'Special talent' Kobe McDonald stars off the bench as Mayo easily account for Monaghan

The AFL-bound Kobe McDonald scored 1-4 for Mayo, including a two-pointer, in a 15-minute cameo off the bench for Mayo in Clones

Mayo's Kobe McDonald celebrates after scoring his side's second goal against Monahan with Aidan O'Shea. Pic: ©INPHO/Tom Maher

National Football League Division 1: Monaghan 2-11 Mayo 2-30 

Kobe McDonald was the name on everyone’s lips leaving Clones after Mayo returned to winning ways in emphatic fashion at the expense of a beleaguered Monaghan side. The roar from the away support that greeted McDonald’s arrival onto the pitch for the final quarter gave an insight into the impression the 18-year-old AFL recruit has already made at club and underage levels and they were on their feet more than once in the 20 minutes or so that followed.

It remains to be seen how long Mayo will have McDonald, son of former All-Star Ciarán, but his dream debut saw him plunder 1-4 from play in a tantalising display of his talent, which provided an extra dimension to an already very satisfying day for Andy Moran. 

Bob Tuohy’s display at midfield was another big positive for Mayo, who kept their foot on the pedal after kicking five two-pointers with the breeze in the first half, including a late brace from Fergal Boland. Rory Beggan’s absence added to Monaghan’s growing list as they fell to a fourth consecutive defeat of a trying league campaign.

Moran waxed lyrical about McDonald’s quality, saying: “He’s just a great kid. There’s no point dressing it up, he’s a special talent and we’re just happy to have him for as long as we have him. This was the game we had earmarked for him [after the conclusion of his Connacht schools’ campaign with Gortnor Abbey]. He was straight into training on Wednesday and away he went, he wanted to play. It’s great to have him on board. It was a great finish for his goal. That’s the sort of individual he is. We hope we keep him healthy for the year and give him every chance to play senior football.” 

Moran, who coached Monaghan to promotion last year, added that Mayo would continue to take a game-by-game approach to the league, noting: “You’re definitely not fully safe on six points, but we’re at the point where we can experiment a bit. We would have bitten your hand off for three wins from four [after three away games].”

Despite Ryan O’Donoghue blazing a penalty over the bar, Mayo led by 0-17 to 0-6 at half-time, courtesy of Boland’s double-double, with Darragh Beirne, Jack Carney and Jordan Flynn also accounting for orange flags. Micheál Bannigan kicked three first-half points for Monaghan, but they were left with an uphill task after Mayo’s late flourish.

Jack McCarron hit 1-2 within ten minutes of his introduction for a first appearance of the season as Monaghan briefly threatened to close the gap, but Aidan O’Shea’s goal put a stop to that as Mayo fired in a flurry of scores midway through the half. Starlet McDonald was outstanding during that spell, with his personal highlights reel featuring a brilliantly-taken goal and a two-pointer into the breeze. Debutant Robbie Hanratty flicked to the net for Monaghan, but Mayo finished with another burst, ending with a remarkable tally of 2-30 from ten marksmen.

Mayo host Armagh in round five, with Monaghan facing an arduous trip to Killarney to face All-Ireland champions Kerry.

Scorers for Monaghan: J McCarron 1-2 (0-1f); M Bannigan 0-4 (1f); R Hanratty 1-0; S O’Hanlon 0-2 (1 2-pt); A Woods 0-2 (1f); M McCarville 0-1.

Scorers for Mayo: K McDonald 1-4 (1 2-pt); D Beirne (1 2-pt-f, 1f), F Boland (2 2-pt), J Flynn (1 2-pt) 0-5 each; A O’Shea 1-1; R O’Donoghue 0-4 (1f, 1 pen); J Carney (1 2-pt), P Durcan 0-2 each; S Callinan, R Hennelly (’45) 0-1 each.

MONAGHAN: K Mulligan; R Wylie, R Mohan, C Dowd; D Ward, R O’Toole, D McElearney; M McCarville, G Mohan; O McGorman, A Carey, T Hughes; M Bannigan, A Woods, S O’Hanlon.

Subs: J McCarron for McElearney (H-T); R Hanratty for Hughes (49); K Gallagher for G Mohan, E Walsh for McGorman (both 56); F Carolan for Woods (66).

MAYO: R Hennelly; E Hession, D McHugh, J Coyne; S Callinan, C Loftus, P Durcan; B Tuohy, D McBrien; J Flynn, R O’Donoghue, J Carney; D Beirne, A O’Shea, F Boland.

Subs: K McDonald for Beirne (52); M Plunkett for Loftus (54); P Towey for Carney, S Morahan for Durcan (both 58); S Coen for Boland (62).

Referee: D Gough (Meath).