Monaghan’s Clerkin comes alive in the twilight zone

Dick Clerkin has a growing appreciation of the role of ‘impact sub’ and credits manager Malachy O’Rourke with prolonging his Monaghan career. As the longest-serving inter-county player in the country, Clerkin has clearly done an awful lot right to keep his body up to the abrasive demands of the modern game.

Yet the midfielder has praised O’Rourke for how he’s handled ‘veterans’ like himself and Paul Finlay, who will both be expected to come off the bench in tomorrow night’s Ulster SFC semi-final against Donegal when things get tight.

“Malachy deserves a lot of credit for the way he has managed players like myself and Paul and shown us how there’s still a huge amount to be gained by maybe not having a starting role,” said Clerkin, 34.