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Monaghan GAA thread

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Replying To Blackcardnot:  "Some semblance of a performance tomorrow would be nice"
Definitely needed. I'd hope to see as close to the management's expected championship teams as possible injuries allowing.

PolicemanFox (Monaghan) - Posts: 214 - 15/03/2026 20:33:00    2661367

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Replying To farneygael3:  "You're deluded if you don't think we'll beat the noisy neighbours. Our under 20s would take the cavan seniors"
Deluded? They've beat us last 3 championship games, i dont see any evidence of us beating anyone way things are going .

McGuirk1985@ (Monaghan) - Posts: 136 - 15/03/2026 21:07:23    2661372

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Replying To farneygael3:  "You're deluded if you don't think we'll beat the noisy neighbours. Our under 20s would take the cavan seniors"
I'm not so confident at this stage. We are a long way off scoring 2-20 in a game.

MonaghanMan44life (Monaghan) - Posts: 176 - 15/03/2026 21:08:43    2661374

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Replying To farneygael3:  "You're deluded if you don't think we'll beat the noisy neighbours. Our under 20s would take the cavan seniors"
Noisy Neighbours? You need to read up on the origins of that sporting term. You're every Ulster counties noisy neighbour. Welcome back to division two.

KingdomofBreifne (Cavan) - Posts: 246 - 15/03/2026 21:38:45    2661382

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Replying To MonaghanMan44life:  "I'm not so confident at this stage. We are a long way off scoring 2-20 in a game."
1-16 will win that game. Looking at comments on social media the backside has fallen out of Cavan. 100 supporters travelled to Tullamore today. 100 might be generous according to other sources

farneygael3 (Monaghan) - Posts: 568 - 15/03/2026 22:37:36    2661394

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Does anyone know why so many players have left the panel the last few years especially last season and this one. Not sure the guys who left would have made that big of difference in div 1 but at least they looked inter County players as had been with the set up a few years. It seems bizarre that even with the injuries to regulars we have had to rely on so many lads who are only making debut at inter County level this season.

seanie08 (Monaghan) - Posts: 1963 - 15/03/2026 22:40:47    2661395

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Replying To KingdomofBreifne:  "Noisy Neighbours? You need to read up on the origins of that sporting term. You're every Ulster counties noisy neighbour. Welcome back to division two."
Good luck in the reserve championship this year

veterngaa (Monaghan) - Posts: 995 - 16/03/2026 00:05:19    2661404

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The top level players aren't being produced by the county and the players that are being produced are poorly managed. Tough time to be a Farney supporter.

Jjoniel79 (Monaghan) - Posts: 266 - 16/03/2026 07:46:55    2661414

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It's irrelevant who wins monaghan v cavan because the 2 teams together wouldn't keep it kicked out to derry or any county in ulster with a decent midfield both teams are shocking in the middle third , this now is where the game is won and lost same as u12 football the big 6ft plus players are really shining under the new rules

Farneyblueandwhite (Monaghan) - Posts: 121 - 16/03/2026 08:33:10    2661419

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Replying To farneygael3:  "1-16 will win that game. Looking at comments on social media the backside has fallen out of Cavan. 100 supporters travelled to Tullamore today. 100 might be generous according to other sources"
I don't know about that. Cavan morale is poor but at they are scoring, even in the games they have lost this year there is some shape their attack at times. Looking at Monaghan in Inniskeen yesterday, a striking thing was how little movement there was off the ball in attack. It looks like lads have gone into themselves and don't actually want the ball. It is shaping to be the worst El Classico in recent times but I reckon Monaghan are in much worse shape at this point.

Eddie the Exile (Monaghan) - Posts: 1291 - 16/03/2026 08:57:34    2661423

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Replying To Jjoniel79:  "The top level players aren't being produced by the county and the players that are being produced are poorly managed. Tough time to be a Farney supporter."
I disagree with part of this statement. Monaghan are just on a losing rut at the moment. Confidence comes from winning repeatedly and the feeling you are on an upward curve. An injury crisis and an inexperienced squad team lacking leaders has exasperated matters. Confidence is on the floor. Over the past few years , we have seen Donegal and Derry being basket cases in Div 1, only to change managers and get back on track.

Standards have dropped this year, the team lacks leadership. So ,some examples of this. I think around 10th minute of Galway game, Monaghan had a kickout and it went straight down the middle, uncontested, in between 3 Monaghan players. No one took ownership of that situation and they all assumed the other was going to collect the ball. It went past them all and into a Galway players hands.

For the Galway goal, the ball broke in the middle and two Galway players just went forward ( I think one was Maher). 3 Monaghan players stood watching them and were very slow to react to that. I was in the main stand and as soon as the ball broke, it looked bad for Monaghan and was no surprise Galway got a goal out of it. No one took ownership of that situation. Monaghan's collective confidence and focus are on the floor.

