Hurlers face Leitrim
March 23, 2010Monaghan v Leitrim: Ballinamore: Sunday March 28th @ 2.30pm
On the face of it Monaghan's final game in division 4 of the NHL against Leitrim on Sunday could be looked on as a totally academic exercise as Monaghan are already through to the division 4 final but it would be foolhardy for Monaghan to approach this game in that frame of mind. Monaghan are top of the division and are the only team in division 4 on maximum points so there is great motivation in keeping that undefeated record intact. In fact Monaghan and Kerry in division 3A are the only teams with maximum points after 4 rounds of matches. The most likely pairing for the division 4 final is Monaghan v Longford but should Fermanagh defeat Longford on Sunday then points difference could decide it and with Longford in a better position in that regard than their opponents on Sunday they would still go through. Monaghan will be pushed all the way by Leitrim in this particular game as they have been very unfortunate not to have won at least a couple of their previous matches losing out narrowly to both Fermanagh and Cavan. They lost fairly heavily to Longford on Sunday last by 3-20 to 1-9 so they will be trying to finish the league in a better position than in bottom place with just two points from their five matches and a very substantial minus tally in the points difference. Frank Brady views Sunday's game as one where Monaghan have to perform as it will be their last competitive outing before the final on Saturday, April 10th. "This is no academic exercise because we have to retain our 100% record and to do that we have to win this last game. Our ambition was to win six matches in the league this year and thereby win division 4 and promotion to division 3B for next season".
Monaghan's last meeting with the Leitrim was a fairly close affair with Monaghan securing victory with an injury time point in Clones and the last time that Monaghan played Leitrim in Ballinamore the home side came out on top. "We cannot afford any degree of complacency going into Sunday's game", Frank Brady told the Northern Standard because Leitrim will be determined to put a halt to our gallop. We are the only team with a 100% record in this league and we have to retain that and I also have to say that we are well up there in the "Fair Play" league table. I think we are in the top five at the moment so that is another thing for us to aim for".
Frank Brady is getting to the situation where he will almost have a surfeit of riches when he sits down to pick his team for Sunday and probably even more so for the final but that is a situation that he likes being in. "Games like this are a chance for lads to show what they can do. We gave another few players a run last Sunday and we took players in as substitutes who had played in earlier rounds and it all worked. Ronan Meegan came on as a sub and scored three excellent points from play, Michael Lennon also came in and scored and Seamus Loftus is back which gives us choices in defence".
Monaghan's game last Sunday saw them record a fairly comfortable victory over Cavan but Frank Brady would be far from happy with the overall showing. "We started like a train last Sunday and then we let our guard down and we had far too many wide early on, something that would cost you dearly in a tighter match. Against that the defence played well and we restricted Cavan to just one scorer but we will be tested more on Sunday because I do believe that Leitrim will be motivated by the fact that we are already through to the final".
So will Frank Brady be making any changes or has he any injury problems for Sunday's game. "The only player who will definitely not be playing on Sunday is Mickey McHugh who finished top scorer last Sunday. He is unavailable because he is at Jim McHugh's wedding and at this stage I want to wish Jim every happiness in his future married life and hopefully he'll come back and play county hurling when he gets settled. We have no other injury worries so we have a full panel to pick from and we will use Sunday to give all our subs a run because we need to keep sharp". Throw-in in Ballinamore is at 2.30pm on Sunday.
PREVIOUS MEETINGS.
This will be the seventh meeting between Monaghan and Leitrim in the last 22 years and since 1988 Leitrim have recorded just one victory over Monaghan and that back in Ballinamore in 2007. That initial meeting back in 1988 produced a high-scoring semi-final that Monaghan won but it was a much closer call when the sides met in Clones last year with just one point separating them at the finish.
THE RESULTS.
1988 Monaghan 7-17, Leitrim 6-11 (Semi Final).
1996 Leitrim 1-4, Monaghan 5-7
2006 Monaghan 2-9, Leitrim 0-10. Gavan Duffy Park
2007 Leitrim 0-10, Monaghan 0-7 Ballinamore 4/3/07
2008 Monaghan 3-12, Leitrim 0-6 Cloghan 16/3/08
2009 Monaghan 0-13, Leitrim 0-12, Clones 1/3/2009.
THAT LAST MEETING JUST A YEAR AGO.
ALLIANZ HURLING LEAGUE DIV. 4
Monaghan 0-13 Leitrim 0-12.
A point by Stephen Lambe a minute into stoppage time saw Monaghan snatch a late dramatic victory over Leitrim in this closely contested game that was played in ideal conditions in Clones back on Sunday March 1st last year.
Monaghan made two changes from the team that defeated Cavan with Gordon Coleman and John McAnespie coming in to replace Alan Lambe and Brian Phelan who were suspended. Leitrim also made two changes with Conor Burns and Shane Kiernan coming in for Peter Lyons and Michael Burns respectively.
This was a contest that was in the balance right through with Leitrim ahead by a point at half time 0-8 to Monaghan's 0-7 and the sides deadlocked for the 10th time going into stoppage time before Stephen Lambe popped over the winner to keep Monaghan's unbeaten run intact.
Teams and Scorers: Monaghan: Michael McHugh, Aidan Kerr, Sean Leonard, James Connolly, Gordon Coleman, Willie O'Toole 0-2, John McAnespie, Bernard O'Brien 0-3 (1'65), Declan Crowe 0-1, John Greene, Brian McGuigan, Michael Lennon, Noel Morgan 0-2, Stephen Lambe 0-4 (2f), Arthur Hughes 0-1. Subs: Eanna MacSuibhne for B McGuigan, Jim Lacey for A Hughes.
Leitrim: Fintan McKiernan, Kevin McGrath, Vincent McDermott, David Tiernan, Conor Burns, James McGrail, Stephen Feeney, Dave McGovern 0-2, Clement Cunniffe 0-5 (3f), Niall Daly, Keith Connolly, Colm Hayes 0-3, Gary Hickey 0-1, Shane Kiernan 0-1, Alan Doherty. Subs: Niall Glancy for S Feeney, Breian Carroll for K McGrath. Referee: Martin Bartley (Meath).
CHANGES.
Since that game last year Monaghan no longer have the services of Gordon Coleman, Bernard O'Brien, Stephen Lambe and Arthur Hughes while Willie O'Toole, John Greene and Noel Morgan are on the injured list. Leitrim for their part had only four of the team that did duty against Monaghan last year in their line out last Sunday, Kevin McGrath, Vincent McDermott, Conor Burns and Keith Connolly taking part. Tweet
