February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
Paul McGlynn continued his fine season with two early frees. Stephen Flynn countered with a like score from Kerry. Then Monaghan drew a rise from the crowd when Mickey McEntee fired home a goal.
Mickey Art Traynor was the set-up man, alertly breaking the ball into the path of his fellow veteran. Kerry immediately went about mounting their comeback, getting points from D.J. Fleming and Bingo O’Driscoll, who really should have goaled after Dave McCarthy’s excellent set up, but it was soon apparent that O’Driscoll was not himself.
After Kerry pulled ahead on four unanswered points from four different players, O’Driscoll limped off with a stubborn hamstring injury. Pa Murphy checked in and took on the unfamiliar full-forward role. Murphy began the match on the bench, recovering from his own injury, and on Sunday’s performance, he looks to be back in form.
McGlynn interrupted Kerry’s dominance with a good point from a Treanor feed, but Kerry were on a roll. Dave McCarthy had two points in that Kerry comeback, and his incisive passes burned the Monaghan backs and placed his teammates in position to do damage.
Kerry led by 0-11 to 1-4 at the break and it would get no closer.
Pa Murphy opened the second half scoring with a Kerry goal that more or less sealed matters. Monaghan would score only 0-3 in the final 30 minutes, all from the boot of Paul McGlynn.
They might have had more but for their unfortunate habit of dropping the ball into Finbarr Flood’s hands in the Kerry goal. On six occasions, Monaghan made Flood look good as he gathered their short shots and sent the Kerry attack right back at them.
Despite picking up three second-half goals, Kerry weren’t overly sharp in a lifeless second half, but they will happily take the points as their perfect season rolls on.
Man of the Match: Dave McCarthy
Kerry: Finbarr Flood, Paudie Mulvihill, Derek Riney, Sammy Finn, Collie Fearon, Owen Lawlor, Eanna Kavanagh, John Golden, Don Murphy, Ray Keane (0-1), Dennis Carroll (0-2), Dave McCarthy (1-4, 1 free, 1 sideline), D. J. Fleming (1-3), Bingo O’Driscoll, Stephen Flynn (0-2). Subs: Dave McSweeney, Willie O’Donnell, Pa Murphy (1-2), Paul Dillon.
Monaghan: Gerry Coleman, Dan Scott, Nicholas, Seamus DeBruin, Gerard McCall, Stephen Fitzpatrick, Brendan O’Donoghue, Hughie O’Sullivan, Ed Greenan, Paddy Skeath, Mark Dobbin, Nestor Allen, Mickey Art Treanor, Paul McGlynn (0-7, 4 frees), Mickey McEntee (1-0). Sub: Brian McKenna.