Congratulations to Conor McManus on a magnificent career. One of the best forwards to play the game

97Cavans (Cavan) - Posts: 347 - 22/06/2024 21:51:00    2553799

Headed over wasn't a huge monaghan crowd there which was a pity as thought the team restored some pride especially in first 50 minutes. The knockout football suited them. We were well in it playing the favourites away. The first half was almost perfect bar some terrible ref decisions and a missed chance of setting up.a goal. We're unlucky to go in behind. Galway really upped it in second half and dominated us all over middle 8. We had no inside threat and lived off scraps. Jones Mooney have to start next year to build that threat. Need the confidence a run of games bring. Agree with earlier poster we seemed to run out of bodies to combat a bigger more physical Galway side. Comer was Comer when he came on and lifted Galway. We rallied as best we could and kept going heads didn't drop and thought the three minutes at the end was a joke. But no complaints the best side won. Think we are a side in huge transition and staying in Sam Maguire will be the aim over the next few years as younger lads will gain a lot from today's experience and time spent in sam maguire. The real disaster would be to drop to tailtenn cup where I don't see any benefit for a county like monaghan playing div 4 sides. McBennett Irwin mcPhilips really showed their worth last few weeks and will be mainstays of the side in years to come. If they can hold their own as I think they will in div 2 with likes of mooney mcnulty Jones future is bright. Vinny right about one thing lads walking away from year to year builds nothing.

seanie08 (Monaghan) - Posts: 1828 - 22/06/2024 22:02:07    2553806

mick2007 (Monaghan) - Posts: 464 - 22/06/2024 22:08:42    2553812

shaggylegend (Monaghan) - Posts: 1937 - 22/06/2024 22:39:10    2553838

Conor McManus a legend.Wishing him a happy retirement.He gave all real gaa fans many happy moments.A true superstar.

CiarraiMick (Dublin) - Posts: 3749 - 22/06/2024 22:40:48    2553839

seanie08 (Monaghan) - Posts: 1828 - 22/06/2024 23:12:05    2553858

mhunicean_abu (Monaghan) - Posts: 1049 - 22/06/2024 23:50:28    2553868

Before today's game I for one was afraid we would get a bad beating away to a top tier team. However on another day the result could have been different, we gave up 2 clear goal chances, one where McCarthy inexplicably refused to give it to a player in a better position, the other one Mc Bennett was unlucky not to score at a vital time, can't remember Galway having any real goal chances.
Galway were better than us in the second half which is one of the reasons they won, the other was size around the middle third, our achilles heel for a while now.
Going forward we need to develop players in that area to compete for long kick outs.

The retirement of Mansy (our best ever) and others may not be the worst thing for the team at this stage in their development, the new brigade need to take ownership of the team as team leadership is now an imperative, they seemed lost at vital times this year, but that happens to every team at some stage.

Vinny and Co have the foundations of a good team. Let the negative voices be negative, some people in the county, at all levels, have agendas not even worth considering.
Overall a poor season which was a confusing mix depending on the old and hoping for the new. Next season we should have more clarity for the long term future of the team, there is talent there.
Keep the faith

mhunicean_abu (Monaghan) - Posts: 1049 - 23/06/2024 01:06:00    2553875

ORIELMAN85 (Monaghan) - Posts: 198 - 23/06/2024 03:43:51    2553883

moodoo (Monaghan) - Posts: 447 - 23/06/2024 09:24:32    2553928

Vinny interview on offtheball really put the game yesterday and the season as whole in the right context.

Vinny mentioned the free count against Monaghan saying Galway got a lot of dubious frees, you could see Vinny and the Management team getting very irate with soft nature of the frees Galway got especially in the lead up to half time.

He also highlighted the two goal chances, McBennett shot was unlucky but he also mention Jack tipping the ball over the bar when the goal was on.

Vinny was literally hopping up and down with anger when Jack tipped it over the bar, he knew like the vast majority of supporters that a goal at stage of the second half could have changed the whole game.
The point levelled the game instead of putting Monaghan two up.

On the season as a whole with the injuries to Senior players Vinny's hand was forced to give players a lot more game time than he probably would have envisaged. Mentioning at certain stages of the league being down between 7-10 starters at a time.

This year has been tough for everyone in the county.

But hopefully this year of pain will lead to a positive future.

Hamill,Irwin have cemented their place in the team. McNulty,McBennett and Wilson have had their moments.

Next year hopefully Jones and Mooney will get more game time.

Vinny is the right man to lead Monaghan forward. He has given basically everyone of the panel game time at some stage in the league and championship.

The following players have been given debuts by Vinny in the league and championship over the last two seasons.

Darren McDonnell, Thomas McPhillips, Kevin Loughran, Karl Gallagher,Stephen Mooney, Michael Hamill, Ciaran McNulty, Joel Wilson,Kevin Sheridan, Micheal McCarville, Ryan O'Toole, Darragh Treanor, Shane Slevin, Francie Hughes, Darragh McElerney, and Bobby Walker.

Irwin and McBennett came in during Banty's term and might have got a few minutes in the league, but can't remember off the top of my head.

shaggylegend (Monaghan) - Posts: 1937 - 23/06/2024 09:56:09    2553935

222 (UK) - Posts: 731 - 23/06/2024 10:55:27    2553959

Disappointing not to get a QF in Croke Park this year but it was a shambolic season for a whole pile of reasons, so it would have been no more than a day out, I think. I thought the game was there to be won, and it was nice to see a bit of bite in our defence in the first half. Confidence seemed to drain either side of half time though.

