Shackles off as Cavan SFC reaches knock-out stages

By Paul Fitzpatrick

With the group stage over, the safety net and various harnesses are now discarded and the challenge for the last eight teams is simple: Stay on the trapeze and don’t look down.

The group stage, if we’re honest, produced more questions than answers, with lines of form almost impossible to decipher. Players have returned at different stages, some teams were effectively qualified early and virtually all of the contenders have had at least one poor performance. Group form comes with a health warning which doesn’t help when it comes to calling the quarter-finals.

If results in previous seasons are anything to lean on, the contrast in quarter-final records on the part of Mullahoran and Crosserlough is worth noting.

Mullahoran haven’t reached a semi-final since 2012, when they went on to win the championship. They have failed to win their last seven quarter-finals, including two replays, while Crosserlough have been in every semi-final since 2018 bar 2021, when they exited at the group stage. In other words, when they have reached a quarter-final in that period, they have won it, seven in succession.

There is plenty to like about this young Mullahoran side, even though their results have fluctuated wildly: they beat Cavan Gaels, lost to Kingscourt, were hammered by Killygarry and then passed a serious test against Arva, coming from five down early on to win.

The return of Cormac O’Reilly after six months out is significant and he kicked the winner against Arva. One concern is their two-point shooting. Cormac McKeogh landed three against Cavan Gaels but, remarkably, Mullahoran haven’t scored another in the championship.

Crosserlough have been difficult to assess themselves. They edged Arva in an absolute classic on a balmy evening, although Arva were hard done by not to draw. Three days later they lost to Gowna, the short run-in rendering the bare form of that questionable, before predictably dismantling Laragh and coming from behind against a Kingscourt side with little at stake.

Paddy Lynch showed signs of finding form against Kingscourt while Dara McVeety has been excellent, albeit used sparingly.

The Dreadnoughts should put up a bold show, particularly with O’Reilly back, but Crosserlough know this territory intimately and anything other than a Lough win would be a seismic upset.

Gowna, meanwhile, are another side who are difficult to pin down. They opened with a sloppy draw against Ballyhaise before beating Crosserlough and putting Castlerahan to the sword. Importantly, Cian Madden was excellent against Cuchulainns last time out and, crucially, players appear to be returning to fitness at the right time.

Their depth of proven talent is remarkable. Eight of this squad have played Senior Championship football for Cavan in the last 15 months; there cannot be many clubs in Ulster, possibly Ireland, with a greater concentration of recent county senior players. Teenagers Odhran Madden and Fiachra Brady have stepped up too.

Ramor began with defeats by two points to Kingscourt and one to Cuchulainns before seeing off Ballyhaise by one and Castlerahan by two.

There were mitigating circumstances. Ben Smith and James Brady returned from Australia and were finding their feet, the Magee brothers hadn’t featured in the league and Sean McEvoy was injured in the opening league round and only returned for championship.

One could argue that Ramor essentially blew up some bad diesel during the group or that they are going poorly; we probably won’t know till they take the field this weekend.

McEvoy’s 1-7 last time out was encouraging and Ben O’Hara has been a real find. They have also had a week to regroup and don’t traditionally fear Gowna – they went over 15 years without losing to them before Gowna ended that sequence emphatically last season in round four.

Neither has fully convinced. A draw would be no surprise but there is a suspicion Ramor have a significant performance in them.

Killygarry v Cuchulainns is maybe the most intriguing tie.

Cuchulainns are attempting a magnificent coup – winning the Division 1 league and Senior Championship in their first season back at this level following relegation in 2017.

They won all seven IFC matches last year, reached the Ulster final and beat All-Ireland favourites Clonoe in the semi-final. This season they defeated Ramor, Crosserlough and Gowna consecutively to claim Division 1 honours before opening their championship with wins over Laragh and Ramor.

Those four points effectively qualified them. Students of Cavan’s championship system will know that in 10 years, only once has a team on four points missed the knock-outs (Cootehill in 2018).

That context should be remembered when assessing Cuchulainns’ subsequent losses to Kingscourt and Gowna, although two defeats entering a quarter-final are hardly ideal and raise the question of whether they peaked too early.

They will look to county man Niall Carolan, who kicked 0-3 from wing-back last time out, with Evan Doughty’s fitness a concern.

Killygarry, meanwhile, have got plenty of criticism for their championship record and it’s probably deserved. For all their talent, they have reached the last eight only three times since 2018. That is under-achievement for a club which consistently produces county players at all levels, especially forwards; Cian Keaney and Darragh Noonan are the latest of those and both have been sensational. Darragh Lovett is back after injury problems, as is Cian Reilly, while Jack Murphy is doing well around midfield.

Their demolition of Mullahoran was the highlight of a group in which they also beat Castlerahan and Laragh before losing to Arva.

This game feels 50-50 but if Killygarry can supply enough quality ball to that attack, they have the firepower to pull off what could be seen as an upset.

That leaves a storied championship fixture to finish in Cavan Gaels v Kingscourt, a tie which boasts a huge history, and one which has often become fiery and physical.

Kingscourt are defending champions yet haven’t retained the title since 1991; the Gaels, for their part, haven’t made the final since 2017 but have been in the knock-out stages every season since.

The Stars’ defeat to Crosserlough last time means little; Jordan Morris, Aaron Shekleton and Barry Tully were among those rested and their squad is actually strengthening. Last year’s county final Man of the Match Joe Dillon has recently returned from injury, Odhran Cunningham is back from working overseas and Padraig Faulkner is due home from New York.

The Gaels have been unpredictable: they lost to Mullahoran, hammered Laragh while scoring 1-29, produced an excellent win over Arva in difficult conditions and then turned in a poor performance against Ballyhaise.

The Shehu brothers remain the main men, Evaan Fortune is back from injury and going well and Ben Tully impressed against Arva. They have potential but Emmanuel Shehu’s fitness could be crucial.

Kingscourt appear to have improved since winning the championship last year. Their panel is deeper and they have the look of a team who were content simply to negotiate the group and get everyone ready for this stage.

Now we find out.