Experimental Farney will take positives from opener
Analysis
Colm Shalvey
McKenna Cup games don’t tend to last too long in the collective memory, but for a host of players from both Monaghan and Cavan, last Saturday evening will always be a special one for them as they got a first chance to represent their county at senior level.
With Scotstown’s sizeable county contingent unavailable, along with a handful of injured players, plus the retirements of some long-serving stalwarts, Gabriel Bannigan has added several new faces to his panel for the start of 2026, with a raft of debuts being handed out on Saturday.
With Darren Hughes, Karl O’Connell and Kieran Duffy having followed Conor McManus into retirement and with Ciarán McNulty also unavailable this season, Monaghan need to unearth some talent as they look to build on a promising first campaign under Bannigan, which included securing a quick return to Division 1 of the National Football League.
Bannigan took the opportunity to include six first-time senior inter-county starters: Kian Mulligan in goals, Ronan Boyle, Cameron Dowd, Ryan Duffy and Thomas Hughes in defence and Oisín McGorman in the half-forward line. The latter five were all making their full debuts, while Mulligan had made a fleeting appearance off the bench as a temporary sub for Rory Beggan in last year’s championship win over Louth.
With Monaghan opting to restrict their Sigerson Cup players to no more than half an hour of game-time each, another three debutants (Alastair Stewart, Liam McDonald and Ryan Mohan) were introduced at half-time, later followed by Fionán Carolan, Oisín Monahan and Eddie Walsh.
Dowd, Mulligan and Walsh marked the occasion by kicking a point apiece, while Carolan went closest to finding the net after showing a glimpse of his pace to go clean through on goal in the 47th minute. As well as the debuts, there were returns off the bench for Daragh McElearney and Shane Hanratty and from the start for Karl Gallagher, who had nailed down a place in the county team in 2023 before AFL side Adelaide Crows came calling for the Emyvale man’s services.
Gallagher was selected as Man of the Match on his return to the white and blue jersey after contributing two points.
On a night where Monaghan were solid without being spectacular at any stage, it’s a testament to the work being done that they looked fairlycohesive, even given the turnover of players, helped by Mícheál Bannigan, David Garland and Andrew Woods finishing with 0-10 between them.
A new-look defensive unit held Cavan scoreless between the 38th and 52nd minutes and although the Breffni men got back on level terms on the hour mark, added-time points from the lively Garland, Bannigan and Walsh secured a winning start to 2026 for Monaghan, who had started with just four of their XV from All-Ireland SFC quarter-final loss to Donegal last June.
In a game where Cavan won more than 60% of the total number of kick-outs, Monaghan’s greater efficiency up front made the difference. Cavan got the better of the aerial battle in midfield, helped in no small part by the influence of Corofin, Co Galway clubman Ciarán Brady, whose high fielding caught the eye and will have pleased Dermot McCabe.
The hosts missed several scoring chances in the first half, however, while Monaghan converted almost 70% of their shots over the hour. Cavan kicked the only two two-pointers on a freezing night when the size 5 O’Neills will have felt a good bit heavier than usual, but Monaghan’s 16 white flags proved to be enough.
Paddy Lynch, who was diligently tracked throughout by Darragh Treanor, raised an orange flag from a free after Monaghan had breached the ‘four-back’ rule, while Oisín Brady later booted over a spectacular effort from the left wing.
Seán Callan, Packie Doogan-Burke, Darragh McKenna, Luke McManus, James Slevin and Jack Kiernan are among others who will hope to earn a first appearance in the Monaghan senior jersey in the coming weeks, while fellow rookies Harvey Colleran and Robbie Hanratty are on a list of long-term injury absentees that also features Killian Lavelle and youngsters Michael Hamill and Bobby McCaul.
Veterans Ryan Wylie and Ryan McAnespie are also sidelined for now, as are 2025 debutants Aaron Carey, Dylan Byrne and Louis Kelly.
There has also, of course, been a notable change in the Monaghan coaching team during the off-season, with the popular Andy Moran taking on the task of managing his native Mayo. Bannigan moved quickly to bolster his set-up with the addition of former Meath and Antrim manager Andy McEntee, who was on the Monaghan sideline for the first time at the weekend.
The management will get another chance to run the rule on their new-look panel when Fermanagh visit Castleblayney this Sunday for a 1.30pm throw-in. Depending on results tonight and on Sunday, Monaghan could then have a McKenna Cup semi-final next Wednesday, a week and a half out from their NFL Division 1 opener against 2024 All-Ireland winners Armagh.