Donaghmoyne want their title back

By Maitiu Monaghan

It has been a strange couple of years for the Donaghmoyne Ladies team.

For most of the 21st century, winning the Monaghan Senior Championship was a guarantee, the first challenge in a season that only began once the Ulster Championship got going in earnest.

Winning had become a way of life in south Monaghan. That was until 2024, when a shock defeat to Magheracloone changed everything.

After years of nothing but success, just like that the grip they had over Monaghan football loosened, and the club are still looking to clench it back.

Last weekend, the Fontenoy's recorded a comprehensive 3-20 to 1-7 win over Magheracloone- but manager Annmarie Burns believes that the standard of club football in Monaghan is getting stronger.

"Ideally it would be great," she said of winning a Championship. "It is harder every year. The other teams are stepping up a lot more. We've been going well, a couple of good matches.

"Magheracloone are a tough team, so it was good to get over the line. We play each other a fair bit, they've been up Senior for a number of years. The score isn't a fair reflection, it was a tough match," Burns told The Celt.

The local woman hadn't planned on going directly into management but fell into the roll and has been doing it for a number of years.

Figureheads like Francis Coleman are still involved in the background, while Niamh Lynch and Derek Walsh have all established themselves in the background team.

After years of unbridled success, the loss to Magheracloone in 24' still hurts for Donaghmoyne. As the years unbeaten mounted, surely it had dawned on them that they would be beaten at some stage?

"We always knew it was going to happen, teams were getting better. We played Magheracloone in Magheracloone that year.

"We had a couple of bad injured and girls travelling, a few things. We didn't have the minors coming through at the time. We still should have won it.

"It was one of those days where anything that could go wrong did go wrong. You can't win all the time either," Burns explained.

Last year, Donaghmoyne did reach the final, only to be pipped by Emmet Óg in the decider. It is another loss that hurts for the club.

"We did put our heads down, we said we'd give it a good rattle," the manager began.

"We were probably unlucky in the final - a wee bit. We went up, and we should have seen it out.

"But Emmet Óg have been knocking around for a few years, they have a good squad of girls, good minors. It was their day."

The relationship between Donaghmoyne and the County team is one that has fascinated fans for quite some time.

Naturally, the club has always had a large cohort of players representing the county, but Burns believes that a mixture is needed in order for Monaghan to compete at the highest level.

Although clearly driven by leading Donaghmoyne back to winning ways, Burns does have strong thoughts on how Monaghan can also get back to the top table. "It is good to see other teams winning at minor, it can only be good for our county.

"The club always had seven or eight girls playing on the county team. The last couple of years the older girls would have stepped away, but that isn't healthy either.

"You need a good mix on a county team. This year we had six running with them, Emmet Óg had eight.

"We are still concentrating on one or two clubs, there are other girls- it is trying to get them out to play. It is a big commitment, it isn't like it used to be years ago. There is a squad of girls good enough."