UNABLE TO HIT THE HEIGHTS
McManus defiant but signs not promising for Monaghan
TIME and circumstances may be Monaghan’s friend, but ultimately they will have to find a way to help themselves if they want to shatter that last-eight glass ceiling.
For all the plaudits thrown at the feet of Malachy O’Rourke’s team for one of their finest performances during his six-year tenure, Sunday’s draw with Kerry may be the result that will haunt them like no other.
The display in Clones nailed the lazy lie that they are a plucky team punching above their weight. Instead, it revealed a serious outfit that has yet to deliver on their full potential.
That observation is backed up by cold, hard numbers.
After Jim Gavin, whose win rate stands at a ridiculous 82 per cent, O’Rourke has transformed Monaghan into the second most consistent team in the land with a 61 per cent win rate since 2013.
Those statistics come with a couple of Ulster titles and, by next spring, a fifth consecutive season in the Allianz League’s Division 1. That’s quite remarkable, given that O’Rourke took over when the Farney County men were a third-tier team.
However, those numbers can’t conceal the reality that the second most consistent team in the land has never made it to the Championship’s last four.
That has been their biggest, perhaps only, failing during O’Rourke’s reign and they will seek to address that shortcoming on Saturday week against Galway when a draw will guarantee a semi-final spot.
It may well be the mental scars from their four previous failed attempts in the last five years continues to dog them.
In truth, they were unfortunate on two of those occasions when running into Dublin.
However, in 2013 and ’15, they met Tyrone not just as equals but as their superiors — they were Ulster champions on both occasions — and still ended up bending the knee when they should have stood tall.
Such a view is, perhaps, a little cruel but it did appear that they were fatally infected with doubt last Sunday when, on the balance of play, they could have beaten Kerry twice over.
Not only were they five points up with 10 minutes of regulation time remaining, but they were in absolute control of the contest.
And yet they lost that conviction coming down the home straight, seeking to run down the clock even though it had far too much time remaining on it.
Being up against Kerry may not have helped and for the likes of Vinny Corey, Dessie Mone and Darren Hughes — who were all there in 2007 when they led the Kingdom for 69 minutes in an All-Ireland quarter-final — they could have been forgiven for looking in their rear mirror.
This time they led for 72 minutes and were still undone with little over a minute left when David Clifford pounced for the equaliser.
But in not losing, all is not lost and Monaghan have two things in their favour ahead of the Super 8s third round clash.
Firstly, they have time to recover from the latest body blow — heading to Galway this weekend would
Perhaps the mental scars continue to dog them
have left them in obvious bother.
Secondly, they remain in control of their own destiny and should be the more motivated side in Salthill.
‘It will be tough but our season is on the line now,’ insisted Conor McManus, who produced one of the great individual performances of this summer in shooting 1-9, 1-5 from play on Sunday.
‘There’s an All-Ireland semi-final up for grabs in two weeks’ time and we want to be in it.’
Therein lies the crucial, and not so subtle, difference in what is at stake for Galway and Monaghan next month.
Galway are playing — again a draw will suffice — to avoid Dublin in the semi-final, while Monaghan are playing to simply stay alive.
That gifts an edge to Monaghan and it is one they must take.
‘We’re still in the Championship, that’s the main thing. That’s what we have to take out of this,’ added McManus.
‘Kerry came here as favourites and as one of the top teams in the country and we gave them a run for about 74 minutes there, we just forgot about the last minute.’
From here, they just need to forget every minute that has gone before as they put it all on the line.