APRIL may have been loosely designated as a month for clubs, but Conor McManus is expecting little to change in terms of Monaghan’s preparation for the Ulster Championship.
The Farneymen have been thrust straight into the provincial cauldron after being paired with holders Tyrone in the Ulster quarter-final.
Monaghan and Tyrone have shared four of the last five Ulster Championships and, with that game slated for May 20, McManus admits there is little prospect of a cessation of all things county during the month of April.
“It might be club month and there’ll be games with the club, but I don’t think any county throughout Ireland will be saying at the end of March ‘right lads, see you at the start of May’,” said the Clontibret forward.
“That simply isn’t going to happen. Yes there are club games and players will play in those club games, but I think it’s unrealistic to ask players and ask county set-ups to do that.
“You’re going to have four or five games in April which is tough enough to deal with because you’re trying to prepare for an Ulster Championship in the middle of that, and you’re trying to avoid injuries and prepare the best you can.
“Teams and counties will have to see how they deal with that.”
Monaghan came into this year’s Championship on the back of a strong League campaign, during which they took All-Ireland champions Dublin right to the wire before just missing out on a spot in the Division One decider.
However, things didn’t quite go according to plan once summer arrived, a shock Ulster semi-final defeat to Down scuppering hopes of a provincial final pop at the Red Hands.
Jack McCarron was one of the men to star during that Division One campaign but found the going tougher at Championship pace. Yet fellow forward McManus has backed the Currin man to rediscover his top form in 2018.
He said: “The League is about finding players, finding performances and trying to win every game – there’s no real tactic about it in terms of how you approach it.
“Jack’s performances in the League meant he was very much a marked man in the Championship, and that brings its own pressures. But I have no doubt Jack will be a big player for us.
“Like the rest of us, he’ll be trying to improve, and if he can deliver similar performances for us in the League we’ll be happy with that.”
The Farney County’s summer came to an abrupt end at the hands of the Dubs in August as they bowed out with barely a whimper following a disappointing 10-point, last eight defeat.
It was a frustrating afternoon for all concerned, especially the forwards, and there were question marks surrounding the future of manager Malachy O’Rourke in the aftermath.
After giving the matter some thought, O’Rourke – who has helped Monaghan to two Ulster titles since taking over from Eamonn McEneaney in 2012 - decided to stay on for a sixth campaign.
And McManus believes it is a wise move.
“Malachy’s with us five years and we’re delighted he’s back,” said McManus.
“He’s been brilliant with us, and brilliant with me personally. It wasn’t a case that we ever thought that we wanted change or a new voice in.
“It was more that we wanted to make sure, when the year ended, Malachy was back in and we could get our heads down and work towards the McKenna Cup and National League and try and improve.”
