Beggan targeting silverware with Monaghan and Scotstown

RORY Beggan does not do things by halves. The Monaghan AllStar goalkeeper has just won the Quinn Building Products Ulster GAA Writers’ Association monthly merit award for the second time in four months yet he has his sights set on a rather different target next year.

“My biggest hope is that we will win team honours rather than individual accolades in the New Year,” states Beggan.

“While I am very pleased to be honoured by the writers, I would prefer if the Monaghan team could land major trophies.”

Under Malachy O’Rourke’s baton, Monaghan clinched provincial titles in 2013 and 2015 but, like the rest of his colleagues, Beggan has his sights on an even bigger goal.

“Obviously Monaghan would love to go all the way and win the All-Ireland title, that’s our real goal,” says Beggan. “I was in the Scotstown team that lost in the Ulster club final to Gaoth Dobhair a couple of weeks ago and it was not a pleasant place to be in. But every man died with his boots on and you could not fault the team for effort.”

Beggan’s consistency between the posts helped to put him head and shoulders above every other goalkeeper in the country for this year at least and he is hoping to replicate his high standards again next year.

But, for the moment, he intends to enjoy some down time over the Christmas period.

“It has been a very long year with club and county but, to be honest, it has been very enjoyable,” reflects Beggan. “Scotstown retained their Monaghan title, and maybe that was as good as it got in terms of team success, but I feel we can do better on all fronts next year. I aim to enjoy myself over Chistmas, but afterwards I will dust myself down and get back at it again.”

Beggan believes both Scotstown and Monaghan must take an even more positive approach into battle next year as they both bid to hit the high spots.

“Goalkeeper is a position which requires great powers of concentration and I see it as important that I bring the right attitude into every game,” adds Beggan.

“We want to keep our position in Division One and that won’t be easy given the quality of sides that are in there along with us.” Monthly winner: Monaghan’s Rory Beggan is given his award by Emmett Scollan, Quinn Building Products Sales Manager for Fermanagh, Monaghan and Armagh ENNISKILLEN schoolteacher Malachy O’Rourke is about to embark on his sixth year in charge of Monaghan but, while his initial ambition could be termed conservatively modest, there is no doubting what he would like to see his team achieve in 2019.

The Bank of Ireland Dr McKenna Cup, in which Monaghan have been bracketed with Armagh, Antrim and St Mary’s in Section B, will offer O’Rourke an early platform to assess emerging talent as a possible prelude to finalising a line-up which might just take the county all the way to an All-Ireland final.

A heart-breaking semi-final defeat to Tyrone may have been the low point of this year, but O’Rourke’s trademark passion and drive have been rekindled.

“We had a very big panel this year and there are probably a lot of players there who would not have got as much game time as they would have liked, and maybe we as management would like to have seen them get as well,” admits O’Rourke.

“The McKenna Cup gives us the chance to be competitive every game. We want to win each time because the more games we get in January the better.”

O’Rourke expects to have his venerable old guard on duty, which means that Vinny Corey, the Hughes brothers Darren and Kieran, Conor McManus, Dessie Mone, Colin Walshe and Drew Wylie will be in the vanguard of another assault on the Ulster title as a precursor to a fierce push for All-Ireland honours.

O’Rourke has wielded huge influence since succeeding Seamus McEnaney as team boss and enjoys huge respect from his players. Now he is determined to try and bring them the extra mile, but caution is the keynote as he focuses on the upcoming games against Antrim (Sunday Dec 30), St Mary’s (Sunday Jan 6) and Armagh (Wednesday Jan 9).

“All teams will be keen to hit the ground running and we are no exception,” says O’Rourke.

“The league starts at the end of January and this will keep us all strongly focused.”