The All-Star nominees have put the game back on a national scale. The sips of Friday morning and afternoon cappuccinos were interrupted by talk of the absence of James McCarthy from the Footballer of the Year contenders, and the will he, won’t he, regarding the man who is rarely far from football folks’ lips.
David Clifford deserves it and David Clifford doesn’t, as building sites and office desks become a table tennis match founded on opinion and refereed by no one.
The debate will subside before it intensifies, with a full six weeks of waiting before the ‘I told you so’s echo around a nation.
Three of Monaghan’s four nominees will be vying to remain in the Senior Championship this weekend, with Conor McManus’ Clontibret facing off against Latton tonight, and Scotstown meeting surprise package Aughamullen tomorrow, where Conor McCarthy and Rory Beggan will line out for the favourites.
The new Championship format, (introduced during the Covid pandemic when the league was scrapped) has proven largely popular, perhaps with the exception of the drawn-out relegation play-offs.
Latton and Scotstown may also hold a gripe with the fact that their respective runner-up positions in Group 1 and Group 2 of the SFC did not yield a home quarter-final, but that is the nature of the beast.
Clontibret head to St Mary’s Park, Castleblayney as favourites, despite the fact they are off the back of two defeats. The former of those saw John McEntee come to his former stomping ground and take two points, as Inniskeen bettered the side he won the championship with in 2019, on their way to topping Group 2.
And Grattans shall be their opponents once more should they manage to topple a Latton side that has been consistent all year.
It has been plain sailing for Latton until a fiery, final round defeat to Séamus McEnaney’s Corduff, with Corduff coach Rory Gallagher banned by the GAA in the lead up to that particular fixture, as the rumours that had been touted for weeks were confirmed.
On Sunday, Scotstown will be expected to account for Aughnamullen Sarsfields in Clontibret. Sarsfields had a poor league campaign, where they won only three games from nine, but their form has completely flipped since a change of management.
The smart money may well be on Latton to overturn O’Neills tonight, but with Scotstown hitting 7-49 in their last three games, they should have the firepower to get by Michael Bannigan’s Aughnamullen.
