Nerves of steel from Monaghan break 84 year minor final wait
FINAL BOUND: Pic: Monaghan players Seán O’Connell, left, and Donnachadh Connolly after their side's victory in the Electric Ireland GAA All-Ireland MFC Semi-Final match against Kerry. Pic: Seb Daly/Sportsfile
They left a chunk of time between the two games in Tullamore on Saturday for possible extra-time and in the closing moments of the minor game, it looked like they were going to need it.
In the end, Monaghan's Sean Og McElwain puffed his cheeks out and expressed 'relief' that they'd managed to hold off a Kerry side that threw the lot at them late on.
Listed at number 24 on the match programme, the Scotstown talent was a late addition to the Monaghan team and made his presence felt on a landmark day for the Farney.
Four points, including the first and last of an ultra intense, low scoring encounter played in humid conditions, helped secure a first All-Ireland minor final place for Monaghan since 1939. They are just an hour from a first ever win on July 8/9.
McElwain was named Player of the Match though it is probably Tommy Mallen's fortunate first-half goal that will live longest in the memory.
Trailing by two points at that stage deep into stoppage time, Mallen lofted a free from his hands on the 45-metre line into the danger zone which caught out Kerry goalkeeper James Hoare, skidding through his hands to the roof of the net.
As Kerry manager Wayne Quillinan admitted, the goal had the dual effect of 'unsettling' Kerry and giving Monaghan the oxygen to push on to record a win for the ages.
Still, Quillinan reckon Kerry deserved at least a draw from it and Paddy Lane, their highly rated inside forward, did have two late goal opportunities but both were blocked by Monaghan 'keeper Jamie Mooney. Hence McElwain's relief.
"We just wanted to get ahead at half-time, then just keep it going in the second-half, keep the intensity high and keep the scores chipping away and going over," said McElwain.
That was pretty much how it went too, Monaghan building on their two-point half-time lead to win by three in the end.
Mallen finished with 1-1 and must have pushed McElwain hard for the individual award. It was Mallen that also won a free early in the second-half which allowed Max McGinnity to kick his fourth of five points on the afternoon, bringing his tournament tally to 3-43.
Kerry were forewarned of a physical contest and in certain sections of the field, disparities were clear. McGinnity, for example, had a clear height and weight advantage on his marker Isaac Brosnan. But Quillinan felt the Kingdom handled it well overall.
Lane, despite being man-marked by Jack Lynch with a sweeper, Tomas Quinn, often coming in to double team him, got away for two points for play too, as well as those late goal opportunities.
The turning point was the goal three minutes into first-half stoppage time which ultimately separated the teams.
"First of all, I want to say that James Hoare has been absolutely exceptional for us all year," said Quillinan of his goalkeeper. "He's been an outstanding 'keeper. He's going to progress on and I'd be very surprised if James Hoare doesn't play U-20s and senior football. They just seemed to get oxygen out of it and we couldn't play the game we wanted to in the second-half."
For Quillinan, a draw and extra-time, wouldn't have been an unfair outcome.
"We knew it wasn't going to be a free-flowing game because Monaghan were playing 15, 14 behind the ball," he said. "That's what we had planned for. It was a different game to the previous match against Kildare but that's what you have to do, you adapt. If we'd got a draw I would have thought we fully deserved it."
: M McGinnity (0-5, 5 frees); T Mallen (1-1, 1-0 free); S Og McElwain (0-4, 2 frees, 1 mark); M Carolan (0-1).
P Lane (0-6, 4 frees); D Kirby, P Fitzgerald, T Kennedy, O Healy (1 mark), A Kennelly (0-1 each).
: J Mooney; J Lynch, C Meehan, C Greenan; T Quinn, D Connolly, A Stuart; M Carolan, C Jones; L McKenna, T Mallen, C Murphy; S Og McElwain, M McGinnity, M Finn.
: C Clerkin for Greenan (h/t); S O'Connell for Murphy (40); M Maguire for McGinnity (49); E McCaffrey for McKenna (59); J McCaughey for Stewart (64).
: J Hoare; D Mulvihill, I Brosnan, K O'Shea; P Moynihan, G Evans, D Kirby; B Murphy, E Boyle; P Fitzgerald, T Kennedy, S O Cuinn; D Hogan, O Healy, P Lane.
S Gannon for Hogan (40); A Kennelly for O Cuinn (43); D O'Keeffe for Healy (45); A Carey for Fitzgerald (53); J Moynihan for Brosnan (53).
: J Gilmartin (Sligo).
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