Mayo 3-15 Monaghan 1-18

Stephen O'Brien, Barry O'Sullivan, Ryan Wylie and Ger Egan are just four inter-county footballers who claim the new experimental rules will be a burden on referees.

Monaghan 1-18 Tyrone 1-16: Typical, really. Murphy’s Law.

The word all last week was that Tyrone might have been happier playing this one in Clones.

Monaghan 1-16 Donegal 1-10: Monaghan are safe in Division One, for another season, while Donegal will have a final chance at survival on Sunday, when they host Mayo in a winner-takes-all contest in Ballybofey.

Monaghan 0-12 Mayo 0-13: One point sourced from a disputed free was all that separated Monaghan and Mayo in Clones yesterday and Malachy O’Rourke was of the opinion that his men may have edged it had the crest on their chests been different.

John Divilly on the takeaways from the opening weekend of league action.

An injury-time point from Paddy Durcan earned Mayo a hard-earned two league points in Clones on Sunday against a Monaghan side that ended the afternoon with just 12 players on the pitch.

Down have emerged from the depths of despair to challenge once again for Ulster football glory.

Cork 1-20 Monaghan 1-13: Is there any middle ground with this Cork football team?

Mayo 2-11 Monaghan 1-12: In the absence of Aidan O’Shea, Lee Keegan, and Cillian O’Connor for the final few minutes in Clones, Mayo supporters might have reasoned they were all out of inspiration.

Roscommon 1-9 Monaghan 2-10: Three years ago, these sides clashed in Division 3. Monaghan got to the top flight a year ahead of Roscommon so the words of Malachy O’Rourke should be heeded by the disappointed Rossies after they let a winning hand slip from their grasp.

UCD senior football manager John Divilly would not lose any sleep if the Leinster Council were to follow Munster’s example and stop inviting third level teams into their pre-season competitions.

Dublin’s Philly McMahon is in line to pick up the 2015 footballer-of-the-year award, having been named on the all-Dublin three-person shortlist.

Things can change over the next six weeks — ask Kieran Donaghy — but if football’s All Stars were handed out in August, our GAA correspondent would be shaking hands and back-slapping with the following summer achievers.

Leaders are neither born nor made; they are found. This is what Ben Horowitz postulated in a recent Fortune.com article.

The gulf in class between the top flight and the rest of the divisions has perhaps never been as wide as this year. So who exactly have been a class apart in the league of its own?

Donegal 1-4, Monaghan 0-9: At half-time yesterday at O’Donnell Park in Letterkenny, the stadium announcer informed the crowd that Mark English had won silver in the 800m at the European Indoor Athletic Championships in Prague.

Donegal 1-4, Monaghan 0-9:

Paul Galvin’s return to action for Kerry will have to wait for at least another week, as he wasn’t included in the squad to face Cork in Division 1 of the Allianz Football League at Páirc Uí Rinn on Sunday (2pm).

Mayo 3-15 Monaghan 0-11

Mayo claimed a fully merited second win of the current Allianz Football League Division 1 campaign against 13 men Monaghan at Elverys McHale Park this afternoon.

Sigerson Cup semi-finals DCU v UCD, Mardyke (R Hickey, Clare), 2pm

Cork reaction: Brian Cuthbert hailed Colm O’Neill’s eye for goal after his second-half brace saw Cork recover to claim a most satisfying win.

Allianz FL Division 2 Round 2: Monaghan 1-16 Cork 2-14:

By Peter O’Dwyer

Monaghan have gone with the same 15 that beat Armagh in their semi-final replay for Sunday’s Ulster final showdown against Donegal in Clones.

Armagh 0-14 Monaghan 0-14

Monaghan 1-16 Donegal 1-10

Derry, Tyrone, Armagh, Cavan and Down claimed wins in the Power NI McKenna Cup this afternoon.