There are three Monaghan county teams in competitive action in another busy weekend.
Allianz National Football League Division One
Monaghan v Down, Sunday, 2.00, Clones
Monaghan continue their NFL campaign with their first home game against Down on Sunday.
Monaghan finished strongly to edge out Roscommon last weekend, while Down fell to a heavy defeat at home to Donegal. That followed a Dr. McKenna Cup campaign where neither side progressed beyond the group stage. Down won on their last visit to Clones for a McKenna Cup game in 2015, when both counties fielded experimental sides, but Monaghan will have a much more recognisable line-out on Sunday, with Malachy O’Rourke announcing the same panel from last week. Down, who are also set to visit Clones for an Ulster SFC quarter-final in June, will be without key forward Dónal O’Hare, who was sent off in Newry last Saturday.
Conor McManus, Colin Walshe, Drew Wylie, Dessie Mone and Darren Hughes are among the experienced players backboning the Monaghan team, while Down will be looking for big performances from the likes of Mark Poland, Kevin McKernan, Aidan Carr and Darragh O’Hanlon. The latter two are among four changes named by Éamonn Burns. Connaire Harrison and Shay McArdle also come in, replacing Darren O’Hagan, O’Hare and his injured full-forward colleagues Ryan Johnston and Arthur McConville.
Monaghan: Rory Beggan; Colin Walshe, Drew Wylie, Ryan Wylie; Dessie Mone, Kieran Duffy, Fintan Kelly; Neil McAdam, Darren Hughes; Karl O’Connell, Dermot Malone, Thomas Kerr; Shane Carey, Owen Duffy, Conor McManus (Capt.).
Subs: Mark Keogh, John McCarron, Conor Boyle, Niall McKeown, Mark Thornton, Pádraic Keenan, Ryan McAnespie, Stephen Gollogly, Conor McCarthy Daniel McKenna, Barry McGinn.
Down: Stephen Kane; Ryan Boyle, Gerard McGovern, Malachy Magee; Michael Hughes, Aidan Carr, Darragh O’Hanlon; Peter Turley, Henry Brown; Joe Murphy, Mark Poland, Kevin McKernan; Cónall McGovern, Connaire Harrison, Shay McArdle.
Under-21 Shamrock Cup
Monaghan v Tyrone, Friday, 8.00, Cloghan * Please note change of venue
Monaghan’s Under-21 footballers will also be bidding for a second win in the space of a week when they face Tyrone in Cloghan on Friday night.
Monaghan started the Cremartin-run tournament with a hard-earned victory over Louth last Friday, while Tyrone’s clash with Antrim was postponed. Adam Treanor, Kevin Loughran, Mikey Murnaghan and Dónal Meegan were among the main men for Monaghan at Darver in round one, with Barry McGinn and Conor McCarthy part of the senior panel for the trip to Roscommon. Lee Brennan and Cathal McShane have been featuring for Tyrone seniors in 2016, but they could be able to call on members of last year’s All-Ireland U-21 winners like Ruairí McGlone, Frank Burns and Seán Fox.
Lidl Ladies National Football League Division One
Galway v Monaghan, Sunday, 2.00, Tuam
Monaghan’s senior ladies belatedly begin life under new manager Paula Cunningham with an away game against Galway on Sunday.
Cunningham has admitted to playing catch-up with a Monaghan team that is currently shorn of some of their key players, but she will welcome having had an extra week to prepare for this game, which is also Galway’s opening fixture of 2016.
Meanwhile, Our Lady’s Secondary School, Castleblayney will bid to become the second Monaghan team to qualify for the Danske Bank Ulster Colleges MacLarnon Cup semi-finals when the holders take on Holy Trinity, Cookstown in Tyholland on Saturday at 12 noon.
By cshalvey Fri 5th Feb
