Bank of Ireland Dr McKenna Cup Section B: Monaghan v Antrim (today, 2pm, Clones)
THEY may begin the season at opposite ends of the Gaelic football pyramid but Monaghan and Antrim are looking into 2019 with the same objective – to make improvements that matter.
The margins, of course, are on a different scale altogether. The Farneymen, All-Ireland semi-finalists this year, are going in search of inches; the percentage points that can see them narrow that gap to the all-conquering Dubs.
From where they stand - among the leading challengers-in-chief - it is a long way down. Their objective will be to consolidate and build, just as they have done in almost every year since Malachy O’Rourke took the reins in 2012.
For Antrim, there is a much wider scope for tangible gains. Promotion to Division Three will be among their top priorities, having just missed out this year, while things can only get better come Championship time after disappointing defeats to Down and Offaly this year.
Lenny Harbinson is in his second year at the helm, and the McKenna Cup affords him another opportunity to have a look at what is at his disposal in a relatively competitive environment.
Experienced goalkeeper Chris Kerr has called time on his inter-county days, while Patrick McAleer is spending the year in Dubai to gain teaching experience. Midfielder Niall McKeever will not be involved either.
Conor Murray suffered a bad knee injury during Antrim’s All-Ireland Qualifier defeat to Offaly back in June and is targeting a Championship return.
However, influential midfielder Matthew Fitzpatrick is included, despite being based in Liverpool where he is studying, while Creggan full-back Ricky Johnston returns to the fold after missing the 2018 campaign.
Harbinson has also drafted in Eoghan McCabe (St Gall’s), Fintan Burke (Creggan), Owen McKeown (Lamh Dhearg) and Patrick Finnegan (St Brigid’s) for the pre-season competition, and could blood some of those mentioned at St Tiernach’s Park today.
Malachy O’Rourke, meanwhile, has always used the McKenna Cup to have a look at his wider panel, and the likes of Colm Lennon, Frank Connolly, Jamie Walshe – brother of Colin – and Stephen O’Hanlon will be among those hoping to catch the eye.
Allstar forward Conor McManus was used sparingly last year as the Farneymen built towards the League and while the Clontibret sharpshooter is not named in the McKenna Cup panel this time around, he could feature at a later stage again.
The Scotstown contingent went straight from their inter-county exploits into a club season that brought them to an Ulster final on December 2, and Kieran Hughes, Conor McCarthy and Shane Carey are not listed in the initial 27-man panel.
Again, though, like McManus, they could feature at a later point during the McKenna Cup, or might not be called upon until the League.
“It’s just about trying to manage it in a way that’ll have fellas coming back hungry and fresh,” said O’Rourke at the McKenna Cup launch earlier this month.
“Looking at the Scotstown boys at the minute, we just need to give them a break… it’s nearly when they feel the hunger to come back themselves, rather than forcing them back and them not ready for it.
“Some of the other lads have been out of football for a while so they have a fair bit of work to do to get up to speed for the new year, other lads are in good shape, so you just manage it on a case by case basis and hope that when you come to the new year everyone is raring to go again.”
Last year, O’Rourke chose to mix up his starting 15s throughout the League in a bid to avoid any over-exertion by the time they got to the business end of the season.
They still enjoyed an impressive Division One campaign, defeating the Dubs at Croke Park in the last round of games and just missing out on the League final before going on to enjoy an extended summer.
It is a policy he is likely to adopt again next year.
“I probably will,” said the Farney boss.
“We carried a big panel last year of maybe 35-36 players and a lot of those lads wouldn’t have got as much game-time as they would’ve liked, and as we would’ve liked, so we want to get a look at as many of them as we can.
“We have four or five new fellas into the panel as well, so it’s a balancing act – getting a look at as many players as we can in competitive games and seeing how they go.
“You’re just trying to get everybody ready for the start of the National League and the more games we can win in the McKenna Cup, the better.”
Monaghan panel: R Beggan, K Duffy, D Wylie, C Lennon, J McCarron, F Connolly, B Kerr, J Mealiff, N McAdam, J Walshe, V Corey, R Wylie, D Freeman, J McCarron, B McGinn, T Kerr, S O’Hanlon, M Bannigan, C Walshe, K O’Connell, P McKenna, C Boyle, S Finnegan, F Kelly, D Ward, D Hughes, S Garland
Antrim panel: P Nugent, C Hamill, P Gallagher, M Johnston, P McBride, N Delargy, P McCormick, J Dowling, S Beatty, D Lynch, M Sweeney, R Murray, M Fitzpatrick, C Duffin, R McCann, C Fleming, E McCabe, R McCann, M McCarry, A Sweeney, C Lemon, F Burke, O McKeown, R Johnston, P Finnegan, D McCormick
