foncab St Paul’s Ulster Minor Football Tournament quarter-final: Four Masters (Donegal) 3-7 Scotstown (Monaghan) 3-6
Four Masters were pushed all the way by a ferocious Scotstown challenge as they booked their place in the semi-finals of the foncab St Paul’s Ulster Minor Football Tournament.
The Donegal side found the net three times, only for their Monaghan opponents to respond each time.
However, they required a resolute defensive performance to withstand a late Scotstown rally and stay on course to back-to-back titles.
The reigning champions got off to a flying start with a goal inside the first two minutes as Thomas Lenehan finished off a sweeping move to fire to the net.
The Monaghan men responded well to that early setback, Sean Og McElwain (free) and Tommy Mallen steadying the ship with points before Darcy Foye lashed in an 11th minute goal to put them in front.
Mallen tagged on another point but Four Masters wrested back the momentum, grabbing three of the next four points thanks to brothers Thomas and Turlough Carr and surged back into the lead with a second goal through Tiarnan McBride just a minute form half-time.
It was the Donegal men who got the last point of the half from Turlough Carr, but Scotstown hit back early after the restart, Darragh Keenan grabbing their second goal in the first minute of the second half and a Max Maguire point putting them back on level terms.
However, the game swung back in favour of the champions, a third Four Masters goal from Lenhan on 42 minutes putting them back in front, with a further two points stretching that lead.
Scotstown were not going down without a fight, however, and they too found the back of the net for the third time, Darragh Keenan grabbing his second to reduce the deficit to just one point and set up a grandstand finish.
However, Four Masters were resolute in the closing minutes and held on to advance to the semi-finals.
