On Saturday 27th of August, the Monaghan U14 Development Squad hurlers took part in a national U14 blitz in Ballyconnell, Co. Cavan. The blitz was divided into two groups of 4 teams. The Monaghan boys were drawn against Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal. They played Sligo in their first game and found the going very tough against a very well-drilled and physical Sligo team. Despite this the boys heads never dropped and they managed to close the gap slightly in the second half with the benefit of a strong wind but ultimately ended up on the losing side. Leitrim were up next and the boys showed great character to recover after their early loss. They were dominant throughout and won the game comfortably. Monaghan’s final group game pitted them against Donegal. Despite playing against a strong wind in the first half, an excellent performance by Monaghan saw them lead 1-3 to 0-0 at half time. They held out against a second half Donegal comeback to win and finish second in their group. The day finished with a game against Longford who finished second in their group. Again physicality was an issue against a very strong Longford team. The Monaghan lads displayed great heart and courage and made life difficult for their opponents but ended up losing the game. Best for Monaghan on the day were Niall Myers, Paudie Deery, Cathal Power, Reece Treanor, Ronan Curran, Ciaran Cassidy and Conor Flynn.

The U14 development squad was a great succes this year and the boys showed great commitment attitude during the year. Monaghan U14hurling panel: Alan Nugent, Paudie Deery, Niall Myers, Ronan Finnegan, Aaron Guernan, Cathal Power, Seanan O’Gorman, Reece Treanor, Ronan Curran, Patrick Mitchell, Luke McKenna, Ciaran Cassidy, Ruairi Farrell, Conor Flynn, Pearse McKenna, Micheal Coburn, Ryan Connolly, Alan Duffy, Remmy McKenna, Mark Murphy, Ryan Finnegan, Matthew Flood, Aaron Wilcox, Cathal Kerr, Frank Connolly