How we get on in Div 2 next year will be the proof of what direction the team is going. Playing the Rossies, Cavan, Down, Louth, Meath, Cork, Westmeath. We have to start building something new... and proving we can beat those teams and get out of Div 2 is a challenging first step. The Louth and Meath games in the round-robin showed that we've a real chance of achieving that, but also that it's going to be really difficult. If they can get promotion & secure Sam Maguire again next year, you build confidence going into the Championship and you wouldn't bet against us getting back to Croke Park at the pointy end of the season and giving it a real go. Donegal have pointed the way this year, showing how quickly you can right the ship.

On the other hand, not one of those Div 2 teams are easy beat, and we could find ourselves at the bottom of the league with a few bad performances and maybe even playing in the Tailteann. Hopefully that jeopardy and challenge is an exciting prospect for the squad and management whenever they start planning for next year, and it focuses minds.

MunnionOfMunnionHill (Monaghan) - Posts: 5 - 23/06/2024 13:06:42    2554004

Too controlled and measured at times for me yesterday. Are we so insecure in our defending that we can't take any risks? Two specific times was at 35 minutes and 70 minutes... Monaghan ran down the clock going into half time despite being a point down. Makes no sense to me... Surely pumping a ball in and failing to score is better than not trying at all... And if galway force a turnover there's little or no time for them to counter... I think anyway

Same at the end of the game. This is championship knockout football get the bloody ball forward and show some intent and purpose

I know from speaking with a high level coach that this is what is being trained but there has to be space for some "kamakazi" stuff and occasionally let players express themselves. Don't know why mohan was taken off but if him, mccarville and mcBennett are in and around the square I know galway would be very nervous with a high long ball coming in

Too much textbook tactics in the modern game. My problem with that is there is also textbook defending so the game is just going thru the phases...

Before someone points it out. I know we got bate badly trying to play football against kerry so I'm not saying for everyone to run around like headless chickens but there's a time and a place for some ingenuity

Rant over. Other than that I think we did OK and the ref let us down a few times... Glad to see a lot of new players breaking in this year... I still like vinny as the front man but would suggest a new face in the coaching

MalsBalls (Monaghan) - Posts: 194 - 23/06/2024 15:52:25    2554038

AlanD (Monaghan) - Posts: 12 - 23/06/2024 21:06:34    2554160

A season to forget for Monaghan ended with some degree of redemption yesterday. I thought a trimming was on the cards in Salthill, but they stood toe to toe with Galway for large parts of the game, despite giving away a lot in terms of size, experience. In the end, Galway's physicality at midfield/half forward and options off the bench made the difference.
The battling qualities shown by Monaghan over the last few weeks leaves some room for optimism. Lavelle, Jason Irwin, O'Hanlon and Mohan have all stood up when needed, so too McBennett. Definitely more needed from Woods and Jones, and Mooney needs time on the pitch. The other new lads have struggled a bit but to their credit they have stuck at it- young Hamill for example ran himself to a standstill yesterday and deserves huge credit for his work.
Hope Vinny sticks it out, but agree there are moves to be made in the coaching setup. To be fair, the game-plan of controlling the ball worked brilliantly for long periods yesterday but they didn't have a plan to go up the gears when needed. Another frustrating element to Monaghan's game management is how slow they are to make positive substitutions, and how bloody long it seems to get a player on the pitch once the call is made. It took nearly 7 minutes to get Jones on the field yesterday, so 12 to go when he was called up, 5 to go when he finally crossed the white line. Game over by then.
Plenty of things for the setup to ponder over the club championship and into autumn
Jack's role is a conundrum. When the shackles need to come off, he needs to come off. Surely at this point Mooney and Bannigan can play the keep-ball role between them with more direct threat form Mooney.
Physicality around the middle- it really showed against Kerry and again yesterday. Its the one area where Monaghan's small pick of players really does tell. Can Conor Leonard finally get some time on the pitch? They will have to work hard on McBennett to shore up no.6 (O'Toole is not the answer here). Wilson will come good in time but one or two others badly needed- no clear options in the club scene. Having Dessie Ward back fit for a wing back/wing forward role would be like getting a new player. Conor Boyle and Aaron Mulligan too but the prospects are not great.
The same challenges remain for Monaghan 3,6,8, and 9. Lavelle has solved one and Mohan partially another. All possible options need to be available and considered.

Eddie the Exile (Monaghan) - Posts: 1093 - 23/06/2024 22:13:08    2554184

shaggylegend (Monaghan) - Posts: 1937 - 23/06/2024 22:13:41    2554185

Tactics were spot on at weekend. We just needed a more physical presence in middle third when Galway upped it in second half and a genuine threat inside which we haven't had in a few years since mcmanus 13-20. Teams have found it easier to defend against us. Our half forward line worked and battled hard but was a few mismatches there when we were forced to go long. A fit dessie Ward and return of Niall Kearns or conor leonard staying fit be a big help but on a positive barry mcbennett really established himself last few weeks.

seanie08 (Monaghan) - Posts: 1828 - 24/06/2024 12:26:37    2554377

stoneygrey (Monaghan) - Posts: 215 - 24/06/2024 13:16:30    2554395

KingdomofBreifne (Cavan) - Posts: 124 - 24/06/2024 14:33:29    2554426