, he delighted in seeing the players' ball-handling skills improve, and their passing over a long distance. "Basically we tried to emphasise to the lads that the ball moves quicker than any man and we needed to get the ball forward as quickly as possible to our front men." Looking ahead, Martin says it would be "brillant" if the same group of players went onto win the blue riband of underage titles, the minor championship, down the line. In the short term, there's the under 15s to be tackled. "I would expect the lads to make the final of the under 15s in 2007. Anything less would be a disappointment. "The players adapted well over the year in stepping up to the bigger pitch and the bigger ball and I think they can continue to adapt and meet all the challenges that will be presented to them. "A lot of our lads seem to thrive on playing on the bigger stage so I'm sure they're looking forward as much as we are to featuring in more finals in the years to come," Martin concludes. For the record, the Truagh team, and subs, that figured in the Under 14 Mason Cup (Division One) final win (4-7 to 1-7) last August against Clonbribret was as follows; Conor McKenna; Padraig McKenna, Seamus Treanor, Chris Curran; Brendan Treanor, John McCarron, Eoghan Kelly; Daniel McKenna, Darren McClenaghan; Chris Meehan, Stephen Feely, Brendan O'Hagan; Chris McKenna, Sean O'Brien, Sean McKenna. Subs used; Darragh McKenna, Jarlath Treanor. Truagh Gaels Hurling Club Truagh Gaels Hurling Club decided to step up their commitment to re-establishing a strong Hurling Club at all levels. Prior to this there had been a significant wind down in hurling activity within the club and seniors players decided to make some changes. In 2004 Truagh only competed in the Monaghan Reserve Hurling league which meant only seven competitive games. This was viewed as just not enough to help improve our game and it was decided that for the 2004 season we would enter the Armagh League. The Armagh league proved a massive step up in standard but laid the foundation for the current crop of Senior hurlers who are turning out today. In 2005 the Hurling Competitions in the county were revised and Truagh were allowed compete at Senior level for the first time against the existing senior clubs. Declan Connolly from Castleblaney was installed as team coach and he brought a much more organized approach to our game, training and performances. It wasn't long before we started really competing with the established clubs and there were some excellent matches most notably against our local rivals Monaghan Harps. In 2005 the undoubted highlight was a 7 point victory over Castleblaney in Blaney a feat few teams in Ulster let alone in Monaghan have achieved in recent years. 2005 also saw Truagh enter Juvenile teams at all levels within the county for the first time in a number of years. These young teams had a lot of catching up to do but acquitted themselves excellently not least the U-12 team who reached the semi final stages a remarkable achievement bearing in mind many of these lads had only started out a few months earlier. 2006 has been a great year for Truagh hurling, we have established ourselves as a club to be reckoned with. Competing in both the Senior and Reserve league and the Shield competition provided plenty of matches and the year started out brilliantly with an excellent win against he Harps in Rooskey in the Senior league followed by another victory over the same opposition in the Ulster league. This would be our second out of three victories at senior level against our local rivals. Following defeat to a hungrier Latton team and an excellent victory over Castleblaney we were set us up to challenge for a semi final spot. Unfortunately a break in Senior fixtures and fixture clashes meant we lost our momentum and missed out on the semi-final berth by a point. A break of almost ten weeks without a competitive game impacted severely on our push for honors and hampered our development just as we got going, let's hope this can avoided in 2007. In the reserve league we missed out on semi final qualification by one puc of the ball a one point defeat to Inniskeen meant we did not get the final league point we needed to qualify. However our performances have left everyone involved with no doubt that we have turned the corner and can now compete seriously at senior level and 2007 will be another exciting year with the commitment of all our players to make a massive push for our first Senior Hurling Honors. In 2006 we competed at all levels in Hurling in Monaghan and had between 50 and 70 Juveniles playing hurling over the year. Truagh Gaels Hurling Club would like to take this opportunity to thank Truagh Gaels committee for the use of the excellent Facilities at St. Mellans over the past number of years. The Hurling committee would also like to thank them for all their help and continued support and look forward to a successful 2007 on all fronts. Truagh Camogie Club in 2006 The Truagh team was formed in 1979. Jim Murphy, a former Kilkenny hurler, was appointed to train the team and did great work in teaching the different skills of camogie. By 1981 this team won the Intermediate Championship and in the same year were runners-up in the Senior Championship Final. They also retained the Intermediate Cup the following year. Over the years the club went from strength to strength with particular success in 1998, when they contested all finals from underage right through to Senior level. Due to unforeseen circumstances this final was not played until May 1999 when the club won its first Senior title in its 20 years of existence. In the years since the club has advanced to participate in the Tyrone League and Mid-Ulster League. Through much hard work on and off the field, the Senior team have succeeded in winning the Tyrone league in 2004. 2006 has been an excellent year for the club, with players such as Orla Sheerin, Sharon McQuillan, Siobhan McKenna, Paula Gallagher, Mairead McCarron, and Eilish McCarron all representing Monaghan at All Ireland level. This team was victorious in the Division 4 All Ireland Camogie Blitz. In November 2006 Mairead McCarron was chosen to represent Ireland in the International Shinty Competition in Ratoath, Co. Meath. On the day she displayed a great deal of skill while playing the match wearing the Number 4 Ireland jersey. Her involvement in this competition brought great pride to her family, friends and club. It is hoped that the success of this year will encourage the continual development of the club in the years to come. Handball Ulster 40x20 Handball Michael Todd was our only winner with the Emerald masters but lost his final to a Connacht opponent. Golden Masters B Singles 60x30 Michael McCarron beat Michael O'Dea, Cork 21-13, 21-17 in the All-Ireland final played in a Na Fianna complex, Dublin. The Under-13 boys handball bronze winners in the community games was won by St Mellans Handball Club, Truagh. Padraig McKenna, Fergal O Neill, Sean O Hagan, Darragh McGinn and team coach, Donal O Neill received their award from Gerry Davenport on the right National Chairman Community Games. Work is ongoing on the development of the new handball court. We hope to have this up and running for the next season. U-10 Blitz We had our 3rd Annual U10s blitz on Sat 5th of August 2006 with 32 teams participating from counties Monaghan, Cavan, Tyrone, Armagh, Fermanagh, Louth and Down. A great days football was displayed by all teams who took part on the day. Our own team where unfortunate to be beaten in the Quarter final stage by a strong Emyvale who went on to lift the John Treanor Memorial Cup and Scotstown took the shield on the day. A big thank you to everyone who helped out on the day especially the catering committee who worked tirelessly to feed everyone involved. Tweet

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