Armagh march on

ARMAGH staged a strong finish to defeat Monaghan in the Ulster SHC quarter-final at Pairc Esler.

The Farney men threatened an upset when they closed to within a point midway through the second half, but the Orchard side sensed the danger and pushed on for victory, with a goal from sub Neil Duffy.

Monaghan held their own in the opening quarter when Mickey McHugh had a penalty deflected over the bar, and Stephen Lambe converted a free. Paul McCormack’s two early Armagh points followed in a productive spell which saw them go four points clear, with Conor Corvan scoring the pick of their points, and centre back Ruairi McGrattan thumping over a long-range effort.