In a spirited comeback, Monaghan clawed back from a deficit of five points during the mid-section of the second half to end in a stalemate against neighbouring Louth before an audience of over 11,000 in Clones. Initially, it appeared that Louth, thanks to the efforts of Craig Lennon and Conor Grimes, would secure a second group stage victory after their goals in the first half. However, the game ended in a draw, which was still sufficient for the Wee County to advance to the knockout phase. Monaghan rallied in the second half to break their losing spell, largely due to Mícheál Bannigan capitalising on a misdirected pass to find the back of an undefended net. Their longing for a victory remains unfulfilled as Sam Mulroy negated a free-kick from Rory Beggan that had momentarily put the home team in front towards the end of the match.
Louth commenced the match aggressively, scoring early through a pair of frees from Sam Mulroy. A somewhat profligate Monaghan took about ten minutes to kick start their campaign via Joel Wilson. Mulroy’s on-target goal attempt from point-blank proximity was thwarted by Rory Beggan, but made up for it by converting the ensuing 45. The respite for Monaghan’s clean sheet was fleeting, as Craig Lennon scored his third goal in as many games.
Monaghan retaliated with a well-executed goal by Conor McCarthy, but their points scored by Jack McCarron (free) and Kieran Duffy (mark) were neutralised by Mulroy. Ending the first half on a positive note, Louth added to their tally when Conor Grimes netted their second goal, bringing the score to 2-5 to 1-3 at intermission.
With renewed intent, Monaghan commenced the final half by scoring quick points courtesy of Mícheál Bannigan, Gary Mohan and Ryan O’Toole. The four-point lead for Louth was then reinstated by a pair from Ryan Burns. Although Monaghan’s Ciarán McNulty scored one, the points added by Ciarán Downey and Mulroy for Louth meant they missed an excellent opportunity to extend their lead by six as they approached the last quarter.
During his 200th senior appearance for Monaghan, Conor McManus took the field to successfully execute a couple of free kicks. Monaghan’s fortunes improved when Mícheál Bannigan seized a misdirected pass deep in Louth’s territory and adeptly steered it into an unguarded net. Rory Beggan’s classic free kick momentarily put Monaghan in the lead, though a similar long-range effort by Mulroy evened the score, marking his seventh conversion.
The match concluded with both teams unable to score in the final seven minutes, resulting in a draw and one point each. Amidst this, Louth retains its second position in Group Four, gearing up for their final round showdown with Kerry. Concurrently, Monaghan is set to stake their advancement chances in a decisive match against Meath.
The Monaghan team comprised of R. Beggan, R. O’Toole, K. Lavelle, R. Wylie, J. Irwin, K. Duffy, C. McCarthy, G. Mohan, J. Wilson, M. Hamill, Mícheál Bannigan, S. O’Hanlon, R. McAnespie, J. McCarron, and C. McNulty. The second-half saw the introduction of K. O’Connell, C. McManus, A. Woods, S. Jones, and M. McCarville.
For Louth, the lineup included N. McDonnell, D. McKenny, D. Corcoran, P. Lynch, C. McKeever, A. Williams, C. Lennon, T. Durnin, C. Grimes, N. Sharkey, B. Duffy, C. Downey, R. Burns, S. Mulroy, and C. Keenan. In the later part of the game, L. Grey, C. Byrne, P. Mathews, and T. Jackson were included.
F. Kelly from Longford acted as the referee.
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