There was a lot of handling and technical fouls from Monaghan - a player only does that if they are not fully switched on. Have standards dropped to where that is acceptable? It's not all the managers fault, The players leadership group needs to help drive those standards too.

There are some dips quality in some age groups. I would say the minor teams from 2014 to 2017 inclusive and the corresponding U21 teams from 2017 to 2020 were not our best years. Players in the range of 25 to 30 should represent the bulk of a senior inter county squad as those are the peak years of a players experience, S&C and constant improvement. That age range of 25-30 for the current Monaghan team corresponds with the weakest underage years for Monaghan in a long time. It's cyclical.

Since then Monaghan over the past 6 to 7 years for example consistently out perform Donegal at minor/U20 level and we have been on par with Derry. We out perform most of the counties in Ulster at underage level. We are producing more higher standard of players so it's not recent emerging talent production as the reason. Donegal under Paddy Carr were a shambles, and yet a lot of those same players are in one of the best teams in the country.

If your underage teams are competitive and getting a good mix of prospects then the senior team should be good as well. Next season, Monaghan probably need a new voice as manager. Bannigan was the right man last year. But the new manager bounce is gone.

We have excellent emerging talent. It will need time to adjust to the demands of senior football and perhaps a new manager for 2027.

sleater (Monaghan) - Posts: 194 - 16/03/2026 09:34:22    2661430

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Our league is done now and we move onto to 2027 in Division 2 which will be a true test of where we are at. Players who got experience this year in D1 now need to use that to push themselves on and get better. There is a crop of u20s highly rated coming through as well. This needs to be managed in 2027 carefully to get standards back up. We cannot spiral like derry and or say meath over the past 15 years.

Championship now, cavan monaghan derry have stinking form at the minute and anyone one of them could make an ulster final. They won't be winning it though and that's a fact. Bannigan needs to a few Championship performances to save the season. Will be alot harder in championship as there is no group stage after ulster.

Has he given a timeline of when some of our key players are back? I at least hope for the championship we go down fighting. The lack of fight which was our hallmark over the past 15 years has just dried up.

222 (UK) - Posts: 915 - 16/03/2026 09:41:24    2661433

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Our attacking structure is horrendous. Slow and ponderous, trying to move the ball through hand, attacking players unsure of where to be,beggan stuck to his line unsure of when to join attacks, using o hanlon as some kind of sweeper as well. Meath made mid season changes last season with corey and mc mahon, we need to be looking at the same. The fact the lads were away and came back with no attacking identity is concerning.

No point writing off a season when we have a route to an ulster final where all games are 50/50. When you look at the players missing it would hurt any county(should be back soon):

mc anespie
byrne
mohan
mooney
mc carthy
mc caul
hamill
lavelle

add in some of the u20s like mallon that you hope would have a bench impact. Get minutes into the legs of these lads along with kelly, mc carron etc we wont be too far off being competitive for any game

monaghanfootballfan (Monaghan) - Posts: 7 - 16/03/2026 12:03:28    2661459

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Very poor league campaign for Monaghan but they have been very unlucky with injuries, retirements, scotstown players late coming back.... There were a lot of unforced errors yesterday again which you just cannot make at this level.

Monaghan are a proud county and the league performance will have hurt this group of players and management greatly. There is a good break between next week and the Cavan game and if a few injuries clear up and Gabriel and the team can get a bit of confidence into the group, Monaghan could put in a good display against Cavan in Clones and would put it up to Derry/Antrim in an Ulster semi final match. They have to get past Cavan first though, which won't be easy as usual but these players and team should not fear Cavan.

Let's hope they can turn the season around and give the supporters something to cheer about again in 2026. Championship is what matters - would not worry about this group going to Division 2 for a year and Gabriel will know a lot about his panel after the league campaign where he got a chance to look at a lot of new players.

OrielPower (Monaghan) - Posts: 109 - 16/03/2026 12:20:52    2661465

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Replying To sleater:  "I disagree with part of this statement. Monaghan are just on a losing rut at the moment. Confidence comes from winning repeatedly and the feeling you are on an upward curve. An injury crisis and an inexperienced squad team lacking leaders has exasperated matters. Confidence is on the floor. Over the past few years , we have seen Donegal and Derry being basket cases in Div 1, only to change managers and get back on track.

Standards have dropped this year, the team lacks leadership. So ,some examples of this. I think around 10th minute of Galway game, Monaghan had a kickout and it went straight down the middle, uncontested, in between 3 Monaghan players. No one took ownership of that situation and they all assumed the other was going to collect the ball. It went past them all and into a Galway players hands.

