Ulster Senior Football Championship Semi-Final Replay

Donegal 0-17 Monaghan 2-10                                  2/7/16

Monaghan’s bid to retain the Ulster SFC ended with a one-point defeat in their semi-final replay against Donegal at Kingspan Breffni Park, Cavan on Saturday.

A very slow start saw Monaghan concede five unanswered points in the opening quarter and although goals by Shane Carey and Conor McManus ignited their challenge, Donegal were still full value for their 0-10 to 2-2 half-time lead. Monaghan competed better after the restart, helped by an impact from a number of substitutes, two of whom got on the scoresheet, namely Jack McCarron and Conor Boyle. Monaghan twice moved within a point in the dying minutes, but they couldn’t find an equaliser that would have kept their hopes of making a fourth consecutive final alive.

Donegal had 12 points from their full-forward line of Martin O’Reilly, Michael Murphy and Patrick McBrearty as they went through to the decider for a sixth year in a row. Monaghan now enter the qualifiers with a Round 2B tie against Longford in Clones next Saturday at 7pm.

Donegal: MA McGinley; P McGrath, É McGee, K Lacey; F McGlynn (0-1), C Gillespie, R McHugh; R Kavanagh (0-1), O Mac Niallais; A Thompson (0-1), M McElhinney (0-1), E McHugh; M O’Reilly (0-3), M Murphy (Capt., 0-5, 4f, 1 ‘45), P McBrearty (0-4, 3f).

Subs: M McHugh (0-1) for Thompson (black card, 32), C Toye for McElhinney (53), M McElhinney for Mac Niallais (69), E Bán Gallagher for O’Reilly (70 + 3).

Monaghan: R Beggan; C Walshe (0-1), V Corey, R Wylie; K O’Connell, D Wylie, K Duffy; F Kelly, K Hughes; R McAnespie, D Hughes, S Carey (1-1); O Duffy (0-1), D McKenna, C McManus (Capt., 1-4, 1-0 pen, 0-1f, 0-1 ‘45).

Subs: N McAdam for D Wylie, D Malone for McKenna (both HT), C Boyle (0-1) for R Wylie (45 mins), C McCarthy for Carey (48), J McCarron (0-2) for K Hughes (53), D Mone for Kelly (63).

Referee: M Deegan (Laois).