All-Ireland Senior Football Championship preliminary quarter-final: Galway 0-14 Monaghan 0-11
ON an evening when they needed everything to go in, the crossbar denied battling Monaghan the opportunity to force an unexpected victory in Galway.
They trailed by two when Barry McBennett took Conor McCarthy’s pass, cut inside his marker and smashed in a shot that beat Conor Gleeson but hammered the underside of the woodwork. Instead of bouncing in, it bounced out and instead of being a point ahead they soon found themselves three down and, despite two frees from legend Conor McManus, time ran out on the brave Farneymen.
Galway, who had the edge in the physical stakes and got the rub of the green in terms of decisions, did enough to win and that’s all they needed to do. Monaghan never give anyone an easy game and with Damien Comer back on the field, Rob Finnerty showing fine form and a quarter-final place secured there was an optimistic, positive vibe in the Galway camp afterwards.
Manager Padraic Joyce said his players got over the disappointment of drawing a game they should have won against Armagh the previous weekend “fairly middlin’-quick” but added that it took them until half-time to get going.
“We had our backs to the wall for a long time out there but we got 14 scores on the board,” he said.
“It was enough to win this game but it won’t be enough to win next week – we know that. We’ll take the victory with open arms and move on.”
Galway scored eight points from eight shots in the second half. Monaghan needed a similar return from their attack to beat their hosts and manager Vinny Corey rued the chances that got away.
“If Barry McBennett’s shot goes in, we’ve a chance to press the kickout and all the rest but it came out and they came up the field and all of a sudden we’re three down,” observed Corey.
“We had another chance when Stevie O’Hanlon was clean through and we didn’t give the killer pass, we settled for the point and they are the sort of chances we need to take when you’re away from home in a game like that there. A goal is a big swing in a game like that.
“They kept themselves in it with free-kicks – perhaps some of them were dubious enough to be honest. All-in-all, we had a few chances and we needed to take them and we didn’t take them.”
A by-product of this needlessly-packed fixture schedule is that stiff bodies need time to loosen up in games and there was very little to shout about in the opening stages.
Sheets of misty rain blew in off Galway Bay as Jack McCarron gave Monaghan the lead after five minutes and the natives in the stands had grown restless by the time Stephen O’Hanlon burst through to make it 4-2 to the visitors.
The sight of Walsh hobbling off didn’t improve their mood but the home side got back into it thanks to a pair of frees from Matthew Tierney – but questionable decisions – and the evergreen Paul Conroy nipped in to edge them into a one-point lead at half-time.
Monaghan hardly bothered with the second half throw-in as everybody bar McCarron trotted back to their defensive zones. He was soon back there too as Galway played it around for three and-a-half tedious minutes before Thomas McPhillips dispossessed Finnerty at the touchline.
When McCarron levelled, Joyce responded by sending Comer on. The crowd roared in delight but he hadn’t touched the ball when his teaching colleague Conroy sent Galway’s nose ahead again and Finnerty’s tap-over left two in it with 10 second half minutes gone.
Corey responded by throwing McManus into the action and McCarron pulled one back and then McCarthy, who’d missed two easier chances in first half, kicked a beauty to level it again after 50 minutes.
Galway’s physicality was beginning to have an impact and they were finding scores easier to come by. Finnerty finished after Johnny McGrath had raided up the left wing and then John Maher – a tower of strength for the home side - left two between them.
It was 10-8 then and Monaghan worked like demons to create the critical moment in the game.
McCarthy’s pass, McBennett’s shot, WHAAACK… The crossbar shuddered. Galway scrambled the ball away and in-form Finnerty’s third of the half put three in it.
Another Finnerty free followed and the maroon and white flags waved in delight when Comer ran to collect a short free, turned and added another.
But Monaghan never know when they’re beaten. Stephen O’Hanlon and Liam O Conghaile swapped scores and then Conor McManus swung over two nerveless frees to leave three in it.
Injury-time was almost up but Monaghan kept going and forced a forced a sideline ball just inside the Galway half. The scene was set for them to hit it long into the square but the referee blew his whistle and Galway breathed a sigh of relief.
“We’ll get another day out anyway,” said a smiling Galway supporter to her friend afterwards.
She might get more than one…
Galway C Gleeson; J McGrath, S Fitzgerald, J Glynn; D McHugh, L Silke, S Mulkerrin; P Conroy (0-3), S Kelly; M Tierney (0-2 frees), J Maher (0-1), C Darcy; R Finnerty (0-5, 0-3 frees), S Walsh (0-1 free), C McDaid
Subs L O Conghaile (0-1) for Walsh (26), D Comer (0-1) for Darcy (42), J Heaney for Finnerty (65), C Hernon for Kelly (67), D O’Flaherty for Finnerty (70)
Yellow cards Conroy (32), Tierney (35)
Monaghan R Beggan; R Wylie, K Lavelle, J Irwin; R McAnespie, R O’Toole, C McCarthy (0-1); G Mohan (0-1), B McBennett; S O’Hanlon (0-2), M Bannigan (0-2, 0-1 free), M Hamill; A Woods, J McCarron (0-3, 0-2 frees), J Wilson
Subs T McPhillips for McAnespie (28), C McManus (0-2 frees) for Mohan (46), M McCarville for Wilson (55), C McNulty for McCarron (58), S Jones for Hamill (67)
Yellow cards Mohan (21), Irwin (62), Woods (65)
Referee Sean Lonergan (Tipperary)