For the Galway goal, the ball broke in the middle and two Galway players just went forward ( I think one was Maher). 3 Monaghan players stood watching them and were very slow to react to that. I was in the main stand and as soon as the ball broke, it looked bad for Monaghan and was no surprise Galway got a goal out of it. No one took ownership of that situation. Monaghan's collective confidence and focus are on the floor.

There was a lot of handling and technical fouls from Monaghan - a player only does that if they are not fully switched on. Have standards dropped to where that is acceptable? It's not all the managers fault, The players leadership group needs to help drive those standards too.

There are some dips quality in some age groups. I would say the minor teams from 2014 to 2017 inclusive and the corresponding U21 teams from 2017 to 2020 were not our best years. Players in the range of 25 to 30 should represent the bulk of a senior inter county squad as those are the peak years of a players experience, S&C and constant improvement. That age range of 25-30 for the current Monaghan team corresponds with the weakest underage years for Monaghan in a long time. It's cyclical.

Since then Monaghan over the past 6 to 7 years for example consistently out perform Donegal at minor/U20 level and we have been on par with Derry. We out perform most of the counties in Ulster at underage level. We are producing more higher standard of players so it's not recent emerging talent production as the reason. Donegal under Paddy Carr were a shambles, and yet a lot of those same players are in one of the best teams in the country.

If your underage teams are competitive and getting a good mix of prospects then the senior team should be good as well. Next season, Monaghan probably need a new voice as manager. Bannigan was the right man last year. But the new manager bounce is gone.

We have excellent emerging talent. It will need time to adjust to the demands of senior football and perhaps a new manager for 2027."
Donegal and Derry had brilliant players at a young age who are peaking now, I agree that good management can make a big difference and did with both these teams - but going to club championship games last year at intermediate and senior it was striking how hard it'd be to pick a county team out of anything on show.

Go through each club team and try find a defender capable of picking up the likes of Clifford, Finnerty, Conaty, or O'Se.. A few years ago you'd look at maybe Colin Walshe, The wylies, Duffy, maybe Karl O'Connell - now? With the new rules in Midfield who'd win you a ball these days? Mohan and Gallagher are grand but they're not exactly O'Brien, Langan, Tierney, Crealy? Big mick and Mohan are as good as you have but that's it in the county where in the past you'd have had two Hughes brothers, Kearns etc. up front? I'd be very interested to know who were the top scorers in the club championships last year and how many were under the age of 28?

We had a great period of talent for 15 odd years there bit we're in a fairly barren period now and be it rural decline, or bad organisation the talent just isn't there at club level. What is being trotted out is as good as you have but let's be real - The Hughes's, Duffy, Karl, Carey, Walshe, Jack, McGuinness are still as good as you have at club level and they're all long past it. outside of a few Scotstown more men coming I can't see anyone with a hope of being at the level of the names mentioned above. Pep could take over Monaghan tomorrow but I reckon he'd struggle to get a tune out of anything coming through for the next 3-4 years.

Jjoniel79 (Monaghan) - Posts: 266 - 16/03/2026 12:45:05    2661469

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Replying To Jjoniel79:  "Donegal and Derry had brilliant players at a young age who are peaking now, I agree that good management can make a big difference and did with both these teams - but going to club championship games last year at intermediate and senior it was striking how hard it'd be to pick a county team out of anything on show.

Go through each club team and try find a defender capable of picking up the likes of Clifford, Finnerty, Conaty, or O'Se.. A few years ago you'd look at maybe Colin Walshe, The wylies, Duffy, maybe Karl O'Connell - now? With the new rules in Midfield who'd win you a ball these days? Mohan and Gallagher are grand but they're not exactly O'Brien, Langan, Tierney, Crealy? Big mick and Mohan are as good as you have but that's it in the county where in the past you'd have had two Hughes brothers, Kearns etc. up front? I'd be very interested to know who were the top scorers in the club championships last year and how many were under the age of 28?

We had a great period of talent for 15 odd years there bit we're in a fairly barren period now and be it rural decline, or bad organisation the talent just isn't there at club level. What is being trotted out is as good as you have but let's be real - The Hughes's, Duffy, Karl, Carey, Walshe, Jack, McGuinness are still as good as you have at club level and they're all long past it. outside of a few Scotstown more men coming I can't see anyone with a hope of being at the level of the names mentioned above. Pep could take over Monaghan tomorrow but I reckon he'd struggle to get a tune out of anything coming through for the next 3-4 years."
Bannigan o hanlon and Mccarthy are as good as your going to get when on form all under 28 ish it's just our confidence has dipped at the minute but it's our midfield that's the real concern

Farneyblueandwhite (Monaghan) - Posts: 121 - 16/03/2026 14:11:48    2661485

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