February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
That gulf was reflected at Croke Park last Sunday, where Armagh were too good, too strong and too crafty in what turned out to be a one-sided Allianz National League Division 1 final.
Not that Wexford didn’t give it their best shot, given the circumstances. Appearing in their first league decider in 59 years, they might have liked if their passage to GAA headquarters had been achieved behind closed doors, but the word was already out.
They are the coming team in Leinster, a side full of energy and ambition, but this time there was to be no ambush.
Armagh had done their homework thoroughly. Deprived of space to work their quick breaking moves from defense, Wexford were hustled and harried into errors by the opposition. They competed on level terms for the first 20 minutes, but then Armagh moved into top gear. By the interval, it was 0-13 to 0-5.
The contest was also a tale of two players. For Armagh, Steven McDonnell gave another master class in finishing, with a superb total of 10 points including seven from play. Getting the better of four different markers, McDonnell’s contribution could well have been even greater had he not selflessly placed substitute Paddy McKeever for a second half goal.
However, for Wexford’s Great White Hope, Matty Forde, the final turned into a disappointment. If as ever he was his team’s top scorer with seven points, only one came from play, and he also shot three uncharacteristic wides. With a limited supply of ball to work off, Forde was also tracked every inch of the way by the tenacious Andy Mallon, and when he eventually moved out to center forward, he had to rub shoulders with the formidable Kieran McGeeney.
“We believed we would win, but I don’t think what happened is a disaster,” said Forde. “We didn’t perform in the first half and that’s what cost us. They had us on the back foot from the off, and it was always going to be difficult against a team who are already at championship level, championship pace. We still have a long way to go.”
Wexford were able to break down some significant ball around midfield during the opening exchanges, but they found it difficult to use the possession, while Armagh were much more economical.
The tempo quickened in the final 13 minutes of the first half, which Armagh won by 0-8 to 0-1 as Brian Mallon, Ronan Clarke and John McEntee piled on the pressure.
Wexford could legitimately complain that Francie Bellew should have been sent off for a dangerous charge on David Fogarty, but referee Gerry Kinneavy didn’t award a free for the challenge. Still, Wexford had no gripes with McDonnell’s second half brilliance as he added six points and paved the way for McKeever’s goal.
Wexford had a fleeting moment of hope when Diarmuid Kinsella soloed down the left wing to crash a shot into the roof of the net from close range. The goal cut the margin to five, but Armagh’s grip on a first ever league title was already secure.
“It’s nice to win trophies, it’s nice to win national titles, but the league’s over now,” said manager Joe Kernan. “Ulster’s a minefield and we’ve a game in a fortnight to concentrate on. There were some great passages of play, but we’ll look at the video and I’m sure we’ll find a few faults a long the way.”
With Armagh laying down a marker for the summer to come, Wexford return to Croke Park to face Carlow in the Leinster championship in four weeks.
“We’ll find out then if we’ve learned what we should have from this defeat,” said Wexford manager Pat Roe.
Monaghan 3-13 Meath 3-12
If Armagh’s victory was largely a bloodless coup, Monaghan’s triumph in the Division Two final at Croke Park was as dramatic as it was unlikely.
Leading by two points deep into injury time, Meath looked to have secured the win when a bizarre own goal by substitute Mark Ward handed the title to Monaghan.
The referee’s final whistle which came immediately after Ward had somehow contrived to punch the ball into his own net sparked off a pitch invasion by 5,000 joyous Monaghan supporters who celebrated a first piece of national silverware in 20 years.
Their presence delayed the start of the Division One decider, but no one was complaining.
At the end of the rollercoaster of a game, Monaghan just about deserved to shade the verdict, but their prospects looked bleak as Paul Finlay lobbed a free into the goalmouth from 35 meters. Yet instead of catching and clearing the ball, an unmarked Ward inexplicably tried to punch it over the bar and only succeeded in finding his own net.
“That’s why it’s called football lads,” was Sean Boylan’s reaction to his team’s cruel defeat. ?
“I’ve certainly been around long enough to know that. It was a hell of a game and I’m sorry we didn’t get another crack.”
With both defenses far from their best, there were chances galore in a fast-moving contest and for a time, Meath looked as if they would justify all their winter work with a badly needed win. In the end, they only had themselves to blame for letting Monaghan back in.
If the Ulster team still has some way to go, theirs was a display full of intent and energy. Tomas Freeman hit 2-3 to cap a fine performance, and his brother Damien was at the heart of the resistance during the second half. Ollie Murphy, who came on as a sub for Graham Geraghty, caused the Monaghan defense all sorts of bother as he compiled a sharp 1-2, and Meath’s other goals came from Anthony Moyles and Trevor Giles.
“I knew they’d play until the bitter end,” said victorious manager Seamus McEnaney, “and I always felt it was going to come down to the last couple of minutes and thankfully it fell the right way for us. We did have a goal chance or two a few minutes earlier, so maybe we did deserve it.”
Maybe they did.
OTHER GAMES
Galway and Down have qualified for the All-Ireland under 21 football decider following last weekend’s semi finals. A contribution of 0-9 from Micheal Meehan was instrumental in Galway defeating Cork by 0-17 to 1-11 in Limerick, while Down got the better of Dublin by 2-7 to 0-9 at Navan.
The women’s National League title went to Cork, who were comprehensive 2-13 to 0-6 winners over Galway at the Gaelic Grounds, and in hurling, Carlow still managed to qualify for the National League Division Two final against Offaly even though they lost by 0-15 to 0-12 to Derry. Mayo won the Division Three title when they defeated Donegal by 1-14 to 2-10 at Markievicz Park.